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Clarion County man charged in father's death
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A Clarion County man was charged with homicide Monday after police said he beat his sickly 79-year-old father, causing a brain hemorrhage that killed the older man five days after the assault.
In addition to homicide, James Michael Shimmons, 54, of Sligo, is charged with aggravated assault, terroristic threats, simple assault and harassment in the July 17 death of his father, Cloyd Alvin Shimmons, also of Sligo.
According to a criminal complaint, the elder Mr. Shimmons told police he walked into his son's room July 12 to find him having sex with his girlfriend and told him "not in my house." The two brawled in the hallway, where the son wrestled his father to the ground and straddled him.
According to the complaint, he punched his father repeatedly until his father was bloodied and yelled "I'll kill you!"
James' girlfriend, Gladys Bump, intervened and pulled him off of his father, according to the complaint.
The elder Mr. Shimmons, who suffered from leukemia and bled easily, was taken to Clarion Hospital, where he received stitches and was treated for severe facial injuries, according to the complaint.
He returned to the hospital twice more in the subsequent days because his nose would not stop bleeding.
On the evening of July 13, he called 911 because he felt like he was having a stroke. He was taken back to Clarion Hospital and then flown to UPMC Presbyterian, where he died July 17.
The Allegheny County medical examiner's office determined he died of bleeding on the brain and classified his death as a homicide.
The younger Mr. Shimmons, who was arrested July 15 on an aggravated assault charge in the case, was arraigned on the additional charges Monday afternoon. His bond was revoked and he remained in Clarion County Prison.
A preliminary hearing is scheduled next Tuesday.
First Published July 23, 2012 9:23 pm
