Charges refiled against Fairchance officer
Assault charges have been reinstated against a municipal police officer in Fayette County who was suspended after allegedly pummeling a man while off duty outside of a bar.
Kenneth E. Bittinger III, 27, is expected to turn himself in today on charges of aggravated and simple assault. Police say he beat 27-year-old Jason Mitchell, of Fairchance, outside of Darby's Pub in Uniontown.
A criminal complaint was filed on Wednesday with Magisterial District Judge Mark Blair after a similar one was thrown out earlier this week. Granting a motion made by defense lawyer Nicholas Timperio, of Uniontown, Blair dismissed the charges on grounds that Mitchell had not officially identified Bittinger as his assailant during a preliminary hearing.
Senior Deputy Attorney General Anthony J. Krastek, who was prosecuting, did not directly ask Mitchell to identify Bittinger, but argued Mitchell had referred to Bittinger and even pointed at him during the hearing.
Fayette County District Attorney Nancy Vernon had asked the state Attorney General's Office to take over the case because she was concerned about a conflict of interest. Bittinger had worked for the Fayette County Drug Task Force, a unit run under the district attorney's direction.
Bittinger was suspended from the Fairchance police department after his initial arraignment. He had worked for the force since October 2001. He already had been on suspension from the drug task force.
Bittinger is accused of assaulting Mitchell after a confrontation between the two over an incident that dated back 15 years. On the witness stand Monday, Mitchell said he was nervous about running into Bittinger at the bar because Bittinger had threatened to slice his throat when the two were in junior high school.
Mitchell's face required reconstructive surgery. Bittinger's arrest affidavit states Mitchell's nose was split open, and he had broken right cheekbones and teeth.
Mitchell testified that he attempted to talk civilly with Bittinger when he saw him, but that Bittinger mostly kept his head turned away. Mitchell admitted to following Bittinger outside when he saw him go through the door. He said he wanted to make sure Bittinger was leaving, but he said he found him urinating on the side of the building.
During the hearing, Timperio suggested that Mitchell followed Bittinger outside to pick a fight.
Mitchell testified that he swore at Bittinger in describing how he felt about what had happened 15 years ago. Then he said he fell to the ground after one punch and came to with Bittinger pinning him down, punching his face and telling him that he was going to die.
Throughout his career, Bittinger has been cleared of wrongdoing in several controversial incidents. One of the most recent episodes occurred when he ran over a man he was trying to arrest during a drug warrant sweep.
Timperio previously said he intended to try to have the case thrown out if prosecutors brought it back to court. He did not immediately return a phone call yesterday.
