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Jerome Justofin allegedly struck trucker who was walking along highway.
HAZLE TWP. – A Schuylkill County man was charged Tuesday in connection with a deadly hit-and-run that state police at Hazleton allege was alcohol related.
Police said in arrest records that Jerome Robert Justofin, 45, had a blood-alcohol level of .186 percent several hours after he slammed his Dodge Ram pickup into Festus Ampomah, 47, on state Route 924 on Oct. 3, 2008.
Ampomah, of Philadelphia, was walking along the highway after his tractor-trailer became disabled, police said.
Police said Justofin drove to his Zion Grove home, where he told his sons that he struck a pedestrian.
Justofin was charged with homicide by vehicle while driving under the influence, accidents involving death, failure to notify law enforcement authorities of an accident, two counts of driving under the influence and several traffic violations. He was arraigned by District Judge Thomas Sharkey in Hazle Township and released on $10,000 unsecured bail.
According to the criminal complaint filed by Trooper Jim Donnini:
Ampomah was driving a tractor-trailer that broke down at about 1:30 a.m. on Route 924, near Chestnut Hill Drive. He got out of the truck tractor and was walking along the roadway when he was struck by a vehicle.
Police said Justofin’s ex-wife, Jean Michelle Justofin, called state police saying that her ex-husband struck a pedestrian.
Police arrived at about 4 a.m. at Justofin’s residence, where they found him lying in bed. He told police that he was traveling home from a pool league at a bar in Conyngham, where he consumed two shots of vodka and eight to 10 beers.
He said he didn’t have anything to drink after the crash except for an iced tea.
Police said in the criminal complaint that Justofin displayed signs of intoxication and had trouble standing. He failed a series of field sobriety tests, police said.
Justofin was taken to Hazleton General Hospital, where he consented to a blood alcohol test at 5 a.m. Police said that Justofin had a blood-alcohol content of .186 percent.
An adult driver in Pennsylvania is considered intoxicated with a BAC of .08 percent.
Police said parts of Justofin’s truck were recovered on Route 924.
He is tentatively scheduled for a preliminary hearing on Dec. 1 before Sharkey.