Credit: Tom Sofield/LevittownNow.com
A former Falls Township man has been charged with killing a fellow inmate in the Bucks County Correctional Facility.
Christopher Sean Williams, 37, whose last listed address was in the Levittown section of Falls, was video arraigned Thursday on charges of criminal homicide, aggravated assault, witness intimidation, reckless endangerment and simple assault. He will remain in prison with no bail on the homicide charge.
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Bucks County Detectives used witness accounts, interviews with corrections officers and video surveillance footage to put together what they say led up to inmate Donald Rush, 57, of Chalfont Borough, receiving injuries so serious he died the day after the assault.
According to court papers, Williams confronted Rush on the evening of Sunday, October 11 because the Chalfont man was talking near him while he was trying to sleep.
A few minutes later, Williams went into Rush’s cell in “E” block of the Doylestown prison and struck him in the face with his open hand. Rush’s glasses were knocked off and his mouth began to bleed, authorities said.
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The 57-year-old went to corrections officers who let him seek treatment in the prison dispensary, according to detectives. Rush reportedly told the corrections officers he received the injury when he accidentally struck his head.
“You didn’t see anything,” Williams warned an inmate who witnessed the strike, court papers stated.
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Williams’ cell mate reported the 37 year old warned him not to speak of what happened with Rush and mentioned how easy it was to find someone’s address using the internet, authorities said.
Nearly five hours after the assault, Rush appeared disoriented and collapsed in the prison; he was then transported to Abington Memorial Hospital in Montogomery County, where he died hours later, authorities said.
Montgomery County Coroner Dr. Walter Hofman, whose office handled the autopsy, told LevittownNow.com a closed head injury and trauma caused Rush’s death. He said no previous health issues played a role.
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Williams, who has a long criminal record including a recent simple assault case, was jailed on a probation violation.
Williams was transferred to Montgomery County prison shortly after the fatal assault to separate him any inmates who might testify against him in the case.
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Editor’s Note: All individuals arrested or charged with a crime are presumed innocent until proven guilty. The story was compiled using information from police and public court documents.
