Woman Charged Over Swatting Government Official

This is an unbelievable story. It’s starting to gain traction not just across Indiana, but even nationally. And it involves a woman named Gloria Niedbalski and a swatting incident targeting an elected official in St. Joseph County. This is the South Bend area. The councilwoman involved is Amy Drake. According to police, Niedbalski is now facing charges related to swatting, and she has resigned from her position on the Property Tax Appeals Board. And that’s what makes this even more incredible. This entire situation revolves around a position on the Property Tax Appeals Board. So let’s take a second to explain that, because it matters. Every year, you get your property tax assessment. And you have the right to challenge it. You should. At the very least, call your county assessor and ask them to explain how they came up with your assessment. That costs nothing. That’s their job. Sometimes they’ll even catch their own mistakes. That happens. From there, if you still disagree, you can formally appeal. And that appeal goes before the Property Tax Appeals Board. You present your case. They make a decision. It’s an important role. But most people have no idea who serves on that board in their own county. These members are appointed by the county council. And in this case, that’s where things went off the rails. According to police, Niedbalski was up for reappointment to the board. She actually received enough votes to be reappointed. But Amy Drake voted against her. One vote. That’s it. And according to police, that led to this. Niedbalski allegedly called a child services hotline and claimed that Drake’s two young children were home alone. She even claimed to be Drake’s neighbor. There’s just one problem. Those neighbors hadn’t lived there for three years. Think about that. This was allegedly done over a single vote on a reappointment to a board. That’s how far this went. Look, people should care about government. They should be engaged. They should hold elected officials accountable. Absolutely. But this is not that. You can’t be swatting people. You can’t be putting families in danger. You can’t be making false claims that could lead to children being removed from a home. And you certainly can’t be doing it in a way that’s this reckless. If the allegations are proven, the consequences should be severe. Because while elected officials should be held accountable, they should not be targeted or put at risk like this.