Friday, June 11–Elderly Man Attacked After Crash

WEST OCEAN CITY – A
Pennsylvania man was arrested on several charges including first-degree assault
and reckless endangerment after allegedly attacking an elderly man already
seriously injured during an accident moments earlier.

Around 4:40 a.m. on
Monday, Maryland State Police (MSP) troopers received a 911 call about a
two-vehicle collision at the intersection of Route 611 and Sunset Ave. in West
Ocean City. According to police reports, after the collision, the driver of one
of the vehicles, identified as Jason Paul Mackulin, 29, of Littlestown, Pa.,
exited his vehicle and located the driver of the other vehicle, a 66-year-old
Pittsville man, who was incapacitated by injuries sustained in the accident and
trapped inside his vehicle.

According to police
reports, Mackulin approached the trapped victim and began to punch him multiple
times in the face and head. The victim was already seriously injured in the
accident and the assault by Mackulin was further compounding those injuries.
Upon arrival on the scene, MSP troopers observed Mackulin actively assaulting
the victim and a witness and took him into custody.

The initial information
provided by witnesses at the scene advised there were three people actively
assaulting the victim trapped in his vehicle after the crash including two
passengers riding in the car driven by Mackulin. When the two passengers were
approached by MSP troopers, they fled the area on foot, but were apprehended
after a brief foot chase.

It was later learned to
the two passengers, identified as Jacob Cody Hess, of Spring Grove, Pa., and
Philip Kurt Henderson, of Berkeley, W.Va., had not assaulted the victim.
However, they were charged with failing to obey a lawful order and fleeing and
eluding on foot.

Meanwhile, Mackulin was
charged with first-degree assault, three counts of second-degree assault,
reckless endangerment, obstructing and hindering and disorderly conduct, along
with numerous traffic violations including driving while intoxicated. Mackulin
later submitted to a chemical breath test for alcohol, which registered .20. or
more than twice the legal limit in Maryland.

The 66-year-old victim
was extracted from his vehicle and transported to Atlantic General Hospital for
injuries received both during the accident and during the alleged assault by
Mackulin. His condition has not been made public. Mackulin and his two
passengers were taken before a District Court Commissioner. Mackulin was
ordered held on a $25,000 bond on Monday and was later released.