Andrea Macko is reporting for Porcupine Soup former Greene County assistant public defender Anthony Pastel, 38, of Freehold, has pleaded guilty to felony assault. Pastel was arrested in August 2020, following an incident in the village of Athens. The victim, according to the state police, suffered serious injuries and was taken by Catskill Ambulance to Albany Medical Center. Pastel was charged with second-degree assault and second-degree strangulation, both felonies. The charges were later upgraded by a grand jury to include attempted murder. Because the assault occurred in the presence of a minor, Pastel was also charged with endangering the welfare of a child, a misdemeanor. Pastel was also charged with driving while intoxicated after leaving the scene of the attack. “Having uncovered additional facts of the case, the People and Court agreed to accept Mr. Pastel’s plea to felony assault in the second degree, in satisfaction of the charges,” the Greene County District Attorney’s Office said in a statement January 24. Pastel faces up to seven years in prison, plus three years post-release supervision when he is sentenced on March 23. Pastel was hired by the public defender's office in the spring of 2019 and was placed on administrative leave after his August 2020 arrest. By the following November, he was no longer employed by the county. Pastel will lose his license to practice law as a result of his conviction. Read the full story at porcupinesoup [dot] com.