In late 2023, Luke Wenke pleaded guilty to one out of five federal probation violation charges alleging that he had contacted several victims in violation of state- and federally-imposed protective orders and contact bans. In exchange for his guilty plea, the court dismissed the four remaining counts (despite evidence arguably pointing toward his guilt, including handwritten letters that myself and other victims had received).
Despite the prosecution’s objections, the judge overseeing the case released Luke Wenke from the Cattaraugus County Jail on an ankle monitor on December 8th, 2023 as he awaited sentencing for the violation charge that he had pleaded guilty to.
Less Than a Week Later…
As a condition of his release on presentencing monitoring, Luke Wenke was ordered to go straight to the Erie County Medical Center (ECMC) in Buffalo and request a psychological/psychiatric evaluation. According to the email below, which was exchanged between federal probation personnel in anticipation of an upcoming status conference, Wenke complied with the requirement. He was reportedly deemed a non-threat to himself and/or others and was released from ECMC’s CPEP unit following his evaluation, but the staff members overseeing his supervision had difficulty reaching the social worker who conducted the assessment despite having her direct phone number.
On December 14th, 2023 — just days after Wenke’s release on an ankle monitor — the judge remanded him back into custody (this time, at the Orleans County Jail in Albion, NY) due to lingering concerns over his behavior on social media and complications situating court-ordered mental health evaluations and treatment. During a court hearing that took place that day, federal probation and the U.S. government voiced their continued belief that Luke Wenke needed to be detained for the safety of the community. The document below contains examples of social media posts from Wenke’s six days on GPS monitoring that probation found concerning and brought to the attention of the court.
USA v. Luke Wenke – Email
December 14th, 2023
CASE #1:22-cr-00035, DOC. #106
Katie Mentions: 1
USA v. Luke Wenke – Email – Doc. #106 – 12/14/2023Categories: Luke Wenke, Court Documents: emails; False Allegations: wrongful conviction/incarceration; screenshots, social media posts
Tags: Albion, NY; Buffalo, NY; Cattaraugus County, Cattaraugus County Jail, conditions of supervised release, contact ban violations, dangerousness, denial of mental illness, Donald Trump, Erie County Medical Center (ECMC), Libertarian Party, Life22; Little Valley, NY; Orleans County, Orleans County Jail, probation violations, psychiatric/psychological evaluations, public safety, resistance to mental health treatment, Sylvia Browne, U.S. Marshals, violations of supervised release (VOSR)