Man admits to knife attack on officers
NEW PHILADELPHIA (WJER) (July 12, 2022) – There won’t be a jury trial for the man who got pelted with beanbags and taken down by a K9 following an armed confrontation with law enforcement.
31-year-old Ryan Leeper was scheduled to be tried in Tuscarawas County Common Pleas Court this week for resisting arrest and felonious assault. However, Judge Michael Ernest called off the proceedings this morning after he admitted to the charges during a pre-trial hearing.
Leeper was reportedly holding a knife in each hand when he charged at officers trying to arrest him on a warrant during the March 29th encounter in Goshen Township. Sheriff Orvis Campbell has publicly praised the officer who fired the beanbags, Detective Cole Morris, for using non-lethal means to end a situation he says could have easily turned deadly.
Prosecutors will be recommending a three-year prison term when Leeper is punished for the crimes, which could happen as early as Friday or sometime next week depending on the court’s schedule. He has asked to attend the hearing remotely from the prison where he’s serving two years for unrelated drug possession and receiving stolen property convictions so he doesn’t have to miss the classes he’s been participating in.