Claiming that she helped hide the man accused of shooting Ithaca Police Officer Anthony Augustine, police arrested Kimberly Harden, a 35-year-old Ithaca resident, on Monday.
Harden was charged with hindering prosecution in the the first degree in connection with allegations that she assisted Jamel Booker, who was indicted by a Tompkins County grand jury for attempted murder last week, according to an Ithaca Police Department press release. The charge is a class D felony under New York State law.
Harden was taken into custody without incident and transported to Tompkins County Jail, where she was arraigned and is being held in lieu of $5,000 cash or $10,000 in bonds, according to the press release.
Booker was arrested after allegedly shooting Augustine on Oct. 11. The chase to catch Booker included dozens of emergency responders who scoured the West Village Apartments complex and the woods adjacent to it for several hours.
After he was shot, Augustine was transported to Upstate University Hospital in Syracuse, N.Y., where he was treated for a gunshot wound to the chest. After multiple surgeries, he was released from the hospital Oct. 18.
Booker is scheduled to be arraigned Wednesday in the Tompkins County Superior Court for attempted murder in the first degree, assault in the first degree and aggravated assault of a police officer.
As he awaits trial, Booker is being held at the Tompkins County Jail. His bail has been set at $500,000 in cash or $1 million in bonds.
Original Author: Liz Camuti