WOOSTER — After arguing with and interrupting a judge, a Marshallville man was escorted to the Wayne County Jail, where he was ordered to serve 150 days for threatening emergency responders called to provide aid to his unconscious and dying father.
Rocky D. Brillhart, 48, of 14793 Fulton Road, previously pleaded no contest in Wayne County Municipal Court to misconduct at an emergency. In exchange for his plea, a related charge of aggravated menacing was dismissed by the state.
In advocating for Brillhart, defense attorney Michael Shaughnessy presented the court with a letter from Brillhart's counselor noting he not only participates in regular counseling, but suffers from post traumatic stress disorder.
“This was a stressful time for Rocky. His father had just had a …show more content…
VanSickle he has panic attacks that he attributes to an alleged rape when he was 13 years old. He said he wishes he would not have been at the residence that night and seeks nothing more than to continue caring for his mother and moving out of Wayne County.
“The reasons you have given me do not justify your conduct on that night,” VanSickle told Brillhart, continuing, “You do not have the right to interfere with other people who are doing nothing more than trying to save a life. Your father was in a bad, bad situation, and the only hope of survival he had was quick medical care. You delayed that, and that had a substantial impact on your father.”
His father, David Brillhart, died later that evening at Aultman Orrville Hospital.
VanSickle said the incident was “absolutely terrifying,” noting Brillhart became immediately confrontational and made threats against emergency personnel from the East Wayne Fire District. While one EMT made it into the home and initiated lifesaving measures, Brillhart blocked entry by the remaining crew, which was “called off the scene by the sheriff's office” due to the threats, which included repeated statements he would shoot