Franklin man accused of assault

From staff reports

A Franklin man is facing charges in connection with an incident at the After Hours Bar in Franklin on Thursday afternoon.

Franklin police said they were called to the bar around 5 p.m. for reports that Kenneth Raymond Shook, 24, was causing a disturbance at the bar and attempting to assault patrons and staff.

Witnesses told police that Shook had been drinking when he began to “sexually harass” the bartender, at which point she stopped selling him alcohol and asked him to leave, police said.

Police said Shook then became aggressive toward the bartender, called her a racial slur and threw a beer bottle at her that missed the bartender and hit the bar.

Shook also pushed and grabbed other patrons, harassed another woman at the bar and “got in the face” and threatened a man who tried to defend the women, police said.

Shook, police said, left the bar before they arrived and found him in front of his residence on Railroad Street, clearly intoxicated.

As he was ascending the steps to his residence, police said they asked to speak with Shook, who screamed and yelled profanities at officers and “took an aggressive stance.”

Police said Shook “denied being a bad person and stated he didn’t do anything wrong,” but became aggressive again and yelled at officers to “check him” while lifting his shirt to reveal a pocket knife in his front pocket.

Shook, when asked to walk toward officers, said “I have a knife,” police said. Officers told Shook to “forget about” the knife and told him not to touch it.

Police said they were able to take control of Shook’s left arm, but when they told him that he was under arrest, Shook began to resist and made comments that he was not going to comply.

Officers gained control of Shook and found the pocket knife had been partially drawn during their struggle with him, police said.

Shook is charged with a felony count of aggravated assault – attempts to cause or causes bodily injury to designated individuals, two misdemeanor counts of simple assault, misdemeanor counts of possess an instrument of crime with intent, resist arrest/ other law enforcement, trespass and disorderly conduct engage in fighting.

He also was cited for summary public drunkenness and similar misconduct.

Shook was arraigned before District Judge Andrew Fish on Thursday.

A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Wednesday in Venango County Central Court.