Streator man gets 3 years in prison for death threats to public officials

A Streator man accused of threatening La Salle County judges and lawyers pleaded guilty Thursday and was sentenced to three years in prison.

Joseph A. Call, 36, appeared in a Zoom conference with his fill-in judge, Associate Judge Brenda Claudio, who was brought in from Kankakee because none of the La Salle County judges could hear Call’s case.

Call pleaded guilty to threatening a public official. According to court records, he made threats against three judges, the public defender, the state’s attorney and two assistant state’s attorneys. The threats were made on social media on May 3 and May 6.

Most of the targeted victims stayed silent after Thursday’s plea, declining to comment.

La Salle County State’s Attorney Joe Navarro issued only a brief statement on behalf of himself and two assistants, who also were the subject of death threats.

“Anytime you threaten a public official, it’s very serious and deserves consequences,” Navarro said.