DUBOIS – A DuBois man accused of beating a man, causing him to suffer both a broken leg and arm, waived his right to a preliminary hearing Friday during centralized court.
John D. Ward, 54, is charged with aggravated assault, simple assault, recklessly endangering another person and harassment in connection to an incident on Jan. 3 at 8:52 p.m. in DuBois.
According to the affidavit of probable cause, police were called to South Main Street for a report of a man crawling on the ground and moaning.
When they arrived, they found the man on his knees with his head on the ground between the sidewalk and the curb. He appeared to be in extreme pain and was unable to answer questions.
He was wearing sweatpants, a sweatshirt and socks, but no shoes. The temperature at that time was about 16 degrees.
Officers noted in the criminal complaint that he had abrasions about his head, a black eye, cuts on his legs and his nose was bleeding.
After the ambulance arrived, the officers looked around the area to determine if he was struck by a vehicle or possibly dumped from a vehicle after being assaulted.
There was no evidence as to what happened to the man, and neighbors had seen nothing suspicious. The woman who notified authorities was walking her dogs when she saw him on his knees and moaning, which is why she called for help.
The victim, who was still not able to speak, was flown to a hospital in Pittsburgh for treatment.
Further investigation led to the owner of a South Main Street residence who said Ward had been doing remodeling on her home while she was away.
On Jan. 9, police were finally able to speak with the victim. He said he remembered being at the residence where he was helping Ward with work inside the home.
He remembered helping Ward paint and then lying on the couch but that was the last memories he had of that night.
The victim said he had a broken right leg, broken left arm, a hole in his leg, a swollen face and concussion.
When asked if he wanted charges filed on the person who assaulted him, he said yes, “because the person left him for dead.”
Ward was contacted and arrived at the police station to speak about what happened to the victim also on Jan. 9.
He told them he was working on the home and the victim was helping him. After they finished painting that evening, they smoked pot and drank beer.
The victim started “dominating” their conversation, he explained and at some point, things got worse. They started pushing each other and he reportedly admitted to striking the victim. The victim struck him back and after he struck him again, they went to the ground, kicking and punching.
Ward said he got so mad that he “blacked out” and forgot what happened after that. He admitted to kicking the victim in the legs and punching him in the head, according to the report.
Ward stated that he wasn’t hurt but knew the victim was in a lot of pain.
When asked if he struck the victim with a pipe or something, he said yes, he might have used one. He also mentioned he might have used a crow bar or pipe before throwing the victim out of the house, onto the porch.
When he left the house, the victim was still on the porch, Ward said.
He is free on $50,000 bail.
