A New Jersey woman who threatened a Middletown City Court judge and his family is now facing up to 364 days in the Orange County jail.
Orange County District Attorney David Hoovler said that on May 1, Yon Renee Woodson-Renner, 65, of Atlantic City, New Jersey, was convicted of second-degree aggravated harassment, a misdemeanor, in the City of Middletown Court.
Hoovler said evidence showed that Woodson-Renner had left a message on the City of Middletown Court telephone system in March of 2023 threatening to cause physical harm to a Middletown City Court judge and his family.
The judge, Steven W. Brockett, had previously presided over a trial in which Woodson-Renner was convicted of second-degree criminal contempt and second-degree criminal trespass, both misdemeanors. She was sentenced to six months in the Orange County jail.
The threatening voicemail was allegedly left on or about March 23, 2023.
Woodson-Renner’s resulting trial was held before Newburgh Town Justice Richard Clarino, because both current Middletown judges, Brockett and Theresa R. Cayton, recused themselves.
Hoovler said a jury concluded that the message Woodson-Renner left for the judge served no legitimate purpose, and that it was reasonable for the judge to be fearful of the defendant.
“A threat to a judge is a threat that goes to the very integrity of our criminal justice system and must be taken extremely seriously,” Hoovler said in a statement released by his office. “I applaud the actions of the judge in this case for having made the appropriate notifications to law enforcement, and then recusing himself from the proceedings so that there would not be any appearance of impropriety.
Woodson-Renner’s attorney, Catherine Lee, could not immediately be reached for comment.
Mike Randall covers breaking news for the Times Herald-Record and the Poughkeepsie Journal. Reach him at mrandall@th-record.com.
This article originally appeared on Times Herald-Record: NJ woman who threatened Middletown city court judge to get jail time
Reporting by Mike Randall, Middletown Times Herald- Record / Times Herald-Record
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