CONDITIONAL THREAT LANGUAGE

From State v. Roberson, 37 N.C. App. 714 (1978) "Threatening language can amount to an offer to injure a person even though it is a conditional offer. The condition, "[i]f you come any closer," can have a reasonable likelihood of occurring and does not negate an intention to carry out the threat. Such a condition is distinguishable from the condition imposed in the statement, "'Were you not an old man, I would knock you down.'" The condition imposed in this latter statement is so restrictive as to indicate that there may actually have been no present intention to knock the old man down. State v. Crow, 23 N.C. 375 <https://demo.lawriter.net/find_case?cite=23%20N.C.%20375> (1841)."