A Lebanon County man must go to prison for causing a disturbance during a traffic stop in May 2010 in Butler Township, a three-judge state Superior Court panel has ruled.
In an 11-page opinion filed Tuesday in Pottsville, the panel ruled Kevin L. Kahler, 60, of Newmanstown, did not deserve a new trial on five charges stemming from the incident along Route 901 in Lavelle.
"The jury found that the testimony of the police officers, describing Kahler's behavior during the stop, was credible," Senior Judge John L. Musmanno wrote in the opinion.
As a result, Kahler must serve four to 23 months in prison and pay costs, $50 to the Criminal Justice Enhancement Account and $106 in fines, the sentence imposed on April 26, 2011, by county Judge Charles M. Miller.
A jury convicted Kahler on March 14, 2011, of two counts of disorderly conduct and one of resisting arrest, while Miller found him guilty of failure to carry license and speeding.
Butler Township police charged Kahler with driving 48 mph in a 35 mph zone, not producing his driver's license, creating a dangerous situation and resisting arrest about 5:30 a.m. May 20, 2010. Police said they had to use a Taser to subdue an uncooperative Kahler.
Musmanno wrote that Kahler created public inconvenience by walking around his car along a busy road. Furthermore, his conduct toward the officers provided enough evidence to support both the resisting arrest and disorderly conduct charges, Musmanno wrote.
"Four police offices were required to restrain Kahler, thereby establishing 'substantial force,' " to justify the charge of resisting arrest under state law, Musmanno wrote.
Furthermore, Kahler's claim that his right to a lawyer was not supported by law, according to Musmanno. Since he had a job, he was not entitled to a public defender, and he chose not to hire a private lawyer, Musmanno wrote.
"Kahler forfeited his right to counsel," Musmanno wrote.
Of the other panel members, Judge Christine L. Donohue joined Musmanno's opinion, while Senior Judge Robert E. Colville concurred in the result but not the opinion.