Inmate acquitted of aggravated assault charges
An inmate at the State Correctional Institution at Fayette was acquitted of aggravated assault and related charges Tuesday in Fayette County Court. Carlton J. McCready, 26, had been charged with assaulting corrections officer Lee Johnson at the lockup on Sept. 5, 2008. Assistant Public Defender Michael J. Garofalo represented him at trial.
State police in Belle Vernon alleged that McCready, who was serving a robbery conviction at the time, slammed a door into Johnson’s chest and punched him in the face.
McCready was charged with aggravated assault because a statute in the state code allows someone to be charged with the more serious assault offense if the person assaulted is in law enforcement, said Assistant District Attorney Gene Grimm at the outset of the case.
Jurors also acquitted McCready of simple assault and a summary citation for harassment.
The trial was held before President Judge Gerald R. Solomon.