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By JOHN DECKER; Times Leader Staff Writer
Wednesday, September 22, 1999 Page: 12A
Wilkes-Barre- A former inmate at the State Correctional Institution at
Dallas arrested in February for allegedly fondling two female infirmary
employees was acquitted of indecent assault on Tuesday.
Inmate Harold Bethea, 43, waived his right to a jury trial on Tuesday and
opted for a judge to make a ruling on his case.
After a trial, Luzerne County Court of Common Pleas Judge Michael Conahan
found Bethea not guilty of two counts of indecent assault.
Bethea was found guilty on summary offenses of harassment and stalking and
was fined $300.
According to the affidavit of probable cause:
Bethea complained of chest pain and was taken to the infirmary at about 9
a.m. Feb. 4. While the prison nurse was taking his blood pressure, Bethea
started to rub the inside of her arm.
The nurse dismissed the touch as accidental until Bethea reached over with
his right arm and touched her right breast.
The nurse said Bethea was breathing heavily, staring at her and appeared to
be aroused. The nurse ended the session and contacted prison officals.
About five hours later, Bethea allegedly tried to grab the breast of a
female phlebotomist, who was instructed by a doctor to draw his blood.
The woman told police that inmates put their arm through a hole in a
partition to keep them away from needles. As she was drawing blood, Bethea
brushed his left arm against her breast.
Bethea was returned to the State Correctional Institution at Smithfield
where he is serving time on a robbery conviction.