MEADVILLE — A city man whose arrest over the summer led to the widespread circulation of a controversial video and to reviews of police procedures pleaded no-contest March 13 to a charge related to his role in the confrontation.
Nathan T. Koman, 34, entered his no-contest plea before Crawford County Judge Mark Stevens to a second-degree misdemeanor count of resisting arrest that the Meadville Police Department filed against him following the July 11 encounter in Erie. Prosecutors dropped four other charges Koman faced in exchange for his plea, including misdemeanor counts of disorderly conduct and possession of a controlled substance.
According to Meadville police and information outlined in case documents and at a court hearing, an officer on patrol said he spotted Koman and attempted to arrest him, as Koman was wanted on charges in a drug case. Police said Koman resisted and fought with the officer, during which time he was Tasered and struck in the head and body in an effort to get Koman to comply, the officer testified at Koman’s preliminary hearing in August…