Emmaus Man Who Rammed Police Car Says He Was Insane

The insanity defense looks awesome on TV. You just tell whatever lady assistant DA happens to be in that episode of Law And Order: SVU that you were nuts and you skip jail and head to a cozy building where you talk about your feelings.

In reality, I’m pretty sure they send you to a guarded mental ward where the doctors can choose to hold you for as long as they want, even if it was way longer than what you would have been sentenced for if you weren’t nuts.

Oh, Officer Benson.

The Emmaus man accused of nearly running over a borough police officer and striking a second officer’s vehicle will attempt to argue that he is insane.

The defense attorney for Joshua Lee Stevens, 22, is seeking to present an insanity defense for the Dec. 5 incident, which took place in a parking lot outside Stevens’ home in the 400 block of Eagle Drive.

Police were responding to a call from Stevens’ father, Andre Stevens, who claimed his son was behaving violently and destroying their apartment, according to court documents.

When police found Stevens inside his father’s black 2008 Honda Accord, Stevens put the car into reverse and peeled out of his parking spot, forcing officer Al Kloss to run to avoid being hit, records say.

When officer Joseph Longenbach arrived at the scene in a patrol vehicle, Stevens allegedly rammed it head-on, causing extensive damage to both vehicles and injuring Longenbach, police said.

Kathryn Roberts, Stevens’ public defender, said he has a history of mental problems and has been involuntarily committed to hospitals or clinics 30 times over the last four-and-a-half years. SOURCE: The Express-Times

I guess being crazy could result in this type of incident, but, if you’re truly insane you should be doing more awesome things like skydiving and bungee jumping and eating at Long John Silver’s.