CLEARFIELD – A former SCI Houtzdale inmate has agreed to plead guilty to charges for his involvement in a riot at the prison in April of 2015.
Isaiah Samir Lakeem Hall, 29, was one of five inmates charged for assaulting corrections officers during the riot.
In the aftermath, four corrections officers were taken to UPMC Altoona for treatment and the facility was on lockdown for about eight hours, according to previous articles.
Hall stood trial on multiple counts of aggravated assault, simple assault, assault by prisoner, riot, disorderly conduct and criminal conspiracy in March of 2017, but a mistrial was declared after the jury was unable to reach a verdict.
The case has remained in the system and was scheduled for a second trial starting Jan. 27.
On Tuesday, Hall appeared before President Judge Fredric J. Ammerman to put his plea agreement on the record. It was noted that the plea is for a four- to eight-year sentence, which will run concurrent with his current sentence. The trial was then cancelled.
Online court documents indicate that Hall is scheduled to be sentenced March 9.
Hall was in state prison to serve a sentence of five to 15 years for a robbery he committed in 2010, according to previous reports.
Testimony in the original trial revealed that the problem started with inmate Richard Adams, who refused to be cuffed and took a fighting stance. When two COs tried to take him to the ground, they were surrounded by other inmates, knocked out, punched and kicked.
A third officer was assaulted when he responded to help the other officers.
One of the officers suffered numerous bruises, contusions, broken teeth, a concussion, shoulder injuries and his face swelled. At the time of that trial, he said he still had problems with his shoulder and arm.
The second had a laceration that needed eight to ten staples near his ear, a laceration that needed four staples on the top of his head, a concussion, brain injury and a rib injury. He testified that he continued to have headaches and dizziness.
The third victim received a dislocated jaw and a concussion. He testified during the original trial that he was still seeing a neurologist regularly and attended therapy for a speech impediment.
He explained because of his severe brain injury, he couldn’t do any type of police work. If he would happen to have another brain injury, he could possibly end up in a coma or lose his ability to speak permanently, he said.
Three other inmates have already pleaded guilty and have been sentenced in this case. Adams received a total of 15 to 30 years in state prison, Norman Wothman was given 35 to 70 years in state prison and Bahair Stafford is serving five to 15 years in state prison.
The last inmate charged, Yafest Oliver, has charges still pending.
