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Texas man who threatened Boston doctor who provides care to transgender patients pleads guilty

39-year-old Matthew Jordan Lidner targeted the Boston doctor with multiple calls. He faces five years in prison.

December 14, 2023

1 minute to read

A 39-year-old Texas man pleaded guilty to threatening a Boston doctor who provides health care to transgender people, federal prosecutors said.

Matthew Jordan Lidner of Comfort, Texas was arrested and charged in his home state last year. He pleaded guilty in federal court in Boston on Wednesday to one count of interstate transmission of threatening communication.

In August 2022, Lidner called the National LGBTQIA+ Health Education Center, a program at the Fenway Institute in Boston, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Massachusetts.

“You sick motherf*****s, you’re all gonna burn,” he said in a voicemail to target the victim, an affiliated doctor. “There’s a group of people on their way to handle [victim]. You signed your own warrant, lady. Castrating our children. You’ve woken up enough people. And upset enough of us. And you signed your own ticket. Sleep well, you f****** c***.”

Prosecutors said Lidner’s threatening voicemail came amid a flurry of inaccurate information spread online about health care for transgender children being provided at Boston Children’s Hospital.

Lidner continued to target the doctor. He called her former medical practice and the university where the doctor was a faculty member.

“Doctors who serve pediatric patients, including the victim in this case and staff at Boston Children’s Hospital, have dedicated their professional lives to treating children. They should be celebrated for their contributions to so many in their time of need,” Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy said in a press release about the guilty plea. “Instead, this defendant threatened a doctor with violence just for doing her job. This conduct is deplorable and sends a chill through the medical community,”

Lidner faces up to five years in prison, up to three years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000. His sentencing is set for February.