Uniontown men charged following police chase
A Uniontown man is facing multiple charges after police allege he led them on a high-speed chase around the Uniontown area early Tuesday.
A passenger in his vehicle, also from Uniontown, is facing his own set of charges for allegedly assaulting trooper following the pursuit.
State police Trooper Matthew Falcone said Tito Santana Bailey, 22, was charged before Magisterial District Judge Joseph M. George Jr. with escape, aggravated assault, two counts of criminal mischief, driving with a suspended license, drunken driving, resisting arrest, fleeing and eluding police and five additional traffic violations.
A passenger in Bailey’s car, Kenneth Ray Baker Jr., 20, was charged before George with aggravated assault of a state police trooper, resisting arrest, littering and underage drinking.
Falcone said the charges were filed after he and Trooper Scott A. Dowlin attempted to stop a car driven by Bailey in a routine traffic stop near the intersection of Morgantown and East Fayette streets shortly before 1 a.m.
Instead of stopping, Falcone said Bailey fled from police and led them on a winding and high-speed car chase through Uniontown, Hopwood and North Union Township that eventually came to a conclusion Clearwater Drive.
Falcone said Bailey drove his car through a lawn and then was blocked in by another police cruiser driven by Trooper Christopher Cole.
Bailey accelerated his vehicle and rammed Cole’s patrol car. He then exited his car and attempted to flee on foot.
He was caught a short distance away by troopers and Uniontown police. As police attempted to remove Baker from the vehicle, he pushed Falcone and tried to punch him and elbow him in the face, police said. After a brief scuffle, he was taken into police custody.
Falcone said Cole’s police cruiser sustained moderate damage in the collision.
This isn’t Bailey’s first encounter with the law.
In 2009, a Fayette County jury acquitted him of aggravated assault, but convicted Bailey of multiple counts of simple assault for firing shots at two occupied cars in 2008. That verdict was reached after a Fayette County judge dismissed charges of attempted homicide against Bailey after police allege he fired multiple rounds into vehicles driven by Robert Hickey Jr. and Samantha Miller in Uniontown on Dec. 19. Hickey had two passengers in his car, and Miller had one passenger in her car, police said.
Both cars had several bullet holes in them as a result of the alleged shooting, police said.
While police searched Bailey’s home, they were unable to find a gun, but did find several rounds of ammunition, authorities indicated.
George placed Bailey in Fayette County Prison on $100,000 straight cash bond following his arraignment early Tuesday.
He will face a preliminary hearing at a later date before Magisterial District Judge Michael M. Metros.
Baker was placed in Fayette County Prison on $25,000 straight cash bond and also will have a preliminary hearing in coming weeks before Metros.