Credit: Tom Sofield/LevittownNow.com
A Falls Township prisoner will face trial on misdemeanor involuntary manslaughter, simple assault and other charges in connection with the death of fellow inmate.
At a preliminary hearing on Wednesday, the Bucks County District Attorney’s Office withdrew charges of witness intimidation and felony aggravated assault, according to a court docket sheet. The charges were lodged against Christopher Sean Williams, 37, in October after he allegedly struck a fellow inmate who later passed away.
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Prosecutors are planning to make the case that Donald Rush, 57, of Chalfont Borough, received injuries so serious from the strike to the face that he died the day after the assault.
“Defense attorney Niels Eriksen Jr. was pleased the homicide charge and other felonies were dropped, adding he believed that finding intent or malice, as would be required for a homicide conviction, would have been “next to impossible,’” the Doylestown Intelligencer reported after the preliminary hearing.
According to court papers, Williams confronted Rush on the evening of Sunday, October 11 in the prison’s E block because the Chalfont man was talking near him while he was trying to sleep.
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The strike to the face reportedly caused Rush’s glasses to be knocked off and he began bleeding from his mouth. Rush sought treatment from the prison dispensary and told corrections officers he received the injury when he accidentally struck his head, authorities.
Hours after being released from the prison dispensary, Rush collapsed after appearing disoriented, according to court papers.
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Despite being rushed to Abington Memorial Hospital in Montgomery County, he died several hours later and his death was ruled a homicide, officials told LevittownNow.com in October.
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 alleged assault to separate him any inmates who might testify against him in the case. He is currently being held on $99,000 bail.
