UPDATE MAY 10: A probable cause affidavit released Thursday states that all five of defendant Lewis Aaron Ellis' alleged victims were women, and that he allegedly smacked or punched most of them on the back of the neck or head.

Judge Pro Tem Monica Herranz told Portland police that Ellis took a "violent, full swing" at the back of her head and that she was knocked forward to the ground, skinning her knees.

Another woman, Nicole Veluscek, told police that pain from the punch to her head was a "7" on a scale of "1 to 10."

Prosecutor Stacy Heyworth told investigators that the force of the blow to her head knocked off her glasses, and that she suffered injuries including tenderness and possible bumps on her head.



Charges against Ellis have been upgraded. He was arraigned Thursday on five counts of fourth-degree assault and two counts of harassment.

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A routine morning outside the Multnomah County Courthouse turned to chaos Wednesday when a man suddenly struck a prosecutor and a judge on the sidewalk.

Lewis Aaron Ellis, 46, hit prosecutor Stacy Heyworth and Pro Tem Judge Monica Herranz about 8:45 a.m., investigators said.

Ellis allegedly punched or hit five people in all, leaving a trail of confused and injured pedestrians as he walked for a few blocks between the Multnomah County Justice Center and the courthouse downtown, investigators said.

Ellis was sentenced in 2015 to more than three years in prison for similar crimes -- punching a stranger in her left eye as she walked along Northeast Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and cracking her glasses, according to court papers.

Ellis then got on a MAX train and punched a man in the face. When his wife tried to help, he punched her in the arm, according to a probable cause affidavit. Witnesses to the train assaults said Ellis was shouting, and police who arrived to arrest him said he was twitching and sticking his tongue out of his mouth over and over.

Ellis was released from prison three months ago.

On Wednesday, bystanders ran into the courthouse to get help, and sheriff’s deputies and security officers ran outside and stopped him, authorities said. It's unclear how badly people were injured, but an ambulance responded to the area.

Portland police booked Ellis into jail. He's scheduled to be arraigned Thursday on one count of fourth-degree assault and four counts of harassment.

It’s unclear if he’d ever come into contact with either Heyworth or Herranz in the court system. He has a criminal history stretching back to his teen years, including car theft, assault and burglary.

Heyworth has been a prosecutor with the Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office for more than 25 years. Herranz has been a licensed lawyer in Oregon for more than 30 years and in recent years has presided over low-level criminal cases and traffic violations.

-- Aimee Green