A 51-year-old Auburn man is facing felony charges after authorities say he rammed an occupied Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources patrol vehicle in reverse before speeding off through Weiser State Forest on an August evening. Anthony Alfred Rizzuto was formally charged this week, nearly two months after the alleged encounter unfolded along a trail in East Union Township.
According to Skook News, Rizzuto was charged on October 26 in connection with the August 29 incident along Black Road Trail in the Catawissa Recreation Area. The case stems from an affidavit filed by the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources describing how two rangers were patrolling for unauthorized ATV activity when a department trail camera captured several side-by-sides traveling through an area not designated for motorized use.
Rangers Say Vehicles Approached Shortly After 7 p.m.
Per the affidavit, DCNR rangers positioned their own department side-by-side along Black Road Trail to intercept the group, and the vehicles approached the rangers shortly after 7 p.m. The first side-by-side reportedly stopped briefly, turned around, and began fleeing, at which point a ranger activated the patrol vehicle's emergency lights and gave shouted commands, the affidavit states.
That's when authorities allege the green-and-black side-by-side, identified by group members as operated by Rizzuto, accelerated in reverse and struck the front passenger-side corner of the patrol vehicle while both rangers were inside. The driver then accelerated forward at a high rate of speed, shouting for others to turn around and move out of the way, according to the same affidavit.
Hikers Say They Stepped Off the Trail to Avoid the Chaos
Two hikers in the area reported they stepped off the trail after hearing the commotion, saying several side-by-sides came down the trail at high speed. They said they believed they would have been forced off the path had they remained there, per the affidavit's account relayed in the report.
Rangers ultimately stopped five vehicles, while an estimated three or four others escaped, the affidavit notes. A passenger identified Rizzuto as the driver who struck the patrol vehicle, and another rider confirmed that identification and provided his contact information to investigators.
Charges Filed Before Shenandoah Judge
Rizzuto now faces one count of fleeing or attempting to elude an officer, a third-degree felony, along with four counts of second-degree misdemeanor recklessly endangering another person. He also faces summary offenses for reckless driving, vehicle operation to avoid identification or inspection, operating an ATV on state property, and careless ATV operation, per the charging document described in the report.
The operators who remained on scene were each issued two citations for operating ATVs on state forest property and riding without helmets, while passengers in those vehicles were not charged. The case was filed before Magisterial District Judge Anthony J. Kilker in Shenandoah. Rizzuto is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
How Pennsylvania Law Treats Fleeing Charges
Under Pennsylvania law, fleeing or attempting to elude an officer is defined as willfully failing or refusing to bring a vehicle to a stop after a pursuing officer gives a visual and audible signal, which can take the form of a hand, voice, emergency lights or siren, according to the Pennsylvania General Assembly. The offense rises to a third-degree felony when the driver endangers a law enforcement officer or a member of the public during a high-speed chase, the statute states.
State forest and state park lands fall under the enforcement authority of DCNR rangers and state forest officers when it comes to the Snowmobile/ATV Law, though all law enforcement officers in Pennsylvania are authorized to enforce it, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. The Rizzuto case is not an isolated one in the state's rural trail systems; a late March ATV chase near Tidioute led to felony charges against a Pleasantville man who was temporarily jailed in Warren County, as reported by the Times Observer.
