Former Stephens County judge Jerry Herberger was arrested in Duncan after police say a firearm was discharged toward trick-or-treaters on Halloween.

A booking list that includes attempted murder, and a New York Post charge line that does not print attempted murder, are not the same accusation. Held without bail on Nov. 1, and a $250,000 bond in a Nov. 5 News9 account, are not the same custody. Formal charges not filed, as The Duncan Banner and KOCO printed on Nov. 1, is not the same status as a story that says he was charged. No injury is the point the police statements agree on.

News9, by Matilda Harvey, on Nov. 1, 2026, at 5:52 p.m., reported that a former Stephens County judge was arrested Halloween night in Duncan, per Duncan police. It reported Jerry Herberger was arrested on complaints of assault and battery with a deadly weapon, attempted murder, and possession of a firearm while intoxicated. Complaints are the word on that page. It reported that a Duncan Police Department social-media post said Herberger allegedly “discharged a firearm in the direction of trick-or-treaters,” and that police also say he pointed a firearm at officers responding to the scene. Officers, plural, is the word there. It reported he was being held at the Stephens County Jail without bail, and that his arraignment would take place on Monday, according to a jailer. That Monday, after Saturday, Oct. 31, was Nov. 2. The Nov. 1 page does not print an age, a street, or a clock. It does not print the words without incident.

The Duncan Banner, by Charlene Belew, on Nov. 1, 2026, reported Duncan police say a former Stephens County judge was behind bars after he reportedly shot at trick-or-treaters Saturday night. Shot at, in that lede, and discharged in the direction of, in the release it quotes, are not the same verb. It reported officers responded around 8 p.m. on Linwood Lane in Duncan to a report that “an individual had allegedly discharged a firearm in the direction of trick-or-treaters,” and that no one was injured. It reported the release said that on arrival, witnesses directed officers to the residence, and that as officers prepared to make contact, “the individual reportedly pointed a firearm at one of the responding officers.” One officer, and officers, are not the same number. It reported police say the man “complied with officers’ commands and exited the residence where he was taken into custody without further incident,” and that he was identified as former Stephens County District Judge Jerry Herberger, of Duncan, and transported to the Stephens County Jail. District Judge is the title on The Duncan Banner. Judge, without the word district, is the title on News9. It reported that charges listed on the inmate booking include assault and battery with a deadly weapon, attempted murder, and possession of a firearm while intoxicated, that those charges are not formal at this time and will need to be confirmed by the district attorney’s office, and that formal charges were not filed as of press time. It reported the department asked anyone else who witnessed the incident to call Duncan police at 580-255-2112. KOCO, updated at 5:36 p.m. CST on Nov. 1, 2026, reported the same release in these words: just after 8 p.m. Saturday, Linwood Lane, the discharge quotation, a firearm pointed at one of the responding officers, and “taken into custody without further incident.” Around 8 p.m., and just after 8 p.m., are not the same clock. KOCO reported the man was arrested on complaints of assault and battery with a deadly weapon, attempted murder and possession of a firearm while intoxicated, according to the Stephens County Sheriff’s Office, and that KOCO was not naming him because formal charges had not been filed. The Duncan Banner named him on Nov. 1 and said formal charges were not filed as of press time. Naming him, and not naming him, are not the same choice. Complaints, a booking list, and formal charges, are not the same filing.

