Pittsburgh Man Sentenced for Assaulting Two Federal Officers in Federal Courthouse

PITTSBURGH, Pa. – A resident of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, was sentenced in federal court for assaulting two federal officers, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.

United States District Judge Mark R. Hornak sentenced Leonard Rushin-Felder, 22, to one year and one day of imprisonment for each of two counts of assault of a federal officer. The sentences will run concurrently. Rushin-Felder previously pleaded guilty before Judge Hornak on June 14, 2018.

In connection with his guilty plea, Rushin-Felder admitted that on May 2, 2017, he appeared before United States Magistrate Judge Robert C. Mitchell in the Joseph F. Weis, Jr., United States Courthouse for a detention hearing related to separate drug trafficking and firearms charges pending against him. At the conclusion of the detention hearing, Judge Mitchell ordered that the defendant be detained pending trial. The defendant further admitted that when two Deputy United States Marshals attempted to escort him from the courtroom, he forcibly assaulted, resisted, opposed, impeded, intimidated, and interfered with the Deputy Marshals while they were engaged in the performance of their official duties as federal law enforcement officers. During the ensuing struggle, the defendant made physical contact with the two Deputy Marshals. As part of his guilty plea, the defendant acknowledged that additional law enforcement and court personnel were needed to restrain him and assist with his removal from the courtroom.

Assistant United States Attorneys Eric G. Olshan and Rachael L. Dizard prosecuted this case on behalf of the government. The United States Marshals Service conducted the investigation of Rushin-Felder.