Matt Mencarini

Lansing State Journal

LANSING - The public goes through more security when entering through the main entrances of Veterans Memorial Courthouse in downtown Lansing than the inmates transported from the Ingham County jail do when they are escorted in a back entrance.

And on Tuesday, 35-year-old Joshua Harding, who was on trial facing two sexual assault charges, pulled from his sleeve what officials have described as a shank and tried to stab assistant prosecutor Jonathan Roth, video of the incident obtained by the State Journal shows.

Public entrances to the courthouse require attorneys, the public and the media to pass through a metal detector. Pockets are emptied and bags, coats and other items are passed through an X-ray machine similar to those in an airport.

When inmates are admitted to the Ingham County jail, they pass through a metal detector and a body scanner, Sheriff Gene Wriggelsworth said, but those measures aren't taken when inmates, like Harding, are taken from the jail.

Nor do they pass through metal detectors or body scanners when they arrive at Veterans Memorial Courthouse in downtown Lansing, Wriggelsworth said, adding that the issue is something that may be reviewed after the events in Judge James Jamo's courtroom Tuesday.

Man accused in prosecutor attack guilty on sexual assault charge

Wriggelsworth said he will meet with judges this week to discuss any security concerns or questions they might have.

Ingham County Chief Circuit Judge Janelle Lawless said judges met with a state court security expert Wednesday. She added that the meeting had been scheduled prior to Tuesday's incident and was prompted, in part, by the July shooting in Berrien County Circuit Court.

She added that the court is already "in the process of reviewing security measures," but that Tuesday's incident "validated" the judges' concerns about court security. She said metal detectors at the back entrance for inmates is a Sheriff's Office issue, but something the judges "will certainly be supporting."

"We are very thankful that there were no serious injuries on Tuesday," Lawless said. She judge credited the quick actions of the three law enforcement officers in the courtroom with preventing something worse.

A message was left seeking comment from Ingham County Prosecuting Attorney Gretchen Whitmer.

As a jury was walking into the courtroom on the third floor of the courthouse with its verdict, the video shows Harding appearing to pull something from his sleeve before charging across the room at Roth.

In the video, Harding appears to target Roth specifically, running past another assistant prosecutor to get to Roth.

While appearing to be holding the weapon, which officials have described as a shank, the video shows Harding tries to stab Roth but misses, possibly due to the efforts of Det. Brian Canen of the Meridian Township Police Department.

Harding ran at Roth from the prosecutor's left. Canen, who was standing on the other side of Roth, sees Harding as he's halfway to the prosecution table and starting to raise his right hand, which appears to have the weapon. Roth ducks and Canen's arm appears to deflect Harding's arm as the detective starts to tackle Harding.

From the video, it appears Harding's weapon missed Roth's face by inches. As Canen tries to tackle Harding, who Wriggelsworth said weighs about 280 pounds, Harding appears to swing his arm at Roth again.

Two Ingham County deputies, who were in the back of the courtroom, responded to the incident within seconds. One helped Canen bring Harding to the ground and the other jumped onto the pile to help get Harding under control.

It took Canen and the two deputies about 30 second to roll Harding onto his stomach and handcuff him.​

Officials said Tuesday evening they believed a deputy had suffered a broken nose during the incident. Wriggelsworth said todaythe deputy suffered a cut to his nose but it wasn't broken. He added that the deputy is expected to return to work on Friday.

Harding suffered minor injuries, the sheriff said.

Charges expected next week

The incident is still under investigation, but Wriggelsworth said he hopes to request charges against Harding as early as next week, and he said assault with intent to murder, which is punishable by up to life in prison, will certainly be among those charges.

Harding's trial was adjourned after Tuesday's incident. The jury, which had reached a verdict before Harding's attempted assault, read its verdict this morning. Harding was convicted on a second-degree criminal sexual conduct charge. The jury was deadlocked on a second charge — fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct — that prosecutors dismissed.

Harding appeared for the verdict on video conference in handcuffs from the county's jail.

John Frawley, Harding's defense attorney, made a motion after the verdict to be removed from the case, telling Jamo the fact that he'll likely be a witness in a case related to the assault prevented him from representing Harding at sentencing. Jamo granted the motion, but said it will take effect once a new attorney has been assigned.

Frawley said in his 40 years as an attorney he's never seen anything like Tuesday's incident in a case he was involved with.

"I didn't see (Harding) leave the table," Frawley said after today's hearing. "The next I knew, I heard a sound that was out of place. ... It was really amazing how fast it all occurred."

Frawley said the weapon "was a long, curved piece of metal," but he has no idea how Harding got it.

Wriggelsworth said this morning that his office hasn't determined how Harding got the weapon.

"We don't know if we’ll ever solve that," he said. He added that he believes Harding brought the weapon over from the jail, but didn't rule out the possibility that someone brought the weapon to Harding at the courthouse. He added that Harding had a lot of court paperwork with him, which might be where he concealed the weapon.

Harding was in custody during the trial, which isn't uncommon. However, he was not handcuffed in court. Courts have ruled that juries can be prejudiced against a defendant if they see them in handcuffs and a jail jumpsuit, so defendants are allowed to change into other clothes and do not wear handcuffs in court. That makes security measures significantly more complicated, Wriggelsworth said.

Wriggelsworth said they don't believe there there was a security lapse that allowed Harding to get the weapon into the courtroom, but that he wasn't going to be critical of his staff. He said they acted quickly, and the incident shows how incidents can escalate without notice.

"They do a tough job under tough circumstances," he said.

Contact Matt Mencarini at (517) 267-1347 or mmencarini@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter@MattMencarini.