Nicholas Leo, a 57-year-old Yonkers attorney, was arrested in June 2025 and charged with felony aggravated harassment of a judge after prosecutors said he sent 53 threatening emails and a series of menacing text messages to the Westchester County judge handling his divorce and domestic violence proceedings. He was initially jailed without bail, then released the next day on a $250,000 bond with GPS monitoring after the District Attorney’s Office corrected a mistaken claim about his firearms.1The Journal News / lohud. Yonkers Lawyer Who Allegedly Threatened Judge Is Granted Bail in Reversal
The Charges and What He Allegedly Sent
The Westchester County District Attorney’s Office filed a felony complaint alleging Leo sent threatening electronic messages to Acting State Supreme Court Justice Susan M. Capeci between May 13 and June 11, 2025. Justice Capeci presides over Westchester County’s Integrated Domestic Violence court and was handling both criminal and matrimonial proceedings involving Leo.2Westchester County District Attorney. Yonkers Attorney Charged With Harassment of Westchester County Judge
The complaint quoted specific messages:
- May 27, 2025: “I’m going to beat you.”
- May 30, 2025: “I wish you die tonight in a car fire.”
- June 11, 2025: “I warned you month after month after month. If you take my kids from me for no reason, which you did, it’s not gonna go well,” and “I hope you die.”
Prosecutors said Leo sent 53 emails in total during that window, which an assistant district attorney described as “vulgar, abusive and most significantly threatening.”3The Journal News / lohud. Yonkers Lawyer Nicholas Leo Denied Bail Over Alleged Email Threats to Judge
He was charged with one count of aggravated harassment of a judge under New York Penal Law § 240.33, a Class E felony that applies when a person sends threatening communications to a judge with intent to harass and knows or should know the messages would cause the judge to reasonably fear for their safety.4Findlaw. NY Penal Law § 240.33, Aggravated Harassment of a Judge A Class E felony carries a maximum prison term of four years under New York sentencing law.5New York State Senate. NY Penal Law § 70.00, Sentence of Imprisonment for Felony
The Divorce and Domestic Violence Cases Behind the Threats
The alleged threats came out of a contested custody fight. Leo’s wife filed for divorce in September 2024, and the matrimonial case, indexed as Buonocore v. Leo, was assigned to Westchester County Supreme Court.6New York Post. Lawyer Threatens NYS Judge in Unhinged Texts, Officials Say
Leo also faced criminal charges in Justice Capeci’s Integrated Domestic Violence court. He was arrested in November 2024 on a charge of first-degree criminal contempt and again in May 2025 on a charge of second-degree criminal contempt, both tied to alleged violations of orders of protection. Those cases were pending when the harassment charge was filed.7The Journal News / lohud. Yonkers Lawyer and Defendant Nicholas Leo Allegedly Threatens Westchester Judge Susan Capeci
His gun license was revoked, and he was ordered to surrender 21 licensed firearms. According to the Journal News, Leo left 15 guns at St. Mary’s Church and six more in an unlocked safe outside Yonkers police headquarters. An earlier criminal contempt charge tied to the weapons had been dismissed on speedy trial grounds.1The Journal News / lohud. Yonkers Lawyer Who Allegedly Threatened Judge Is Granted Bail in Reversal
How Bail Was Denied and Then Granted
Leo was arraigned on June 13, 2025, in White Plains City Court before Judge John P. Collins Jr., who ordered him held without bail at the Westchester County Jail and issued a temporary order of protection barring any contact with Justice Capeci.2Westchester County District Attorney. Yonkers Attorney Charged With Harassment of Westchester County Judge
At a bail hearing on June 16, defense attorney David Ortiz argued that Leo was a lifelong Yonkers resident with no prior criminal convictions, ran a law practice and businesses in the city, had appeared at every court date, and needed to remain free to continue mental health treatment. “He is a man who has been going through a lot of turmoil in his life,” Ortiz told the court. Assistant District Attorney John Thomas opposed bail, pointing to the 53 emails, describing a “clear deterioration of the defendant’s mental state” and an “escalation of behavior,” and telling the court Leo had failed to surrender all 21 of his guns. State Supreme Court Justice James McCarty denied bail.3The Journal News / lohud. Yonkers Lawyer Nicholas Leo Denied Bail Over Alleged Email Threats to Judge
The next day, Justice McCarty reversed himself after the District Attorney’s Office admitted that its firearms claim was wrong. Leo had, in fact, surrendered all 21 guns. McCarty set bail at a $250,000 bond and imposed conditions that included a GPS ankle monitor, surrender of Leo’s passport and travel documents, and a signed waiver of extradition.1The Journal News / lohud. Yonkers Lawyer Who Allegedly Threatened Judge Is Granted Bail in Reversal
Where the Case Stands
As of the most recent available information, the felony aggravated harassment charge against Leo remained pending, and his law license retained an active registration status.8ABA Journal. Lawyer Faces Felony Charges for Threatening New York Judge
In a separate proceeding, Leo filed an Article 78 petition in 2026, appearing pro se, seeking a writ of mandamus to compel State Supreme Court Justice Elizabeth Fox-McDonough to decide pending motions in the Buonocore v. Leo divorce case. On April 15, 2026, the Appellate Division, Second Department, denied the petition and dismissed it on the merits, finding that Leo had not shown a “clear legal right” to the relief sought and that mandamus applies only to ministerial acts.9NY Courts. Matter of Leo v Fox-McDonough, 2026 NY Slip Op 02268