February 1st, 2027, Set for Circuit Court Trial & Further Scheduling in Stroud vs. Treece Criminal Cases

On the morning docket of Warren County Circuit Court on Friday, October 23, there was a detailed legal counsel debate over the parameters of existing legal precedents at the State level impacting upcoming trials or hearings in the cases filed against defendant Bradley Treece regarding gunfire and alleged threats and anti-Semitic comments he is accused of making to his neighbors Matthew and Suellen Stroud. After that debate, Warren County Circuit Court Judge Daryl Funk ruled that the trials would proceed as criminal, not civil, matters. That means Treece’s request to depose the Strouds ahead of trial was denied.

After ruling on the legal technicalities, Judge Funk set a February 1, 2027, trial date for at least two of the four current charges Treece faces. Those are Reckless Use of a Firearm and Assault & Battery with an alleged Hate Crime enhancement. We understand it will likely be a jury trial.

Treece is also facing two counts of Violation of a Protective Order issued to him in the wake of the October 20, 2025, gun-wielding incident on the 200 block of River Manor Drive in Front Royal where both he and the Strouds reside. Those Protective Order violation charges are also scheduled for the February 1, 2027, Circuit Court docket. However, it appears those counts will just be heard for trial scheduling to another date.

The Warren County Courthouse has seen the Treece/Stroud legal debate occupy both General District and Circuit Court schedules. Below, RSW Jail booking photo of Bradley Treece on Oct. 20, 2025. Royal Examiner File & Courtesy Photos

It may be noted that Treece has remained free on bond with strict guidelines on avoiding contact with the Strouds for most of the duration of the ongoing legal processes involving them. The violations of a Protective Order charges appear to revolve around Treece and the Strouds encounter at Treece’s mailbox facing what was reported to be a public street and them in their car entering or leaving the property. That occurred after Treece was allowed to return to his home property under strict Protective Order guidelines that prohibited contact with the Strouds.

The existing charges Treece is facing were originally filed as misdemeanors in Warren County General District Court. However, his appeals of guilty verdicts transferred the cases to the Circuit Court level. It may be recalled that an initial felony charge of Attempted First Degree Murder was removed at the request of the prosecution as more evidence surfaced regarding the precise circumstances of the encounter and direction of the gunfire.

As we understood it, the court also denied both sides’ request for attorney’s fees related to the current legal debate on October 23rd. Robert Light of the Joseph Silek law firm was present, representing the Strouds and the prosecution. Local defense counsel David Downes represented Treece and the defense position.

In a later conversation with Treece’s defense attorney, Downes noted that Friday’s rulings applied only to pre-trial “discovery procedures” and did not affect an ultimate ruling on his client’s guilt or innocence on the criminal charges he is appealing.

Stay tuned as the first trial date, February 1, 2027, approaches.