Shortly after a judge revoked his bail yesterday, a 27-year-old man bolted from the Allegheny County courtroom as a sheriff's deputy tried to handcuff him, and Assistant District Attorney Ed Scheid went after him.

The former Drug Enforcement Administration agent chased the younger man down two flights of stairs and out a window onto a metal roof, where the two wrestled in the pouring rain, four floors above the courthouse patio.

Mr. Scheid, who is in his mid-60s, was on his back, about a foot from the roof's edge, and Xavier Durah had him in a choke hold when Deputy Tammy Casto was finally able to subdue and cuff Mr. Durah.

Deputy Casto and Deputy Lori Dobrosielski were injured slightly in the pursuit and were treated at Mercy Hospital, said Lt. Jack Kearney of the county sheriff's office. Deputy Casto, who had failed to cuff Mr. Durah in the courtroom, suffered a hand laceration and Deputy Dobrosielski an ankle injury and possibly a knee injury.

The prosecutor and the defendant were not hurt, although Mr. Scheid's wet, tar-stained sport coat was a little the worse for wear. It was held as evidence for charges the sheriff plans to pursue in connection with the high-drama chase.

Defendants have become belligerent and tried to escape in the past. One man bit the late Common Pleas Judge Walter R. Judge Little "in the face," said Lt. Kearney, "but we've never had an incident like this."

The day started normally enough. Mr. Durah, of Beltzhoover, who was facing robbery charges in a September incident, reported to Judge Lawrence J. O'Toole's courtroom yesterday morning in a suit and tie. Public Defender William C. Stanislaw filed for a postponement in the case, saying the defendant was "taking prescription narcotics" after having been assaulted and was unfit to stand trial.

Mr. Scheid asked that Mr. Durah's bail be revoked because he had outstanding bench warrants against him.

Judge O'Toole ordered the parties to return on the bail matter in the afternoon, and when they did, about 3 or 3:30 p.m., he revoked Mr. Durah's bail and returned to his chamber.

Then, Mr. Durah tried to make his escape. Shouting broke out in the courtroom and along the hallways as deputies radioed for assistance, trying to figure out where the altercation was taking place.

The defendant ran down several flights of stairs and out a floor-level window of the Allegheny County Courthouse, on the Ross Street side. He then attempted to cross a roof and re-enter a window on the other end, but found it closed.

"I said, 'Stop,' and he came at me. He punched me in the chest," said Mr. Scheid, who is a grandfather. The assistant district attorney said he didn't notice the rain, only that the roof was "wet like glass and we were getting close to the edge."

"The deputies came in numbers, then," Mr. Scheid said, "They really had him."

Lt. Kearney said the sheriff's department plans to charge Mr. Durah with three counts of aggravated assault, three counts of reckless endangerment and one count of escape.

The chase was the talk of the courthouse until day's end, with defense attorneys, prosecutors and others remarking that they weren't sure how they would have reacted but Mr. Scheid "definitely had guts."