Oct 18, 2005 By Steve Ferris 3 min read

A Uniontown man waived his preliminary hearing Monday on charges filed by Uniontown police alleging he struck and injured a retired radio newsman who was walking across a street, and then left the scene while delivering pizzas with a suspended driver’s license. Brandon S. Doyle, 20, of 21 Peary St. waived his hearing on felony charges of accidents involving death or personal injury and accidents involving death or personal injury while not properly licensed and summary charges of duty to give information and render aid, driving with a suspended license, reckless driving and careless driving.

Doyle, who was represented by public defender Mike Garofolo, waived all charges to court before Magisterial District Judge Mark Blair.

He remains free on his own recognizance.

The case against him will be forwarded to Fayette County Common Pleas Court, where he will either face trial or accept a plea agreement.

Mark Morrison, first trial assistant district attorney, and Garofolo said they negotiated a tentative plea bargain in which Doyle would not be prosecuted on any of the summary offenses when the case reaches Common Pleas Court.

John “Jack” McMullen, 85, of Uniontown remains in Ruby Memorial Hospital in Morgantown, W.Va., recovering from fractured and broken bones in his legs and arms, shin, hip and collarbone, and cuts on his head.

He worked as a news reporter and disc jockey at radio stations in Uniontown, Florida and the West Coast. He also was a director of the Fayette County Redevelopment Authority and worked for the Uniontown Bureau of Community Development in 1960s and ’70s.

McMullen also served as a radio code operater in World War II.

He was walking to the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 47 on West Main Street from a parking lot across the street just before 7 p.m. Oct. 7 when he was hit.

When police arrived, they found McMullen lying on the road against the curb.

A witness said the driver that hit him parked his car – which had a Papa John’s Pizza sign on the roof – around the corner and walked up to McMullen, but then left the scene, according to an affidavit of probable cause.

The next day, Doyle and his mother came to the police station and he gave them a statement.

He told police that he was reading a delivery slip while delivering a pizza to the Uniontown Mall area when he looked up and saw a man directly in front of him, but was not able to stop in time to avoid hitting him, police said.

Doyle parked nearby, walked back to the scene and then called 911 from the VFW, police said.

He said he became scared when he noticed the severity of the man’s injuries and left, police said, noting that his driver’s license was suspended.

Police added that the road was wet from rain that evening.