COAL TOWNSHIP - A 40-year-old township man who crashed his sport utility vehicle into three vehicles last month, including those occupied by a judge and local police officer, has been charged with multiple offenses, including driving under the influence of alcohol and hit and run.
Leon Phillips, of Hemlock Street, was charged Thursday by Patrolman Joshua Wynn with two counts each of DUI and hit and run, and one count of failure to provide information and render aid, a stop sign violation and accidents involving death or personal injury.
The charges were filed in connection with three accidents Feb. 17 in the east end of the township that occurred within minutes of each other.
Police reported Phillips, who is a corrections officer at the State Correctional Institution at Frackville, had a blood-alcohol content of .237 percent.
The charges were filed at the office of Magisterial District Judge Hugh Jones in Mount Carmel because Magisterial District Judge John Gembic III is one of the victims in the case. Jones will preside at Phillips' preliminary hearing.
Wynn said Phillips was driving a silver Ford Expedition east on Tioga Street at about 2:30 p.m. when his vehicle crashed into the rear of a mini van operated by Elizabeth Gembic, 16, of Elysburg, who was stopped at the intersection of Tioga Street and Route 901 at the bottom of Rock Cut Road.
Gembic and her father, Magisterial District Judge John Gembic III, suffered injuries in the accident and were transported by private vehicle to Shamokin Area Community Hospital, where they underwent emergency room treatment before being released.
After hitting Gembic's van, police said Phillips became argumentative before turning around and heading west on Tioga Street. Police said witnesses reported seeing Phillips traveling at a high rate of speed and failing to stop for stop signs at Tioga and Hess streets and Tioga and Thomas streets.
At Tioga and Meade streets, police said Phillips' sport utility vehicle crashed into the rear of a pickup truck operated by John Young, of West Mulberry Street, Coal Township, who was stopped for a stop sign.
Police reported Phillips became argumentative toward Young before attempting to flee the scene. Police said Phillips then backed his vehicle into a Dodge truck operated by Edward Purcell, of Tioga Street, Coal Township, who is a Coal Township police officer and DUI coordinator for the southern end of Northumberland County.
Young, Phillips and Purcell were not injured.
None of the four vehicles involved in the crashes required towing.