Borough man’s appeal denied for 2015 shootout case
HARRISBURG – A Shenandoah man convicted for a 2015 firefight with police in Luzerne County had his appeal denied Friday.
Scott Sargent, 38, was convicted in 2017 of five counts of attempted murder of a law enforcement officer, six counts of assault of a law enforcement officer, one count of aggravated assault, nine counts of reckless endangerment, and one count of harassment.
Sargent “engaged in a shooting rampage outside of a Walmart store that quickly turned into a police standoff,” on Oct. 17, 2015 in Wilkes-Barre Township, according to the Superior Court.
Sargent believed he was being followed by two individuals and used an AR-15 rifle to open fire into the garagedoors at the rear of the store.
Police responded and Sargent opened fire on officers.
A 15-minute standoff ensued and Sargent tried to flee, while continuing to fire at pursuing officers until he was shot in the abdomen with a shotgun.
Sargent was convicted in October 2017 and sentenced in December to an aggregate term of 179 to 358 years in prison.
He filed an appeal, claiming the ineffective assistance of trial counsel, the exclusion of evidence, and the legality of his sentence.
He claimed he was improperly precluded from cross-examining a police officer regarding their familiarity with the effects of crystal meth on an individual’s judgment and perception. Effectively, Sargent claimed he was high at the time of the shootout.
A three-judge panel of the Superior Court ruled Friday that “neither evidence of voluntary intoxication nor voluntary drugged condition may be introduced to negate the element of
intent of an offense.”
“In an attempted murder case the lowering of the degree is logically impossible. There simply is no such crime as attempted second or third degree murder,” the panel wrote.
The court ruled that Sargent’s appeal lacked merit.
Sargent continues to serve his sentence at a state prison in Centre County.
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