A man who allegedly accosted people outside the home of a former juvenile dependency court referee arrested earlier this week was taken into custody this morning after he was observed by Sacramento police officers waiting to serve a search warrant.
Sacramento County sheriff's spokesman Deputy Jason Ramos said a preliminary investigation indicates the John Parlante (pictured), 46, may have been the recipient of an unfavorable decision in Referee Daniel Madden Horton's court sometime in the past few years.
Horton was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of trying to entice underage girls to strip for an adult magazine. A court spokeswoman said he resigned from his court referee job last weekend.
Ramos said Sacramento police investigators were preparing to serve a search warrant at Horton's Rancho Cordova home about 7:30 a.m. today when they saw a man holding an ax walking toward the front door of the residence.
Rancho Cordova police officers were dispatched to investigate, but before they arrived, the man, later identified as Parlante, returned to his vehicle.
When a woman left the home in her vehicle, Parlante followed her for a short distance, then returned to the residence, Ramos sad. When two other people came out of the house and prepared to leave in a vehicle, Sacramento police officers saw Parlante drive up onto the lawn of the residence and stop his van just short of hitting the vehicle.
Parlante then jumped out of the van and began yelling at the people in the vehicle. The Sacramento officers, concerned that the dispute would escalate, intervened and detained Parlante.
Rancho Cordova police arrived and took custody of Parlante, then searched his van, where they found an ax. Ramos said Sacramento police officers identified the ax as the item Parlante was carrying when he approached the residence earlier.
Parlante was booked into Sacramento County Main Jail on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon, stalking and threatening the life of a governmental official. Ramos said Parlante currently is not eligible for bail.
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