Alleged Zeta-Jones Stalker: $1 Mil Bail

By Stephen M. Silverman

06/17/2004 at 08:05 AM EDT

A Los Angeles woman is being held on $1 million bail after pleading not guilty to felony charges that she stalked Catherine Zeta-Jones by calling and sending the star threatening letters, reports the Associated Press.

Dawnette Knight, 32, was arrested June 3 at her Beverly Hills apartment and charged at her arraignment last week with one count of stalking and 24 counts of criminal threats dating back to Jan. 2, 2003 – including one in Austria, where Zeta-Jones was filming Ocean's 12, says Sheriff's Lt. Joe Impellizeri.

"We felt she was a flight risk," says Impellizeri, adding Knight is not employed in the area and has no family ties. If convicted, she could face anywhere from probation to 19 years behind bars.

A statement from Zeta-Jones's publicist, Cece Yorke, says that the 34-year-old actress and her family were "greatly relieved that the suspect is in custody."

Knight has a June 29 preliminary hearing date, says district attorney spokeswoman Sandi Gibbons.

As for any possible motive for Knight's alleged interest in Zeta-Jones, "It could be that she was an obsessed fan, or a past employee or worked on a movie set, we don't know," says Impellizeri, also adding: "The letters and phone calls became more violent and specific."