Joe Claude Schleider, 66, of Charleston, was found guilty of willful destruction of government property by United States District Judge Thomas E. Johnston on May 14 following a one-day bench trial.
The case centers on an incident from May 6, 2025, when Schleider used a long metal pole to strike an electric card entry scanner outside a federal facility in Charleston. Surveillance footage showed him hitting the device approximately eight times and causing about $1,800 in damages.
Schleider is scheduled for sentencing on July 6 and could face up to ten years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine reaching $250,000.
United States Attorney Moore Capito announced the verdict and recognized the investigative efforts by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security-Federal Protective Service and the Charleston Police Department. Johnston presided over the bench trial held on April 14. Assistant United States Attorneys Lesley C. Shamblin and Joshua Hanks are prosecuting the case.
Further information about this case can be accessed through court records or by searching for Case No. 2:25-cr-173.
