November 1, 2017- Commonwealth v. Lafayette Richardson:  For a man facing a resentencing, Lafayette Richardson sure didn’t help himself when he appeared before Dauphin County Judge Scott Arthur Evans last week.  The scene that unfolded in a courtroom located at the Dauphin County Prison during Richardson’s revocation of probation hearing can filed in the category of what not to do while being resentenced by a judge.  While many defendants appearing before a judge will apologize for their transgressions and promise the judge never to appear in court ever again, Richardson chose a completely different tactic which resulted in him being sentenced to 40 years to 80 years in state prison.  It began when Richardson interrupted Deputy District Attorney Nichole Vito as she called his case in court.  Richardson declared that Judge Evans did not have authority or jurisdiction over him.  Things went downhill from there.   

Richardson was scheduled to have a revocation of probation hearing as a result of his failure to abide by his probation conditions.  Richardson originally pleaded 'no contest' on December 20, 2013, to the charges of Involuntary Deviate Sexual Intercourse with a Child, Rape, Criminal Attempt- Rape, and Liability for Conduct of Another.  At the time he was sentenced to two and a half to five years in state prison to be followed by a consecutive ten year term of probation.  The charges arose after the defendant repeatedly sexually abused three young children over a multiple year period. 

Since his release from prison, Richardson failed to comply with his probationary conditions.  His failure to abide by the terms of his probation lead to his appearance before Judge Evans in a courtroom at the Dauphin County Prison on November 1, 2017.  Despite pleas from his attorney and admonitions from the judge to stop his disruptive behavior, Richardson continued to act out.  Probation officers present in courtroom finally had to restrain Richardson when he began to aggressively approach the judge.  Eventually, Richardson had to be removed from the courtroom.  As a result, Richardson was not present when Judge Evans revoked his probation and resentenced him to 40 years to 80 years in state prison to be followed by a consecutive ten year probationary term.