Former 7th District Court Judge Sue Carol Browning now faces only one misdemeanor count in a case in which she was arrested after allegedly being seen slashing the tires of a truck parked outside her property.

A grand jury meeting in Logan County last week declined to indict Browning on a felony count of tampering with physical evidence but did formally charge the retired judge with a misdemeanor count of second-degree criminal mischief.

Additional charges of second-degree fleeing or evading police, menacing, two counts of second-degree disorderly conduct and another second-degree criminal mischief count were dismissed after the grand jury returned no indictment on those charges.

“I am very, very grateful to the grand jury for seeing that much of the truth and hopefully more of the truth will come out later,” Browning said Wednesday.

The single remaining criminal mischief count will be heard in district court, with a date to be determined for the proceedings.

Browning was a judge presiding over district court in Logan and Todd counties for 20 years. She retired at the end of her last term in 2015.

Attorney Ami Brooks, who represents Browning, echoed the judge’s sentiments about the outcome of the grand jury session.

“I appreciate the Logan County Grand Jury and their thoughtful deliberation when considering indictments,” Brooks said in an e-mail, adding that Browning maintains her innocence on the criminal mischief count and looks forward to a jury trial.

The court proceedings stem from Browning’s arrest on Nov. 16 by the Logan County Sheriff’s Office outside her property on North Lincoln Street in Auburn.

Deputy Vince Brown, a school resource officer, was at Auburn Elementary School that morning during a Thanksgiving meal attended by several parents.

A school employee informed Brown that Browning had called the school upset that there were numerous vehicles parked in her lot near the school outside The Haven, a former church that is now a residence used by the retired judge.

Brown testified during a preliminary hearing in December that he had been notified that Browning was slashing tires, and when he went to the parking lot, he saw Browning holding a knife and moving toward the front driver’s side of a parked truck.

“I heard a loud puncture noise like a balloon had busted,” Brown testified at the December hearing in Glasgow.

The deputy confronted Browning and asked what she was doing, and Browning reportedly responded she did not have time for this and had a wedding to plan for, and then walked back to her residence.

Brown said he commanded Browning to leave the building multiple times and placed her under arrest when she emerged.

The knife was retrieved from a kitchen counter in the Haven after the sheriff’s office obtained a search warrant, leading to the tampering charge.

Brooks argued in court two months ago that Browning was not aware that an official proceeding was pending or about to be instituted when she took the knife to the kitchen, so Browning’s actions could not be legally construed as evidence tampering.

Browning said she opens The Haven to guests and has performed weddings there for free, but has not charged rent for guests there and does not advertise the place as a commercial venue.

“It’s a second home to me and it needs to be respected as such,” Browning said Wednesday. “I’ve performed weddings at my log cabin north of town that I’ve lived in for 25 years and never charged for that. I’ve used The Haven the same way. That does not give strangers the right to park in my backyard.”