PORTLAND - Andrew James Webb, who escaped Aug. 19 while being returned to the Yamhill County Jail following a court appearance, was sentenced Monday in Multnomah County Circuit Court to 15 months in prison for assaulting a sheriff's deputy while in custody at the Justice Center in downtown Portland.

Webb, a 28-year-old Gresham resident, got upset and threw a TV remote.

When deputy Richard Day ordered him back to his cell, he jumped the deputy, disabled his radio to keep him from calling for assistance and began punching him. Day was not seriously injured.

Webb was wheeled into Judge Karen Immergut's courtroom for a change of plea and sentencing hearing in a chair that restrained his arms, legs and shoulders.

He pleaded guilty to one count of assaulting a public safety officer, a Class A misdemeanor. A charge of fourth-degree assault was dismissed as part of a plea agreement with the Multnomah County District Attorney's Office.

Webb termed the incident nothing more than a "mutual fight," according to The Oregonian.

He did not apologize to Day, who was present. Instead, he offered an apology to who he termed the "true victims" - his children and family.

Yamhill County District Attorney Brad Berry said Webb, in all likelihood, will now be returned to serve a 15-month probation violation sentence he received the day he escaped from custody.

"He won't make his way into the general jail population, that's for sure," said Capt. Ron Huber, who serves as jail commander. "There are other areas where he can be placed."

Once he's served the local sentence, Berry said, Webb will probably be transported to Multnomah County to serve his term for assaulting the deputy. Then he will serve any time he receives on charges related to the escape, which have not been filed yet.

He is also facing serious felony charges in Washington's Klickitat County. They could net him a long prison term in Washington once he has served all of his time in Oregon.

Webb had faked a back injury, so was transported to and from his court appearance in a wheelchair. His hands were cuffed, but his legs were not shackled.

He escaped by jumping out of the chair and taking off on foot in his jail clothing.

A command post and perimeter were quickly established. At its peak, the search involved 50 officers, 30 vehicles and a helicopter.

However, it turned out Webb had stolen a car and headed to Portland not long after he escaped.

He was apprehended, along with an accomplice, two days later in Eastern Multnomah County. By then, he had stolen another car.

The events leading up to his capture began with the theft of some beer at a Troutdale truck stop. Employees gave chase, and they got a description and license plate number for the stolen car.

After leading Multnomah County deputies on a pursuit, the pair ditched the car and Webb jumped into the Sandy River at Lewis and Clark State Park, east of Troutdale off Interstate 84.

Deputies were joined by Gresham and Troutdale police officers in plucking Webb from the river with a boat. They found him hiding in a mid-river logjam backed up behind a concrete bridge support.

After undergoing treatment for minor injuries, Webb was booked into the Justice Center in Portland on one count each of attempt to elude a police officer, possession of burglary tools and unauthorized use of a motor vehicle. All of those charges have been dismissed.

An internal investigation attributed the escape to human error, procedural weaknesses and communication problems.

Sheriff Jack Crabtree said all of those issues have been addressed. He said the moves are designed to ensure safe transfer of inmates between the courthouse and jail in the future, regardless of their reputed medical status.

Currently, when inmates are brought to court from the jail they're wearing leg irons in addition to being handcuffed and bellychained.