Oregon Felon Jailed for Calling a Circuit Court Judge ‘Dead Man Walking’ and Threatening to Kill Him
A Portland man who called an Oregon district court judge ‘dead man walking,’ sending him letters threatening to stalk, beat up, stab and kill him, and harm his family, has been sentenced to 13 months and one day in prison by an Arizona judge who handled the hearing to avoid conflict of interest.
Arizona Judge Presided to Avoid Conflict of Interest
Steven Dawayne Willis appeared before U.S. Senior District Judge Raner C. Collins, who flew to Portland to handle the case involving U.S. District Judge Marco A. Hernandez.
The hearing related to March 8, 2022, when Hernandez dismissed one of more than 60 civil complaints Willis had filed while in prison against Portland and Beaverton police, the Multnomah and Washington County Sheriff’s Offices, the FBI, and the CIA.
Man Must Be Supervised for Three Years After His Release from Prison
Apart from his prison term, Judge Collins sentenced Willis to six months at a residential reentry center upon his release, to GPS monitoring and home detention for the first year after his release, and three years of supervision.
Willis (37) sent the letter to Judge Hernandez’s judicial chamber threatening to locate his whereabouts via ‘google lens’. He wrote two more threatening letters to the judge that were intercepted by Multnomah County Sheriff deputies.
Willis filed civil lawsuits against an FBI agent and a deputy marshal, accusing them of assault. He also sent handwritten letters to two Portland police officers, in which he threatened to kill them and a state judge, as stated in court records.
Before his sentencing yesterday (Monday), Willis pleaded guilty to one count of retaliating against a federal official by threat.
Willis told the court that he did not have the right to make the people he threatened fear for their lives…’I know they were just doing their jobs.’
Steven Dawayne Willis Did Not Use His Mental Illness to Excuse His Actions
Willis was diagnosed as a schizophrenic with psychotic disorders when he was incarcerated at the Oregon Snake River Correctional Institution last year but did not use his mental illness as an excuse for his actions.
Federal Public Defender Dennis Carroll said that after his diagnosis, Willis started taking prescribed medication and received counseling. Carroll said Willis’ Snake River record was ‘spotless, adding that Willis had worked behind bars in a call center doing telemarketing.
Judge Collins ordered Willis to have no contact with Judge Hernandez or the police officers he threatened to harm. Noting that Willis has a lengthy criminal record, Judge Collins also cautioned him with a stiffer prison sentence if he violates any conditions upon release.
Court records show that Willis has a history of 10 misdemeanor convictions, 15 probation violations, one felony conviction, and 21 instances of failing to appear in court.