Judge in robbery case threatened

Threats such as recently discovered social media posts advocating violence against Montgomery County Juvenile Court Judge Anthony Capizzi are being taken earnestly by local law enforcement.

“In today’s world, anything that comes close to a threat against a judge, we certainly want to treat very seriously based upon what’s happened in other jurisdictions,” said juvenile court administrator Jim Cole on Wednesday. “In today’s world, with judges getting shot and things like that, we’re really looking at these security issues.”

Social media posts appearing to threaten the judge for his comments to six juvenile defendants in the Huber Heights cell phone-store armed robbery case were emailed to several law enforcement agencies.

The email was obtained Wednesday by the Dayton Daily News.

“If I ever see him I’m beating the (expletive) outta him he better pray I don’t catch him downtown coming out of that building,” said one post that included a photo of Capizzi.

Another post discovered by this news organization said, in part: “Somebody need to split Judge Capizzi wig when he get off work.”

Capizzi declined comment, but Cole talked about the potential for criminal charges such as menacing or aggravated menacing.

“You get a variety of emails, judges do, that people are unhappy with the decision, but it doesn’t rise to the level of something that could be charged under a criminal offense, and it’s more just kind of logging that particular information,” Cole said.

“But when it rises to the level where it qualifies potentially as a criminal offense ... that’s when that’s turned over to the sheriff ’s office, and then they’re going to have to decide if it’s appropriate for a criminal charge.”

Montgomery County Sheriff Phil Plummer said Wednesday that he hadn’t yet been notified of these threats against Capizzi. Plummer also said his office has worked recent threats against two area judges.

“That’s our job, to look into a threat,” Plummer said, adding that in the case of a warning of violence, “we would do a complete workup on that and try to charge them.”

This newspaper is not naming those associated with the Facebook posts because no one has been formally charged.

Messages seeking comment were left with Dayton police and the Montgomery County Prosecutor’s Office.

A seventh person, Caleb W. Johnson, 18, was charged in the Huber Heights armed robbery and is in adult court.

Montgomery County Common Pleas Court administrator James Dare said he and one of the court’s judges collect all threats — by phone, letter or other means — and work with the sheriff ’s office.

“I protect all the judges,” Plummer said. “That’s one of my jobs.”