Gaeton Remy, 31, of 16-15 Hyland Ave., was found guilty of…
By Courtney Dentch
A Jamaica man was convicted last week of biting off a chunk of a court officer’s left ear in a courthouse attack during an October probation hearing, Queens District Attorney Richard Brown said.
Gaeton Remy, 31, of 16-15 Hyland Ave., was found guilty of assault July 23 by a jury in State Supreme Court in Kew Gardens for attacking Court Officer Patrick Glynn and two other officers, Brown said in a statement.
Remy, who could face up to 25 years in prison, was scheduled to be sentenced Aug. 15, Brown said.
According to testimony at the three-day trial, Remy appeared before Judge Stephen Knopf Oct. 10 for a hearing on a probation violation, Brown said. When Knopf found Remy to be in violation and ordered him to be taken into custody, Remy became infuriated, he said.
As bailiffs came forward to handcuff Remy, he started flailing his arms and kicking his legs, resisting the officers’ attempts to restrain him, Brown said. Remy bit Glynn’s left ear with his sharp-edged gold metal dentures, severing a 2-inch section of his earlobe, Brown said. Two other officers, John Drewal and Christopher Baker, also were injured in the melee.
“The defendant became enraged when a judge ordered him to be sent to jail for violating probation and intentionally bit off part of the victim’s left ear during a struggle inside a courtroom,” Brown said in a statement. “The savage attack inflicted serious physical injury and lifetime disfigurement and warrants substantial punishment.”
Glynn, 45, a four-year court veteran, was taken to Jamaica Hospital, but doctors there could not reattach his earlobe, Brown said.
The October fracas erupted as Remy protested the allegation he had violated his probation, Brown said. Remy was back in court because he had failed to sign paperwork, and Knopf ordered him to be remanded to jail, he said.
Remy originally was charged with sexual abuse, assault and harassment of a woman in a July 6, 2002 incident, when he grabbed the woman’s breast, punched and kicked her and fractured her wrist, Brown said. He had been sentenced to 60 days in jail and a year’s probation after pleading guilty to the attempted assault of the woman.
As a result of the courtroom brawl, Remy was convicted last week of seven charges, including assault, aggravated assault on a peace officer, criminal contempt, criminal mischief, resisting arrest and obstructing governmental administration, Brown said. The jury deliberated less than three hours following the three-day trial, he said.
Reach reporter Courtney Dentch by e-mail at TimesLedger@aol.com, or by phone at 718-229-0300, Ext. 138.
