Man pleads guilty in Osceola Mills VFW shooting

A Bellefonte man charged with attempted murder pleaded guilty Monday to lesser charges in Clearfield County Court.

The charges stem from an incident in April at the VFW in Osceola Mills when Robert Dwayne Hanson, 56, and Jeff Swanson, 46, of Osceola Mills, fought in the parking lot. Both men were shot. Swanson was struck in the chest and suffered an injury to his right lung.

Hanson pleaded guilty Monday to aggravated assault and person not to possess firearms. He was sentenced by President Judge Fredric J. Ammerman to three to 10 years in state prison.

Ammerman seemed surprised that District Attorney William A. Shaw Jr. was not in court for this sentencing hearing and prior to sentencing he questioned whether the three-year minimum sentence was enough. If Hanson was convicted of his original charges, he would have gotten 20 to 25 years in prison, Ammerman stated.

Thomas Dickey, who was representing Hanson, explained that the plea was a “fair compromise” because his client had also been shot.

Eventually Ammerman agreed to accept the plea because Shaw had asked him to and because bar fights often have different versions of events depending on who you ask, he said. He added that at least “nobody got killed.”

According to court documents, Hanson was at the VFW bar when he mentioned to a woman that he borrowed a gun from somebody. He said he planned to shoot Swanson because he owed him money.

The woman went home and contacted Swanson, who was at another bar. She warned him to stay away from Hanson because he said he was going to shoot him.

Swanson left that bar and went to the VFW. Once there, he opened the door, and yelled for Hanson to come out. Hanson stepped outside and the two men started to argue.

According to police, Swanson first slapped Hanson across the face and then punched him several times in the face and head. Hanson dropped onto the sidewalk as his pants fell down. The gun hidden near Hanson’s waist hit the ground. The two then struggled over the gun. At this point, the gun went off, firing one shot into the air. Another shot grazed Hanson on the side of the head.

Swanson walked away and when he was about 15 feet from him, Hanson yelled his name. When Swanson turned around, Hanson fired the gun, striking Swanson in the right side of the chest.

EMS personnel arrived and provided medical treatment to both men. They were transported by ambulance and then to UPMC Altoona by helicopter where they were treated for their injuries.

A witness told police that Hanson asked him if he could borrow a gun. This witness stated he didn’t know Hanson was planning to shoot someone. He added that he thought Swanson owed Hanson $9,000 and Hanson said that Swanson had ripped him off.

Swanson is charged with simple assault and harassment for this incident. He is free on $10,000, unsecured bail.

This story was originally published March 7, 2016 at 8:42 PM with the headline "Man pleads guilty in Osceola Mills VFW shooting."