PARIS — A man who was arrested after reportedly stealing and crashing two police vehicles Monday apparently wasn’t able to stay awake at his first court appearance Wednesday.
Gary Porter submitted photo
Gary Porter, 37, who is homeless, appeared in Oxford County District Court by videoconference from the nearby Oxford County Jail.
Porter didn’t appear to be fully alert during the hearing, so the judge rescheduled Porter’s initial appearance for Friday.
He moved in and out of the frame of the jail’s computer monitor and mumbled responses to the judge’s questions during the short hearing.
“I’m concerned that this may not be a meaningful interaction with Mr. Porter this afternoon,” Judge Andrew Robinson said.
The prosecutor and defense attorney agreed.
Robinson appointed an attorney to represent Porter after rescheduling his hearing.
Porter was in court after he was charged with a half-dozen crimes related to his apparent escape from police custody Monday and reported theft of police vehicles that ended in his crashing two police vehicles on Route 117 followed by a shootout with nearly a dozen law enforcement officers.
The charges he is facing include assault on a police officer, escaping custody, eluding police, violation of bail and two counts of theft.
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