Harrison man charged with assaulting officer arresting him in domestic dispute
Harrison police charged a man with aggravated assault after officials say an officer was kneed in the head while trying to take him into custody during a domestic dispute.
Altamese Thompson, 28, of Park Avenue, was charged with a felony count of aggravated assault, along with two counts of making terroristic threats. Additional charges include obstruction of justice, resisting arrest and prohibited acts in connection with the Nov. 30 incident.
Thompson is being detained in Allegheny County Jail in Pittsburgh after failing to post a $5,000 bond. He faces a preliminary hearing Wednesday on the charges before District Judge Carolyn S. Bengel.
Thompson was arrested after police responded to a 911 call shortly after 2 p.m. During the call to county dispatchers, the telephone line was open, and a woman could be heard yelling at a man before it was disconnected, according to a criminal complaint.
When dispatch called the number back, a man answered and said “wrong number” before hanging up.
Officers who arrived at the home said they heard a woman screaming and items being thrown inside.
The woman who answered the door was holding a baby and was “crying and distraught,” they said.
Police said Thompson refused to provide them with identification and ordered officers to leave “his residence.”
He also is accused of trying to leave the house when officers notified him he was required to show ID because they were conducting an official investigation.
When he tried to push past police again and leave, they told him he was being detained and tried to place him in handcuffs, the complaint said.
During a struggle with officers trying to cuff him, a police sergeant was kneed in the side of the head, according to arrest papers.
After Thompson was subdued and placed in leg shackles to prevent him from escaping, he began to threaten officers, police said.
Police said Thompson told them he recently was released from jail after serving 7½ years and that he was “a gang member with warrant from New Jersey.”
He also is accused of telling officers that he would shoot the officers who arrested him and “grind” them up.
Tony LaRussa is a TribLive reporter. A Pittsburgh native, he covers crime and courts in the Alle-Kiski Valley. He can be reached at tlarussa@triblive.com.
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