Man in jail on $250K bail, accused of 4th DUI
SUMMIT TWP — A suspected drunken driver is jailed on $250,000 bail following his fourth arrest in eight months — this time for allegedly going more than 100 mph with two children in the car.
Joshua S. Heigley, 35, of Kittanning is charged with a felony count of driving under the influence and a list of other criminal and traffic offenses stemming from his latest arrest last week in Summit Township.
District Judge Lewis Stoughton arraigned Heigley on Thursday. In addition to the high dollar amount, Stoughton set additional conditions on the bail, including that he must be released to Butler County probation authorities.
Heigley is required, upon his release, to wear a so-called SCRAM bracelet. The acronym stands for “Secure Continuous Alcohol Monitoring.”
The tamper-resistant device samples and analyzes the suspect's perspiration for the presence of alcohol. Strapped to an offender's ankle, the device monitors the individual activity hourly.
Heigley ran into his latest legal trouble March 17 when Trooper Michael Torres was running radar on Route 422, east of Bonniebrook Road.
The defendant's westbound Buick LeSabre was clocked traveling 101 mph, according to the trooper's affidavit. The speed limit there is 55 mph.
Police said Heigley committed a number of traffic violations before he was pulled over. Torres got to the car and allegedly smelled alcohol coming from it. He also noticed Heigley's two young children in the back seat, one of whom was not secured in a child safety seat, according to charging documents.
Heigley was arrested for suspected DUI after performing field sobriety tests. He was taken to the barracks in Butler Township, police said, but he refused to take a breath test.
He is charged with felony DUI because of a still relatively new law.
A new state law enacted last fall called for harsher legal consequences for repeat offenders like Heigley. Previously, all DUIs in the state were treated as misdemeanors. Under the new law, someone with four DUI offenses within 10 years faces a felony.
In addition to drunken driving, Stoughton arraigned Heigley on two misdemeanor counts each of child endangerment and reckless endangerment.
He also was arraigned on 19 traffic violations, including driving with a suspended license, speeding, careless driving and reckless driving.
His preliminary hearing is scheduled for April 2.
According to court records, Heigley is already facing DUI charges in two other counties.
He was arrested for allegedly driving drunk July 30 in East Franklin Township and on Oct. 20 in Manor Township, both in Armstrong County, and on Oct. 28 in Harrison Township, Allegheny County.
In the July 30 arrest, records showed, he was more than twice the state's legal limit for alcohol. In the Oct. 20 arrest, he also led police on a pursuit.
All those cases are pending in court.
