Inmates face charges for assaults on correctional staff
A prisoner at the State Correctional Institution at Muncy was given additional prison time last Monday after pleading guilty to two prison assaults, according to District Attorney Eric R. Linhardt.
Verna Waller, 40, made her pleas to simple assault in front of President Judge Nancy L. Butts. She was given one to four more years in prison.
Waller originally was charged for a Dec. 14, 2006, incident where she spit on a correctional officer who was escorting her within the prison.
The case was delayed numerous times by questions regarding the woman’s competency.
The second set of charges stemmed from an incident in March where Waller hurled a food tray at and then moved aggressively toward a correctional officer.
Another inmate at the state Correctional Institution faces charges for allegedly spitting on a corrections officer about 1:10 p.m. on May 19, according to state police.
Sherricka Nicole Phillips, 22, has been charged with aggravated harassment by prisoner, simple assault and harassment, police said said.
Jailed since late April 2008, Phillips is serving a two- to 10-year prison term following her conviction on drug charges in Dauphin County. She will have a preliminary hearing Aug. 26 before District Judge C. Roger McRae at the prison.