Friday, February 5, 2010

Columbia officer accepted into program

Columbia Borough Police Officer Daniel Bell, demoted from detective after his May DUI crash in Hallam, has been accepted into a pretrial diversionary program.
Bell will be allowed to carry his sidearm on duty while in the Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition program, according to the York County District Attorney's Office. People on ARD or on probation are typically required to surrender their weapons.

Bell, 36, of Hellam Township, was charged with driving under the influence, accidents involving damage to an unattended vehicle, careless driving, failure to notify police and driving in the wrong lane after his Jeep Cherokee struck a parked, unoccupied Jeep Cherokee in the 400 block of East Market Street in Hallam about 3 a.m. May 3.

A blood test placed Bell's alcohol level at 0.184 percent, more than twice the 0.08 percent level at which an adult driver is considered to be drunk under Pennsylvania law.

The collision flipped Bell's Jeep onto its roof and ripped the right rear passenger tire off the other Jeep and pushed that vehicle from the roadway into a nearby driveway.

Bell left the scene after the crash, police said. A Hellam Township Police officer found Bell's badge, driver's license, police identification and a .25-caliber handgun in the Bell's Jeep.

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