Former Penn State exec sentenced for assault, confronted by woman in Centre County courtroom
A woman stood Tuesday in a Centre County courtroom to confront the former Penn State executive who pleaded guilty to assaulting her during an argument, an attack she described as vicious, deliberate and merciless.
She initially sounded as though she was speaking through tears as she described the mental and emotional scars she continues to live with, including what she said was post-traumatic stress disorder.
Keith A. Brautigam, 45, formerly of Patton Township, sat in a jail jumpsuit and shackles while she spoke and appeared to shake his head at least once. He declined an opportunity to speak before his sentence was formally handed down Tuesday.
Instead, he listened as she told Centre County Judge Julia Rater she resigned from her job in the wake of the October 2023 assault. She also told the judge she cannot control her panic attacks and flashbacks, but will “survive it again.”
“I am no longer the person I once knew,” she said.
Brautigam was sentenced by Rater to three to 23 1/2 months in the Centre County Correctional Facility. He received credit for 44 days served since late November and was also sentenced to two years of probation.
He pleaded guilty to misdemeanor counts of simple assault and false imprisonment. A felony count of strangulation and a summary count of harassment were dropped.
Centre County First Assistant District Attorney Joshua Andrews said the deal was negotiated over the course of several months and included input directly from Centre County District Attorney Bernie Cantorna.
Defense lawyer Matt McClenahen largely refrained from challenging any statements put forward in court Tuesday as the agreement was on the doorstep of being accepted, but did say without expanding that there are “two sides to every story.”
Brautigam is no longer employed at Penn State, a university spokesman said in a November email to the Centre Daily Times. He served as the university’s interim vice president for information technology and chief information officer.
Penn State declined to share the manner in which Brautigam left the university, describing it as a confidential personnel matter. After he was charged, a university spokesman said the university was “aware of the serious charges” and Brautigam had been placed on administrative leave.
According to Brautigam’s profile on LinkedIn, he left the university in November 2023 — one month after he was arrested.
The woman reported she and Brautigam were involved in a verbal argument that became physical, Patton Township police wrote in an affidavit of probable cause.
Centre County prosecutors alleged he grabbed her by the neck and tackled her to the ground, causing bruising and “substantial pain.” The woman said she “thought she was going to die” and was unable to scream because of the pressure on her neck, police wrote.
In addition to bruising, her skin appeared red and irritated, police wrote. She also reported a broken tooth. Brautigam told officers he “lost physical control of his body and may have choked her,” police wrote.
He began working for Penn State in 2014, eventually making his way up to leading the university’s IT unit. He had been responsible for providing leadership for about 1,200 IT professionals and also served on the president’s council.
His full-time successor is David Horton, who was named to the position in March.