Hit-and-run leads to 4th DUI arrest
JEFFERSON TWP — A township man with three DUI convictions was arrested again for suspected drunken driving — this time for allegedly being more than three times the legal limit for alcohol following a hit-and-run crash.
State police said Kevin S. Peiffer, 44, was traveling south on Route 356 around 6:10 p.m. Tuesday when he rear-ended another vehicle at a red light at the Marwood Road intersection in Jefferson Township.
No injuries were reported. Investigators said Peiffer failed to stop and drove away in his 2006 Pontiac sport utility vehicle. Police later found him in the driver's seat of the vehicle, which was parked in his driveway.
He smelled of alcohol, according to charging documents, and refused field sobriety testing. Police took him to the barracks for a breath test, which allegedly showed his blood-alcohol level was 0.268 percent. In Pennsylvania, a level of 0.08 percent is considered intoxicated.
On Wednesday, District Judge Lewis Stoughton arraigned Peiffer on charges of driving under the influence, hit-and-run, failing to stop and give information or render aid, following too closely at another vehicle and careless driving.
At his arraignment, the defendant told Stoughton he had three prior DUIs. He remains in the Butler County Prison in lieu of $5,000 bond with the condition that he had to be released to the county probation office for pretrial supervision.
Stoughton also ordered that Peiffer wear a Secure Continuous Remote Alcohol Monitor, an ankle bracelet that immediately alerts law enforcement and probation and parole officers when the person wearing the device consumes alcohol.
His preliminary hearing is scheduled for Dec. 4. Online court records did not indicate if he has an attorney.
