Man pleads guilty in baseball bat attack
NORRISTOWN » A New Hanover man awaits his fate from a judge after he admitted to breaking into his ex-wife’s Upper Frederick residence and using a baseball bat to strike a male guest at the home in the head.
Joseph Earl Gimber, 56, of the 2300 block of Locust Lane, pleaded guilty in Montgomery County Court to felony charges of aggravated assault, possessing an instrument of crime and burglary in connection with a June 4, 2017, incident at a Westview Drive residence in Upper Frederick.
The open plea means Gimber has no deals with prosecutors regarding his potential sentence. Gimber faces a possible maximum sentence of 22½ to 45 years in prison on the charges when he’s
sentenced later this year by Judge Wendy G. Rothstein. However, state sentencing guidelines could allow for a lesser sentence.
Before sentencing Gimber, Rothstein ordered that Gimber undergo drug, alcohol and mental health evaluations. Gimber remains free on bail pending sentencing.
Under state law, by pleading guilty to aggravated assault, Gimber admitted that he intentionally or recklessly caused serious bodily injury to another person “under circumstances manifesting extreme indifference to the value of human life.”
An investigation began about 4:45 a.m. when state police at Skippack were dispatched to the Upper Frederick home for a report of a domestic assault in progress. Gimber’s ex-wife reported Gimber “broke into the house and struck her friend over the head with a baseball bat,” according to the criminal complaint filed by state police Trooper Jason Henley.
Gimber, police alleged, used a baseball bat to smash a rear sliding glass door to gain access to the house. Gimber did not live at the residence and “had no right to be there,” Henley alleged.
Once inside the home, Gimber walked upstairs, encountered his ex-wife, shoved her out of the way and approached the male victim, according to police.
“At that time, Gimber stuck (the victim) over the head with an aluminum baseball bat before leaving the residence,” Henley alleged in the arrest affidavit.
Physical evidence at the scene consisted of shattered glass pieces throughout the dining room, kitchen and living room, police said.
“The entire glass sliding door was missing, consistent with being struck by a baseball bat. Upstairs where the assault took place, there was a large blood stain on the carpet in the doorway to the walk-in closet. There was also blood smeared on the side wall of the walk-in closet,” Henley alleged.
Police said the victim suffered a head injury and was transported to a local hospital for treatment. Court documents did not provide further details about the injury.
Gimber’s vehicle, a fourdoor silver truck, was located at an abandoned house on Big Road just east of Simmons Road at a property marked with “No Trespassing” signs and he was located about 300 yards away on the wood line, police alleged.
“Gimber refused to obey commands and ran back into the woods,” Henley alleged, adding with the help of a K9 unit and a state police helicopter Gimber was eventually found hiding in the woods. “Gimber again refused to listen to commands and was apprehended after another brief foot pursuit.”
Other charges of simple assault, criminal trespass, recklessly endangering other persons, resisting arrest and disorderly conduct will be dismissed against Gimber at sentencing time in exchange for his guilty plea to the felony offenses, court papers indicate.