Morrisville mayor awaiting trial on hit-run crash abruptly resigns; what's next for post?
Morrisville Mayor Brud Anderson has resigned one month after he failed to appear at a preliminary hearing where charges were held for trial in a hit-and-run accident earlier this year.
Council President Robert Paul announced at the Oct. 17 council meeting that Anderson, 51, had submitted his resignation effective midnight Wednesday. Anderson did not attend the council meeting.
Paul said that he received an email on from Anderson on Monday, which cited "several extremely unfortunate circumstances both personally and professionally" as the reason for his resignation.
Anderson, a Democrat, had a little more than two years left in his term. He was elected mayor of the riverfront town in 2021. The borough will accept nominations through Nov. 10 and council anticipates filling his vacancy at the November meeting.
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Anderson is next scheduled to appear in Bucks County Court on Friday for his formal arraignment on charges related to the April 13 accident in the borough. His case is not expected to go to trial until next year. He has no attorney listed on the court docket.
The mayor was arrested in June after an investigators said Anderson allegedly fled the scene of an accident two months earlier.
A Bucks County district judge held Anderson for trial last month on three charges, including accidents involving death or personal injury, a misdemeanor, after he failed to appear at his preliminary hearing.
Morrisville police responded to the accident at North Delmorr and East Trenton avenues where a New Jersey woman claimed she was traveling south on Delmorr approaching the intersection when a black Sport-Trac attempted to turn left onto East Trenton Avenue from the northbound lane of Delmoor, according to charging documents.
The right front of her SUV struck the front of the Sport-Trac and both vehicles came to a stop in the middle of the intersection, police said. The woman reported she suffered minor injuries including bruises and a burn where her airbag deployed.
Surveillance video that captured the accident showed the black Sport-Trac remained at the scene for less than five-seconds before backing up and speeding away westbound on East Trenton Avenue.
Eight days after the accident, Morrisville police confirmed the Sport-Trac was registered to Anderson, according to charging documents. The borough police referred the case for investigation to the District Attorney’s Office citing a conflict of interest; Anderson oversees the borough’s police department.
A Bucks County detective testified last month that Anderson admitted in an interview to the accident and fleeing the scene and did not call police or report the accident.
At least two council members claimed they were not aware Anderson was under a criminal investigation until a news reporter told them.
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This article originally appeared on Bucks County Courier Times: Morrisville Mayor Brud Anderson resigns. What we know
