NEWS
Silver City man charged with threatening federal officer in court
Man facing up to two years in prison
Published
Modified
A Silver City man has been charged for allegedly threatening a U.S. Forest Service officer during a court hearing in June.
Fred Berry, 55, is charged with making threats to a federal law enforcement officer. He will remain in custody pending trial, which has not yet been scheduled.
If convicted of the charges, he faces up to two years in prison, according to a Tuesday news release from Tessa DuBerry, spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Berry was attending a June 11 sentencing hearing at a federal courthouse in Las Cruces related to prior violations occurring on U.S. Forest Service land, according to a criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court.
At the end of the hearing, a USFS officer 鈥� who was only identified in court records as Officer CA 鈥� walked up to Berry to issue two additional citations for making a campfire during campfire restrictions and another for not properly throwing away his garbage, the complaint states.
Berry allegedly became confrontational after receiving the citations and he reportedly leaned toward the officer and threatened him with bodily harm, according to the complaint.
The officer later reported that he saw Berry 鈥済ritting his teeth and tense up his body when he made that statement,鈥� the complaint states. He said that he was concerned Berry would physically attack him.
A Bureau of Land Management ranger and a courtroom security officer saw the confrontation and later heard Berry say, 鈥淚 said what I said鈥� when he was asked if the statement was a threat, the release said.
Nakayla McClelland covers crime and breaking news. Reach her at nmcclelland@abqjournal.com or at 505-823-3857.
