Ohio child-rape suspect injured in suicide attempt

ST. CLAIRSVILLE, Ohio (AP) — An attorney says an Ohio man was not in court for his arraignment on child-rape charges because a suicide attempt has left him with critical injuries.

WTOV-TV reports that Richard Hart was arraigned Thursday on 10 counts of child rape. He was arrested and charged in March, but while out on bond jumped off a 45-foot bridge in an apparent suicide attempt.

The 49-year-old Hart was indicted last week by a grand jury in Belmont County in eastern Ohio. His public defender told a judge that his injuries were so severe that he is still unable to move. He’s currently being treated in a nursing home.

Not-guilty pleas were entered on his behalf.