ROCKVILLE, Conn. – The father of a man charged with sexual assault was arrested after striking a television reporter outside a courthouse where his son's bail had just been revoked, police said.
David Shefelbine, 67, of Tolland, knocked WTNH-TV reporter Erin Cox to the ground with his arm or fist when she approached him as he left court Thursday, police said. Cox was checked at a local hospital and released.
She said during the station's 6 p.m. broadcast Thursday that she was "a little shaken, but otherwise OK," and that Shefelbine also jostled a cameraman as he left the courthouse.
"When I asked him to comment, he hit me and kept on walking," Cox said.
Shefelbine later turned himself in at Vernon police headquarters and was charged with breach of peace, police said. He was released on $500 bond and is scheduled to appear in court July 24.
Messages left at the Shefelbine home and at David Shefelbine's computer business were not returned.
Shefelbine's son, Scott D. Shefelbine, 32, of Tolland, had been free on $1.5 million bond while awaiting trial on charges including sexual assault. He was sent to jail Thursday for violating terms of his release, which included not using a computer or contacting girls under 18.
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