Judge drops charges against prison guard
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One of the seven suspended officers from the State Correctional Institution Pittsburgh had all criminal charges against him dropped Friday, and the lists of accusations against two others were thinned, at a preliminary hearing marked by witnesses' failures to identify their alleged tormentors.
Kevin Scott Friess, of Bellevue, saw all charges against him dismissed when witnesses repeatedly pointed to other people, including Mr. Friess' lawyer, when the witnesses were asked to identify him in court before District Judge Robert Ravenstahl.
"I'm really excited," said Mr. Friess, 31.
He said he has been "without work, without money" since April 1. He had faced 20 counts of simple assault, official oppression, criminal conspiracy and intimidating a witness.
"I feel I should go back [to work] to clear my name, and show everyone that they were wrong and I was right, and to get my back pay," he said.
Typically, the Pennsylvania State Corrections Officers Association, a union, petitions the Department of Corrections for a suspended officer's return to work.
The hearing included around five hours of testimony from 10 witnesses, all of whom are incarcerated, mostly for sex crimes. The corrections officers have been accused of being members of a group that targeted sex offenders for abuse. The man accused of being the ringleader, suspended Corrections Officer Harry F. Nicoletti, 60, of Coraopolis is facing trial on 99 counts.
In contrast to Mr. Nicoletti's December preliminary hearing, at which inmates leveled accusations of sexual abuse, witnesses at Friday's hearing of the cases against Mr. Friess, Tory K. Kelly and Jerome J. Lynch said they were struck or intimidated.
Most of the witnesses said they were abused in December 2010. Some said they were hit, while others were just yelled at and one was poked in the head.
"These guys have been offered nothing in exchange for their testimony -- nothing," noted Assistant District Attorney Jon M. Pittman, who is prosecuting based on an investigation by the Department of Corrections. "And when you're in jail, testifying against anybody is not looked favorably on."
The most serious accusations were made by William Zuschlag, 41, of Meadville, who came to SCI Pittsburgh after he pleaded guilty to incest with a minor. Mr. Zuschlag said Mr. Kelly attacked him every day for a week, and told him that if he complained "he would splatter my blood all over the walls."
Of the 26 charges filed against Mr. Kelly, Judge Ravenstahl held 14 for trial and 12 were dismissed or withdrawn.
"What came out of today's testimony will prove to provide a significant amount of ammunition for the defense," said David Cercone, attorney for Mr. Kelly, 40, of Aliquippa. He noted that the witnesses didn't report any injuries, and most only complained after Department of Corrections investigators approached them.
Five of the 14 charges against Mr. Lynch, 35, of the North Side, were dismissed or withdrawn, four were held and the rest will be the subject of a preliminary hearing next week.
First Published January 14, 2012 12:00 am
