Crime & Safety

Passengers Yelled 'Cut It Out' at Drunk Driver Before Crash, Police Say

Levittown driver in serious car crash was drunk, police say.

Following an investigation of an April car crash that caused seriours injuries to the passengers, Bensalem police have arrested the driver on several felony counts of aggravated assault, driving under the influence and related charges.

A witness told police that Joseph Becker, 22, of Levittown, had been drinking at two bars with friends before taking the wheel of a silver Cadillac CTS with two other passengers in the early morning of April 12. 

According to the affidavit, the witness drove alongside Becker southbound on I-95 from route 413, both cars traveling between 85 and 100 miles per hour. The witness told police that Becker swerved the car from the far left lane to the right lane to take the Street Road exit. When he got to the top of the ramp, the witness saw that the car had crashed, according to police.

Emergency personnel extracted Becker and the two passengers and transported them to Aria Health's Torresdale campus for treatment. One officer reported a smell of alcohol in the car, and a paramedic said she detected alcohol on Becker's breath, according to the affidavit.

Police say that medical records later showed that Becker had a .209 percent blood alcohol content. Pennsylvania's minimum blood alcohol limit is .08 percent.

A crash reconstruction conducted by Bensalem police determined that Becker attempted to turn right on to westbound Street Road and hit a concrete barrier, the affidavit says. The passengers told police that they yelled at Becker to slow down and "cut it out," according to the report.

Becker has been released on an unsecured $50,000 bail. His preliminary hearing before District Judge Leonard Brown has been scheduled for Oct. 8 at 9:45 a.m.


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