$75,000 bond set for man accused of threatening Middletown judge

A man is being held on a $75,000 bond after he allegedly threatened Middletown Municipal Court Judge Melynda Cook Howard.

Timothy Wayne Abney, 41, of the 2300 block of Waneta Street, was in court Friday morning for a pre-trial hearing on a misdemeanor domestic violence charge, according to municipal court records.

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When Abney was being escorted back to the jail, which is located in the basement of the city building, he threatened the judge by stating she was a “(expletive, expletive) and I better not find out where that (expletive) lives,” according to the complaint filed by Middletown Police Detective Jon Hoover.

Abney was then charged with retaliation, a third-degree felony.

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Visiting Judge Thomas Hanna arraigned Abney on Friday afternoon on the new charge, set bond, and set a preliminary hearing for Dec. 18.

Abney was also told to stay away from Cook Howard

“I said some things I shouldn’t have … it is a big misunderstanding,” Abney told Hanna at the arraignment.

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