Attorneys: Verdict set in Pa. guard’s abuse trial

January 31, 2013 at 8:45a.m.

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Attorneys say they’ve been told to expect a verdict in the trial of a fired Pittsburgh state prison guard charged with 80 counts of physically abusing or sexually assaulting inmates — or having other guards and inmate workers do it for him.

Sixty-one-year-old Harry Nicoletti is charged by Allegheny County prosecutors with targeting convicted child molesters and gay inmates at the century-old lockup.

Deputy District Attorney Jon Pittman and Nicoletti’s defense attorney Steve Colafella tell The Associated Press that the judge’s staff has told them to expect a verdict shortly after court reconvenes at 9:30 a.m. today.

Nicoletti and his family have been sitting in the hallway outside the courtroom awaiting the decision. He faces decades in prison if convicted of even a fraction of the charges he faces.