Maine news, sports, weather | Kennebec Journal, Augusta, Maine

AUGUSTAAttack suspect'sroommate sentto hospital after injury at jail

BY BETTY ADAMS Staff Writer

AUGUSTA -- On a day when an 18-year-old Augusta man appeared at a court hearing on charges related to a brutal assault in Pittston, a second man described as "a potential co-defendant" ended up at a local hospital following an assault by a fellow inmate.

Authorities kept a tight lid on details of the Pittston home invasion during Friday's court hearing for Leo Rose Hylton, 18, of Augusta.

Hylton is charged with taking part in a home invasion Tuesday that left a 48-year-old homeowner and his 10-year-old daughter seriously injured. He was arrested Thursday and made his initial appearance Friday before Judge Robert Mullen in Augusta District Court via video from the Kennebec County jail.

The complaint filed against Hylton said he "did intentionally, knowingly or recklessly cause serious bodily injury to William Guerrette and Nicole Guerrette with the use of a dangerous weapon -- a machete, sword or knife -- or did engage in conduct that manifested a depraved indifference to the value of human life and that in fact caused serious bodily injury" to the Guerrettes.

Mullen agreed to District Attorney Evert Fowle's request to keep Hylton's bail at $1 million on the charge of elevated aggravated assault.

"If I could have had it be $2 million, I would have voted for it," Fowle said outside the courthouse after the brief hearing.

Mullen told Hylton the charge carries a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison.

Bail conditions ban him from being in Pittston, from contact with the Guerrette family and from contact with Daniel L. Fortune, whom Fowle described as "a potential codefendant." Hylton also is barred from "witnesses as he becomes aware of their identity."

But the bail conditions are a moot point, since Hylton also is being held without bail on a separate charge of violating conditions of release stemming from a May 5 arrest alleging theft at an Augusta supermarket.

Mullen granted Fowle's motion to impound the police affidavit in the home invasion case.

"There's still an investigation going on," Fowle said. "If (people) give us information, we want it to be their information, rather than what they read about or saw on TV."

Mullen told Hylton -- who was dressed in an orange jail uniform and gave polite responses to questions -- he would not accept a plea from him Friday. The judge instead set a status conference for June 10 in Kennebec County Superior Court.

Police have said nothing about a possible motive and Friday offered little new information about the condition of the injured Guerrettes, except to say they remained in critical condition. Authorities say they want to protect the family's privacy.

In a separate hearing, Fortune, 20, who shares a Sewall Street apartment with Hylton, was advised of the charges against him, including failure to appear in court, violating conditions of release and theft. Those charges result from the theft of $111,000 in new and obsolete currency from the Guerrette home last November.

Fortune previously pleaded not guilty to the theft charge. Mullen ordered him held on $10,000 cash bail in addition to a previous $1,000 bail.

While he has not been charged in connection with Tuesday's assault, Fortune remains charged with violating conditions of earlier bail by failing to appear for a May 9 trial on the currency theft charge.

Fortune's behavior during Friday's hearing -- repeatedly rapping his knuckles on a podium and rearranging paperwork on a nearby table -- contrasted sharply with his calm manner during interviews with reporters at his home Wednesday.

Before appearing in court via video link from jail, Fortune had become disruptive while in custody at the jail, Kennebec County Sheriff Randall Liberty said.

"We had to physically restrain him," Liberty said, after Fortune made "aggressive statements" toward a cameraman who was set up to film the hearing at the jail.

Not long after his appearance, Fortune was taken to the hospital with an unknown injury.

Liberty said Fortune was discovered at 3 p.m. in "Bravo Block" -- a general population area in the jail -- with a swollen, bleeding lip after fellow inmates called for help.

"He was shaking and his vitals indicated he was in shock," Liberty said. "He had a rapid heart rate and low blood pressure. His eyes seemed glossed over."

Liberty said Fortune was taken to MaineGeneral Medical Center in Augusta for an evaluation because Fortune has a history of seizures and had previous brain trauma.

Shackled and in handcuffs, Fortune was being watched by two deputies at the hospital, Liberty said.

Liberty said officers reviewed videotapes from the jail but were unable to see what happened inside Fortune's cell. After interviewing other inmates, Liberty said officers determined Fortune had been hit by another inmate after apparently threatening the inmate's daughter.

Fortune was returned to jail by 8:30 p.m.

Betty Adams -- 621-5631

badams@centralmaine.com