Jessica Mathews / news@whmi.com


A White Lake man will serve even more prison time for making threats against an Ingham County judge.

On Wednesday, 43-year-old Christopher Shenberger was sentenced to 58-240 months behind bars after earlier pleading guilty to one count of Attempted False Report or Threat of Terrorism as a habitual fourth-time offender for threatening his sentencing judge.

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel says the sentence is to be served consecutively to his current prison sentence.

In December of 2021, Shenberger sent a letter to Ingham County Circuit Court Judge Joyce Draganchuk complaining about potentially being denied parole for not completing a required sex offender program while incarcerated and threatening the judge’s life. Draganchuk was the same judge who, in 2016, sentenced Shenberger to 75–180 months' incarceration for two counts of 3rd-degree Criminal Sexual Conduct and one count of Criminal Sexual Conduct 4th degree. Shenberger is currently serving that sentence.

Shenberger wrote in the letter that if he were required to serve his maximum sentence, he would put “everyone’s name on that docket” on a slip of paper to “go into a jar or whatever and who’s ever name [is picked] up will be killed plain and simple.”
   
At the time of Shenberger’s guilty plea, Nessel said “Revenge threats against prosecutors and judges are serious offenses and my office will diligently prosecute these crimes to protect the public servants in our justice system. No judge should be sacrificing their own safety when they fulfill their duties protecting the public.” 

Shenberger was charged in the 30th Circuit Court in Ingham County. As Draganchuk was the subject of the threat, visiting Judge John McBain of the Jackson County Circuit Court presided over the matter.