The high-profile nature of the Britney Spears case, also known as #FreeBritney has resulted in intense public discourse: the good, the bad and the threatening.

Right now, police are currently monitoring death threats being directed towards the judge who has been handling the Spears case, Judge Penny.

As highlighted by Variety, Judge Penny has now long been the focus of scrutiny via social media, seeing her be on the receiving end of threatening tweets like, “Brenda Penny, I hope you die in your sleep,” and  “The judge is in on this, clearly. Horrible.”

A media spokesperson for the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department (LASD) has now issued Variety with a statement which states that they are monitoring social media.

They said, “LASD continues to monitor the social media chatter regarding the ongoing Britney Spears civil court case. Although some of the language on social media is concerning, at this time, it has not risen to the level of a creditable criminal threat.”

David Glass, family law attorney and former clinical psychologist also spoke with Variety, saying, “This is sick.”

“Everyone needs to take a step back, take a deep breath and realize conservatorship cases take months [or] years to resolve. Britney’s case has already moved much faster than most,” he added.

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While there isn’t a 100% resolve yet on the case, Spears’ father, Jamie Spears has agreed to step down as her conservator.

(Britney) Spears’ lawyer wrote in a statement, “We are pleased that Mr. Spears and his lawyer have today conceded in a filing that he must be removed. It is vindication for Britney. We are disappointed, however, by their ongoing shameful and reprehensible attacks on Ms. Spears and others.”

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