Robert Crawford Jr.

MERCER TWP — A township man faces a hearing next week on charges he threatened to kill his girlfriend while holding a large knife, during a domestic dispute at their home on Route 8.

But Robert P. Crawford Jr., 60, compounded his trouble Dec. 30, authorities said, when he drove away allegedly drunk.

State police stopped his pickup truck a short drive away. A breath test later showed he was more than twice the legal limit for alcohol.

He was arrested and arraigned on a list of charges before being placed in Butler County Prison on $5,000 bail.

Tammy Baker, the defendant's girlfriend, told police that she and Crawford had been arguing over her decision to leave their home, according to court documents.

She said that he grabbed a kitchen knife with an 8-inch blade and began “singing he was going to kill her over and over again,” a police affidavit said. No one was injured in the incident.

Troopers got to the home and saw Crawford pull away in his pickup and head north on Route 8. Police pulled him over on Station Road.

Crawford admitted that he had been drinking and he subsequently failed field sobriety tests, documents said. He was taken to the barracks in Butler Township and given a breath test.

Results showed his blood-alcohol level was 0.182 percent. A level of 0.08 percent is considered intoxicated.

Police said they recovered the knife at the house.

Crawford is charged with terroristic threats, simple assault, driving under the influence, harassment, disorderly conduct and not wearing a seat belt. His preliminary hearing is set for Jan. 10 at the office of District Judge Bill O'Donnell.