LEBANON, Pa.–A Cornwall borough councilman was charged Friday after he was caught on camera assaulting his next door neighbor during a dispute last month.
Steve Levengood, 48, was arraigned Friday and released on $25,000 bail. He is charged with aggravated assault and simple assault.
Police responded to a reported assault along the 100 block of Store Lane in Cornwall Borough on June 27. Investigators said in the criminal complaint and affidavit that they recognized the address due to an ongoing neighbor dispute between councilman Levengood and 45-year-old Darnell Pemberton.
The first officer arrived at the scene and found Pemberton lying in the drive way at 106 Store Lane. Police say Pemberton sustained a head injury and there was blood on the driveway. He was taken to Hershey Medical Center for treatment. Hospital staff told police Pembreton suffered a traumatic brain injury and that he had moderate to severe speech and cognitive deficiencies as a result of the brain bleed, according to the affidavit.
Police reviewed a two-minute video of the assault that was captured on a camera posted on Pemberton’s property. The video shows Levengood and Pemberton arguing in the driveway. Levengood is seen on camera carrying a flashlight and points the light in Pemberton’s eyes several times by holding the light a few inches from his face, according to court documents. When Pemberton knocks the light away from his face, the video shows Levengood punching him in the face, according to the affidavit. Pemberton is seen falling to the ground and appears to have struck his head on the driveway, court documents state.
Levengood admitted to punching Pemberton in the head and that “he fell to the ground like a wet noodle,” according to the affidavit.
Pemberton told police that on the night of the incident he was installing “no trespassing” signs on his property in response to the signs posted by Levengood. Pemberton said Levengood confronted him in the driveway and he doesn’t remember much after being punched.
Hospital staff told police that Pemberton would need a stay at a rehabilitation facility after his release from the hospital.
A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Aug. 18.