'He should have known.' Bensalem man faces trial for Christmas Eve hit and run in Croydon
John Dugan was not a guy who let health problems, or his two left feet, stop him from dancing whenever the mood struck him like it did last Christmas Eve.
The 65-year-old grandfather was feeling festive and joyful, as he walked the 10-feet or so across State Road from their apartment to the home of a friend hosting a holiday party, his longtime fiancée Christine Mezzatenta said.
It was around dinner time, a little after 5 p.m., but it was already dark outside and the street lights didn’t offer much illumination. In his dark-colored hoodie and blue jogging pants, Dugan blended in with the night.
Dugan made it to the other side of the double line when his feet got tangled up under him and he fell to his knees in the street. Mazzatenta, who was following him, went to help Dugan as he started to stand up.
Out of nowhere, a pickup truck whooshed past her. It missed Mezzatena by no more than a foot, forcing her to jump back out of its way.
Dugan was not as lucky. Mezzatenta testified Wednesday in a Bristol courtroom that she saw the truck run over Dugan, and immediately ran screaming to the neighbors house. He died of a head injury on his way to the hospital.
She was one of three witnesses who testified Wednesday at the preliminary hearing for Kevin Baker Jr., the 20-year-old Bensalem man who is accused of leaving the scene of a fatal hit and run accident in Croydon last year.
Earlier this year a Bucks County Grand Jury recommended charging Baker with accidents involving death or personal injury, a felony, tampering with physical evidence, and failure to stop and render aid. He is free after posting 10% of $150,000 bail.
More on the death of John DuganPolice: Bensalem man, 20, tried to hide evidence of fatal Croydon hit and run
On Wednesday Baker’s lawyer, Lou Busico, argued before District Judge Frank Peranteau that the charges against his client should be dismissed because the prosecution failed to prove that his client was aware he had struck Dugan.
Busico expressed sympathy for the Dugan family’s loss, but added that Baker is not charged with causing the accident, rather did he, or should he, have known he struck someone.
Where Dugan and Mazzatenta crossed State Road there is no marked pedestrian crosswalk or traffic signal, and police acknowledge that Baker did not appear to be exceeding the posted 35-mph speed limit, Busico said.
He also cited testimony from a witness, Baker’s girlfriend of nearly two years, Elizabeth Joyce, who was with him when the accident happened and afterward.
Joyce told the court after a day of holiday shopping, she and Baker visited his aunt at her home on Cedar Avenue, roughly a quarter-milefrom the accident scene at State Road and Fourth Avenue. The couple stayed for a half hour before heading back to Baker’s house in Bensalem, Joyce said.
Joyce testified that she didn’t feel well and reclined to a nearly flat position in the passenger seat and she was nearly asleep on the ride home, but that she recalled nothing unusual about the drive. There was no conversation and Baker made no exclamations at any point during the ride.
She testified Baker continued driving the truck for several days and she didn’t notice any damage to it before she and Baker made repairs to the front bumper on Dec. 28, four days after the accident.
Bucks County prosecutor Jovin Jose, though, countered video evidence, which figured prominently in the criminal investigation of Baker, as well as witness testimony contradicting Baker’s claim that he was unaware he had struck a person.
Video from a nearby gas station played in court showed the accident as it happened and the suspected vehicle — the cherry red 2021 Chevy Silverado with black wheels and working front lights — traveling west on State Road approaching Third Avenue.
Moments later, two pedestrians, who prosecutors believe are Dugan and Mezzatenta, are seen on State Road. The pickup truck appears to slow and its brake lights activated, then it continues traveling down State Road toward Bensalem. Other vehicles in the video stopped at the scene.
No vehicle parts were found at the accident scene, according to police. But DNA taken from portions of Baker’s pickup matched swabs taken from a blood blanket that covered Dugan’s body at the accident scene, Bristol Township Police officer and crash investigator Kenneth Margerum testified Wednesday.
Bensalem police provided additional surveillance video showing a red pickup truck with a non-functioning driver’s side fog light, illegally passing a car on State Road before turning onto Brookdale Road, minutes after the fatal accident.
More video evidence that a tipster turned into police showed Baker Jr. and his girlfriend cleaning and repairing the front of the Silverado at a family member’s home on Dec. 28.
The pickup truck also left a black tire mark across Dugan’s lower back, which Jose argued disputes the idea that Baker did not know he struck a 200-pound man.
“He ran over the biggest part of his body,” Jose said.
The prosecutor added that Baker’s attempt to repair damage to the front of the pickup the day before he and his father turned it into police suggests they suspected criminal investigation was pending.
"The defendant knew," Jose said.
District Judge Frank Peranteau agreed.
“If Mr. Baker didn’t know, he should have known,” he said, before holding Baker for trial in Bucks County court on all charges.
Throughout the 90-minute hearing, Dugan’s daughter, Jamie Santos, could be heard loudly weeping. The loudest sobs came after the judge’s decision.
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This article originally appeared on Bucks County Courier Times: Bensalem man held on all charges for holiday hit and run in Croydon
