FEDERAL JURY CONVICTS INMATE OF MAKING THREATS TO A FEDERAL JUDGE AND A NEWSPAPER EDITOR

AMARILLO, Tx. --- A federal jury in Amarillo has convicted Alan Van DeLaughter on one count of mailing threats to damage or destroy property and one count of mailing a threatening communication, announced U.S. Attorney Richard B. Roper, of the Northern District of Texas. Van DeLaughter, 36, was an inmate at the Allred Unit of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice in Iowa Park, Texas. He faces a maximum statutory sentence of 20 years in prison and a $500,000 fine; a sentencing date was not set.

The government presented evidence at trial that on March 26, 2007, Van DeLaughter mailed a threat to Robert W. Mong, Jr., the editor of the Dallas Morning News, that threatened a historical disaster at the Eldon B. Mahon U.S. Courthouse was going to take place. The government also presented evidence to the jury that on June 7, 2005, Van DeLaughter mailed a letter addressed to: United States District Court, Honorable Judge McBride, 501 West 10 Street, Ft. Worth, Texas 76102, 3643, which contained a threat to end the life of U.S. District Judge McBryde and his family.

U.S. Attorney Roper praised the investigative efforts of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Secret Service. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christy Drake and Vicki Lamberson of the Amarillo, Texas, U.S. Attorney's Office.