[PA] If Cop McCarthy's severely bruised wife had died, would they have even believed her then?

A Chester County police officer will serve a probationary sentence... "I served my country in the military. I served my community. I've always tried to do the best that I could"... The 5-foot 2-inch tall woman who weighs 100 pounds claimed McCarthy, who stands 6-feet 2-inches tall and weighs about 200 pounds, grabbed her by the neck and "body-slammed" her facedown into the tub and then pressed her sternum against a faucet, causing her to gasp for breath...

Previous entries:

• [PA] Officer McCarthy's wife: "I thought he was going to kill me" - ...McCarthy, the woman testified, reminded her he was a police officer and that he could kill her. “I thought he was going to kill me..."
• [PA] Tredyffrin Officer charged with assault of his wife - "(The woman) had a large bruise on her chest," Lower Pottsgrove police officer Matthew Kemp wrote in the criminal complaint, alleging the bruise was about 3 inches wide and ran from the base of the woman’s neck to her stomach area...
• [PA] Officer McCarthy wants info omitted from his wife-assault trial - ...[Defense lawyer Sean] Cullen also wants to prevent the jury from learning that the victim filed for a protection from abuse order against McCarthy. Any statements McCarthy gave to authorities at the time of his arrest were improperly obtained by authorities and should be prohibited as trial evidence, Cullen argued...
  

Chesco officer sentenced in domestic dispute
Pottstown Mercury, PA
By Carl Hessler Jr., chessler@pottsmerc.com
07/01/2008
[EXCERPTS] A Chester County police officer will serve a probationary sentence for harassing his wife during an argument inside their Lower Pottsgrove home. Michael J. McCarthy, 37, a 10-year veteran of the Tredyffrin Police Department, was sentenced in Montgomery County Court on Monday to one year of probation in connection with the June 2007 incident. President Judge Richard J. Hodgson also ordered McCarthy to complete an anger management counseling program and 24 hours of community service as conditions of the sentence. Last month, a jury convicted McCarthy of a misdemeanor charge of harassment. Specifically, the jury determined McCarthy communicated lewd, obscene or threatening words to his wife during the argument inside the couple's home with the intent to harass, annoy or alarm. However, with a split verdict, the jury acquitted McCarthy of more serious charges of simple assault in connection with the incident. Those charges could have carried potential jail time... "I served my country in the military. I served my community. I've always tried to do the best that I could," said McCarthy, who during the trial adamantly denied that he assaulted and injured his 38-year-old wife... [Defense lawyer Sean] Cullen said while the jurors "completely disregarded" the woman's assault allegations it's puzzling that they convicted McCarthy of harassment. "Basically, for cursing in his own home and that's the most frustrating thing. He's alleged to have used profanity and that's going to cost him his career, potentially," Cullen said. During the trial, McCarthy claimed his wife sustained an abrasion to her chest after she accidentally fell into a soaking tub as the two argued about their marital relationship in the bathroom of their home during the early morning hours of June 26, 2007... The 5-foot 2-inch tall woman who weighs 100 pounds claimed McCarthy, who stands 6-feet 2-inches tall and weighs about 200 pounds, grabbed her by the neck and "body-slammed" her facedown into the tub and then pressed her sternum against a faucet, causing her to gasp for breath. McCarthy, the woman testified, reminded her that he was a police officer and that he could kill her... Court records show that McCarthy's wife did obtain a temporary protection from abuse order against McCarthy after the incident. Under an order signed by county Judge Thomas C. Branca last June 26, McCarthy was evicted from the couple's Lower Pottsgrove home and ordered to relinquish any weapons he owned, pending a final order of a judge regarding the protection order. [Full article here]