Inmate admits to assaulting corrections officer while at hospital

By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 14 November 2019 at 12:02 pm

ALBION – A former inmate at the Albion Correctional Facility admitted to striking a corrections officer with a closed fist several times on Feb. 15.

Aniah Ferguson, 21, pleaded guilty to second-degree assault in Orleans County Court this morning. She will face an additional 1 ½ to 3 years in prison when she is sentenced on Feb. 6 by County Court Judge Sanford Church.

Ferguson was taken to the emergency room at Medina Memorial Hospital on Feb. 15. While in the bathroom, her mechanical restraints were removed from one wrist. When a female correction officer tried to put the restraint back on, Ferguson allegedly punched her several times with her free hand, causing injuries to the CO’s head, including a bloody nose, and contusions to her eye, face and head.

Ferguson has since been transferred to Bedford Hills.

District Attorney Joseph Cardone said the correction officer suffered “substantial pain” from the attack and needed medical treatment. She also missed work and needed to take pain medication.

Ferguson is in prison after an incident in 2015 when she led an attack on a 16-year-old girl at a McDonald’s in Brooklyn. When she was at Rikers Island, Ferguson assaulted a captain at the New York City jail.

In other cases in County Court today:

• An Oakfield man was arraigned for two counts of felony driving while intoxicated, one count of aggravated DWI (for BAC above 0.18) and one count of aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle.

Troy Bailey, 50, was charged on July 27 on Main Street in Shelby. He was allegedly driving drunk without a license. His BAC was 0.194 percent.

• An inmate at the Albion Correctional Facility was arraigned for aggravated harassment of an employee by inmate. Angela Tuitt, 33, allegedly threw fecal matter at a corrections officer.

Christopher C. Taylor, 35, of West Avenue in Medina was arraigned for two counts of criminal possession of a controlled substance in the third degree. He allegedly intended to sell cocaine and possessed more than a half ounce of cocaine.

He also was arraigned on one count criminal nuisance in third because people were allegedly engaging in unlawful activity on his premises.

Taylor also has been charged with criminally using drug paraphernalia in the second degree for allegedly using scales or balances to weigh controlled substances.

He pleaded not guilty in court today and is free on $20,000 bail.

Jacob Harbaugh of the Niagara Falls rejected a plea offer for third-degree burglary and third-degree grand larceny.

Judge Church set Jan. 21 for the start of a trial against Harbaugh. He is one of three defendants who allegedly stole three dirt bikes from a Ridgeway garage on Oct. 16, 2018.

If found guilty, Harbaugh could face 3 ½ to 7 years in prison. As part of a plea deal, his sentence would be capped at 2 ½ to 5 years in prison. Harbaugh rejected the offer today.

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