A Telford man who was tased during a confrontation with police outside of the Telford Night Market will serve jail time as part of a plea agreement with prosecutors.
Deion Walters, 27, pleaded guilty last week to one felony count of aggravated assault – fear of imminent serious bodily injuries against designated individuals, court records show. Additional charges of disarming a law enforcement officer, terroristic threats, reckless endangerment, simple assault, resisting arrest, disorderly conduct, and public drunkenness were dropped in exchange for Walters’ plea.
Montgomery County Common Pleas Judge William Carpenter sentenced Walters to three to 12 months in county jail, followed by three years’ probation. Walters will also receive credit for two days of time served, and he will be eligible for work release, court records show.
According to the criminal complaint, Telford Borough Police Chief Randall Floyd heard rumblings that Walters was causing issues for patrons of the market around 6 p.m. Floyd then spoke with Walters, who was reportedly drinking a beer at the time, stating that he didn’t want any further issues throughout the night, the report states.
Police said Walters had shown similar conduct to numerous vendors and patrons of the market during prior events.
At approximately 8:40 p.m. — 10 minutes after the market closed — police were dispatched to the area of North Main Street and Penn Avenue for a report of an intoxicated Walters harassing patrons of the night market while having a firearm tucked in his waistband. Arriving police encountered Walters standing on a retaining wall along the 100 block of Penn Avenue, at which point Walters was described as staring at the crowd of the night market “indiscriminately and postured like a statue,” police said.
Officers then approached Walters with firearms drawn, the report states.
As police approached, Walters allegedly told police to shoot him and ignored commands to put his hands up. Police noticed a firearm holstered on Walters’ left hip, and he continued to ignore commands, instead yelling about police being on his property, according to charging documents.
One officer transitioned from their firearm to their taser, however Walters allegedly slapped the taser, pushed the officer’s arm twice, spit at their feet, and “squared up” multiple times. Walters then allegedly said “You wanna draw? We can f-----g draw,” and began walking backwards, at which point he stumbled over a potted plant and the officer tased him.
Once placed in handcuffs, Walters allegedly yelled threats towards bystanders and added “This is the Trump era, can’t even defend your own property,” police said. Walters’ firearm was secured by police, and he was then transported to the Lansdale Borough Police Department for holding.
With Walters in custody, police spoke to one witness who stated that Walters had harassed them and their family for parking in a nearby auto shop. The report states Walters was intoxicated at the time and had his firearm exposed while making threats.
Walters was arraigned the following day by District Judge Maureen Coggins, who set bail at $25,000 cash. Walters was then remanded to county jail after failing to post bail, however court records show he was released from custody a day later after Montgomery County Common Pleas Judge Garrett Page held a bail review hearing and adjusted the bail setting to $25,000 unsecured.
Walters has no criminal history in Montgomery County beyond a handful of traffic citations and a summary charge of disorderly conduct in 2015.
Following the incident, officials from the Telford Night Market released the following statement:
As several vendors and customers are aware, there was an incident last night at the conclusion of the Telford Night Market.
A local resident caused a disruption. Please be advised the individual is in custody and has been charged accordingly. For those not familiar with Telford, the Telford Police Station is just across the street from the marketplace. Over the past 20 years, an officer has always been and will continue to be a visible presence at the market. Our Telford Night Market participants’ safety is one of our primary concerns.
And thank you to the Souderton and Telford police for handling this incident!
See also:
Man Pleads Guilty to Montgomery Township Hit and Run that Left Elderly Man with Serious Injuries
Lansdale Man Pleads Guilty to Ethnic Intimidation in Road Rage Case
Harleysville Man Sentenced to Prison After Pleading Guilty to Fatal Hit and Run in Skippack
Sellersville Man Sentenced to Prison for Murder of Elizabeth Capaldi
Woman Sentenced to Jail Time, Probation for DUI Crash on Morris Road That Left 1 Injured
