A Sewickley Township man was arraigned Friday on police accusations that he attacked a guard at the Westmoreland County Prison.
County detectives said John Michael Crowe, 37, of the village of Rillton, tampered with the lock on his cell door and was able to open it at 3:10 a.m. Aug. 12 while the guard was doing rounds. Surveillance video showed Crowe punch the guard in the face several times and the guard return a punch, investigators said.
Other staff distracted Crowe as they arrived to help and the guard tackled the suspect, according to court papers. The guard had minor facial injuries, police said.
Crowe was being held at the Hempfield lockup on $50,000 bail on charges of aggravated assault, simple assault and escape. An Aug. 27 preliminary hearing is scheduled. Crowe did not have an attorney listed in the case.
He’s been an inmate at jail since January, according to jail records. Several criminal cases against him are pending and he was sentenced in June to six to 23 months on resisting arrest and public drunkenness charges filed by North Huntingdon police. The other cases involve charges of terroristic threats, simple assault, strangulation and harassment, according to court records.
