Ex-Pennsylvania judge gets prison term for shooting and wounding her ex-boyfriend as he slept

A former magistrate judge in Pennsylvania convicted of shooting and wounding her ex-boyfriend in the head as he slept has been sentenced to 13 1/2 to 30 years in prison.

Sonya McKnight was convicted last month on attempted homicide and aggravated assault charges. She resigned her post during Wednesday’s hearing, where the judge told her she was “totally without remorse” for the shooting.

McKnight has maintained her innocence, and her attorney said an appeal is ongoing.

The shooting occurred in February 2024 at the boyfriend’s home. McKnight had lived there, but the man repeatedly asked her to leave when their relationship ended, authorities said.

Prosecutors argued at trial that McKnight was a jealous partner who “didn’t like” that she had been asked to leave, but her attorney said the ex-boyfriend couldn’t identify the shooter. The ex-boyfriend testified that he couldn’t see after the shooting, but that McKnight was the only other person in the home at the time.

The jury deliberated for two hours before convicting McKnight on both counts she faced.

McKnight, who was elected judge in Dauphin County in 2015, had been suspended without pay in mid-November 2023 after the Court of Judicial Discipline, which handles misconduct allegations against judges, said she violated judicial probations from a previous case regarding a 2020 traffic stop involving her son. She was acquitted of criminal charges in that matter.

Local outlets reported she also shot and wounded her estranged husband in 2019. Prosecutors didn’t charge her, citing self-defense.