Waukesha — A Waukesha County Jail inmate who was shot at a hospital in November after he allegedly attacked a sheriff's deputy entered a not guilty plea Friday to a charge of assault by a prisoner.
Steven P. Lettenberger, 44, is scheduled for a July jury trial in connection with the Nov. 6 incident at Waukesha Memorial Hospital.
Lettenberger was being treated at the hospital when he was shot in the upper torso by a deputy whom he was advancing toward with a knife, according to court records.
Lettenberger was being prepared to be returned to the jail when the attack occurred, according to court records.
His restraints had been taken off so he could use a restroom, and afterward he approached the deputy in a threatening manner with the knife and said he was not going to go back to the jail, records say.
The deputy warned Lettenberger several times and then fired one shot when Lettenberger was within three feet of the deputy, records state.
Lettenberger, of Waukesha, had been in the jail on charges in Waukesha County in August of bail-jumping, being armed with a firearm while intoxicated and carrying a concealed weapon.
He is facing charges in Oneida County of carrying a concealed weapon, operating a firearm while intoxicated, resisting/obstructing an officer and stalking.
During Lettenberger's arraignment in Waukesha County Circuit Court on Friday, prosecutor Brad Schimel said that the Oneida County charges may be consolidated with the Waukesha County case.