Felony assault charges for Lorain man in June brawl with cops in courtroom

A Lorain man is facing four felonies in relation to a brawl with a police detective and sheriff's deputies in Lorain County Common Pleas Court in June. Andrew Davison, 43, of West Erie Avenue, is serving at least 18 years in prison on attempted murder, drug trafficking and drug possession charges following two convictions this year in Common Pleas Court. He could get more prison time if convicted on two counts of felonious assault on a law enforcement officer, one count of assault on a law enforcement officer and one count of attempted escape filed Oct. 9 by a Lorain County grand jury. The case probably will require a visiting judge because a Common Pleas judge and county Prosecutor's Office employees who witnessed the alleged assaults are expected to be called as witnesses. Davison's bond is set at $1 million cash, according to court records, which do not list an attorney representing him. Davison represented himself in two felony trials earlier this year, which both resulted in convictions. Judge Christopher Rothgery sentenced Davison to 10 to 15 years in prison on June 12 for attempted murder. Elyria police and the Prosecutor's Office said Davison slashed another man in the face with a knife in 2024 for allegedly "snitching" on him in a drug case — a false allegation, prosecutors said. Davison asked Rothgery for a chance to report to jail at a later date so he could get his affairs in order. Rothgery denied the request and ordered Davison taken into custody. Telling them he wasn't going to jail, Davison pulled away from sheriff's deputies Jeff Smith and Christopher Schmidt and told them they would "have to kill me." According to an incident report written by Schmidt, Davison punched him in the jaw and hit Smith in the arms as Smith put them up to protect himself. Elyria police Detective Sgt. Michael Walker tried to help deputies restrain Davison, who according to jail records is 6 feet 3 inches tall and weighs 315 pounds. Davison took a swing at Walker as Walker tried to tackle him, and the two men traded punches in the middle of the courtroom before falling to the floor when Schmidt used his Taser device to shock Davison. Smith got Davison into a restraint hold from behind as Walker hit Davison in the face. Sheriff Jack Hall said it took seven police officers and deputies to finally restrain Davison and take him into custody. All three men were injured and treated at a hospital: Smith suffered cracked ribs and a fractured sternum, Walker had a dislocated finger and facial injuries and Davison had a swollen eye and a cut on his head. All three officers, Rothgery and several Prosecutor's Office employees are expected to be called as witnesses if the case goes to trial. Hall previously said Smith followed policy when he used a restraint hold around Davison's head and neck. The Sheriff's Office declined to release the results of any internal disciplinary investigation, citing the Confidential Law Enforcement Investigatory Records or CLEIRs exception to Ohio open records law. Again acting as his own attorney, Davison was convicted of trafficking in cocaine and possession of cocaine at a trial in September. Visiting Judge William McGinty gave him to eight to 12 years in prison for selling large amounts of crack cocaine to a confidential informant working with Lorain police in 2022. Davison claimed authorities used artificial intelligence to make fake evidence to frame him and is appealing the conviction. Multiple deputies provided security for that trial, fitting Davison with a device that with the flip of a switch could shock him with 50,000 volts of electricity if he got violent. Davison's criminal record includes felony convictions for aggravated assault, intimidation, assault on a corrections officer, being a felon in possession of a firearm and possession of cocaine. He also has a federal conviction for illegal weapons possession. Contact Dave O'Brien at (440) 329-7129 or dobrien@chroniclet.com.