Warrenton woman sentenced for disseminating communications

Published 2:00 pm Wednesday, February 19, 2025

A Warrenton woman has been sentenced to 15 days in jail and three years of probation after a jury convicted her of disseminating the contents of an illegally recorded conversation.

Emily P. Reyneke, 42, surreptitiously recorded an Astoria School Board executive session, which included a telephone conversation with the district’s attorney, in October 2022 and subsequently posted the recording on Facebook.

The jury found her not guilty on a charge of knowingly recording the telephonic communication, but found her guilty on another count, divulging the recording to the public.

While pronouncing the sentence on Tuesday, Judge Amanda Benjamin said that while Reyneke has a limited criminal history, the erratic behavior she displayed throughout the pendency of the case was nothing new.

“Based on what I can see in your court records, it appears that you have had a habit of causing this type of drama and harm in other people’s lives,” Benjamin said. “You are trespassed from your local hospital, your medical providers, and now today, your school district.

“I considered not placing you on probation because I don’t trust that you will follow a single order that I give you today, but I want to give you an opportunity to prove me wrong, and I want to provide some protection to the victims, so I am going to place you on probation.”

Reyneke’s full jail sentence is 179 days. Fifteen days will be served up front, and the remainder will be suspended with three years of bench probation.

The probation terms include no further law violations, no contact with any victims in the case, a psychological evaluation and prohibition from using social media. If any of these terms are violated, Reyneke could serve the full jail sentence.