Marcus Fair

A Butler County man charged in three separate cases withdrew his guilty pleas in one of those cases in Butler County Court on Tuesday.

Marcus A. Fair, 32, withdrew his guilty plea to misdemeanor false reports, disorderly conduct and summary driving on a suspended license, before county Judge William Shaffer.

Fair's attorney, Rebecca Black, said her client is asserting his innocence of the charges at that case.

When asked under oath if he committed the offenses, he said “I did not.”

Fair claimed he did not lie to police about his middle name, drive an unregistered vehicle and not have a driver's license after being charged in a traffic stop on Feb. 8.

Shaffer granted the request and that case will be scheduled for further proceedings.

Fair pleaded guilty in that case as well as two others to two counts of misdemeanor simple assault on Aug. 18. He did not withdraw the simple assault pleas and will be sentenced in those cases on Oct. 19.

Fair was initially charged in the case in which he withdrew he plea, with felony intercept communications, misdemeanor false reports to law enforcement, disorderly conduct and a number of summary violations including driving without a license, driving with a suspended license and a registration violation.

Buffalo Township police said Fair allegedly refused to stop audio recording his conversation with a police officer during the stop on North Pike Road.

The officer reportedly recognized Fair as someone whose driver's license has been suspended, according to court documents. She stopped the vehicle and asked the driver to provide his license, proof of insurance and vehicle registration, according to court records.

Fair, according to court records, questioned why he was stopped and the officer told him that it was because she recognized him.

The defendant allegedly responded that his driving privileges had recently been restored, but he did not have the license, registration or insurance card with him. Court records state the officer then confirmed with emergency dispatchers that the defendant's registration had expired in January.

As she was talking, the officer noticed the defendant had his cell phone on his thigh and was using it to record the conversation.

The officer, according to court records, told the man that he did not have permission to record her voice and repeatedly asked him to stop. The officer, according to court records, took the phone, turned off the recording, arrested the defendant and had his car towed.

The simple assault charges stem from unrelated incidents that allegedly involved his wife.

Fair is serving pretrial house arrest pending the resolution of the cases.