Man pleads innocent to assault on cop

Staff report

WARREN

A Deerfield Avenue Southwest man pleaded innocent in Warren Municipal Court this week to charges related to an alleged assault on a police officer.

Mitchell E. Pruitt, 46, of Deerfield Avenue Southwest, pleaded innocent to assault, obstructing official business, resisting arrest, driving under suspension and failing to use his turn signal.

He is being held in Trumbull County Jail in lieu of $5,000 bond.

At 3 p.m. Tuesday, two police officers observed a red pickup truck speeding in the areas of Delaware, Hamilton and Jefferson Street Southwest. The officers stopped the vehicle on Jefferson, and the driver got out and approached an officer in an aggressive manner.

The suspect then ran through backyards and into woods, where one of the officers, Christopher Clementi, caught him about 75 yards in and used his stun gun to try to bring him under control. The man swung his arm, hitting Clementi in the nose and mouth with his fist, according to a police report.

The man was stunned several more times before Clementi was able to handcuff and arrest him.

The man — later identified as Pruitt — was taken to the hospital after complaining of trouble breathing. He was arraigned Thursday, after he was released from the hospital.