KSWO, by Ree Kirksey, published Nov. 2, 2026, at 6:50 p.m. CST, reported two witnesses say a man fired a gun in the direction of trick-or-treaters on Linwood Lane on Halloween night, and that police say that when officers got to the home, Jerry Herberger, a former Stephens County judge, reportedly pointed a gun at one of them. It reported he later followed commands and was taken into custody. That sentence does not say without incident, and it does not say without further incident. It reported Duncan resident Carrie Smith said, “I’d say we got on the block a little bit before 8:00,” and, “The only thing I hear is don’t come any closer. I have a gun. He pulls it. He aimed, he caught it, he fired it in our direction.” It reported she described a 4-year-old in her group, spelled on that page as “4 year old,” running down the street. The child is not named. It reported Hannah Coker said her family stopped “like 50 feet away maybe,” and that “he just raised his gun and shot at them.” Fired in our direction, and shot at them, are not the same sentence, and both are on KSWO. It reported Smith and Coker said they saw no police presence in the neighborhood before the incident, and that the city of Duncan said in a statement, “Duncan Police Department has officers patrolling throughout every area of the city during Halloween,” and that the department makes a point of a visible presence where it anticipates larger numbers of trick-or-treaters. KSWO’s retrieved text does not print an age, a charge list, or a bond. KFOR’s account of the department release times the call at approximately 2002 hours on Saturday, Oct. 31, 2026, on Linwood Lane, uses the same one-officer and without-further-incident sentences The Duncan Banner printed, identifies Jerry Herberger of Duncan, Oklahoma, and says he faces charges of assault and battery with a deadly weapon, possession of a firearm while intoxicated, and attempted murder. That order puts attempted murder last. News9 and The Duncan Banner put attempted murder in the middle. The Independent, by Owen Scott, on Nov. 2, 2026, printed 8.02 p.m., age 73, one officer, and three charges “according to jail records,” with attempted murder named first. 2002 hours, 8.02 p.m., just after 8 p.m., around 8 p.m., and a little bit before 8:00 for arriving on the block, are not the same clock. Daily Mail reported Amy Sanders told KFOR that the lights were on, that he said, “Y’all need to get away from my house,” and, “I have a gun,” and that “He was drunk, so when he aimed it and went to go shoot it, his hand went kind of willy-nilly and it just, it shot.” Don’t come any closer, and y’all need to get away from my house, are not the same warning. A witness saying drunk, and a complaint of possession of a firearm while intoxicated, are not the same finding. Daily Mail also reported she told KFOR, “He was on the other side of that bench. He was hard on those people. Well, now it’s time for somebody to be hard on him,” and that the family would pass out candy next Halloween. KFOR’s page carries that interview.

The New York Post, by David DeTurris, published Nov. 5, 2026, at 7:44 a.m. ET, reported former judge Jerry Herberger, 73, fired toward trick-or-treaters outside his home in Duncan around 8 p.m. Saturday, that police told KSWO that, and that no one was hit. It reported that when officers arrived he pointed his piece at one of them, that he complied and “was taken into custody without incident,” and that he was taken to jail in Stephens County. Without incident, and without further incident, are not the same phrase. It reported the place as a “Linwood Lane residency.” Residency, and residence, are not the same word. It reported he “was charged with possession of a firearm while intoxicated, as well as assault and battery with a deadly weapon.” Attempted murder is not in that paragraph. Age 73 is on the New York Post, the Daily Mail, and The Independent. It is not on the Nov. 1 News9 story. Daily Mail reported the three charges, including attempted murder, and also printed “without incident.” Its lede says he “brandished a gun” at trick-or-treaters and a police officer. Brandished, discharged, and pointed are not the same verb. A caption on that page says he was arrested on Wednesday. Halloween 2026 was a Saturday. Wednesday, and Saturday, Oct. 31, are not the same day. Another caption says he “fired at a police officer.” Fired at an officer, and pointed a firearm at an officer, are not the same act. News9, by Miracle Garrett, on Nov. 5, 2026, at 6:41 p.m., headlined an arrest “on $250,000 bond” and reported that, according to Duncan police, he was transported to the Stephens County Jail and posted bail for $250,000. On a $250,000 bond, posted bail for $250,000, and held without bail, are not the same custody line. It reported he is scheduled to appear in court in December, has to surrender his passport and all firearms to police, and can’t be in possession of alcohol. A Monday arraignment, as a jailer described it on Nov. 1, and a December appearance, as News9 described it on Nov. 5, are not the same date. It reported court records show he is a former Stephens County judge, and that a Duncan police statement said the suspect allegedly fired at trick-or-treaters and pointed a gun at responding officers. Fired at, and in the direction of, are not the same verb, and officers is plural again on that Nov. 5 page. It reported Carrie Smith said she heard, “Don’t come closer. I have a gun,” and that a 4-year-old in her family later told her the man had tried to shoot him. Don’t come closer, and don’t come any closer, are not the same quotation. The child is not named. No one was injured, on The Duncan Banner. No one was reported injured, in the department sentence the Daily Mail and The Independent printed. No one was hit, and no one was injured, on the New York Post. None of those sentences reports an injury. A charge is not a conviction. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.