Lansdale Police. Photo by James Short.
An Upper Gwynedd man is charged with misdemeanor accidents involving damage to an attended vehicle after police allege he was involved in a traffic incident where he nearly hit another car head-on while trying to pass another vehicle.
Jose Mario Portillo, 45, of the 200 block of Wissahickon Avenue, was issued a summons Aug. 5 by Lansdale Police to answer for charges of, in addition to the aforementioned misdemeanor, misdemeanor reckless endangerment of another person, speeding, driving without a license, careless driving, and reckless driving, according to a criminal complaint.
On July 26 at 12:39 p.m., police were dispatched to a reported hit-and-run accident on East Hancock Street between South Line Street and Church Road.
The victim driver told police she witnessed two other drivers driving around each other’s vehicles while traveling east on East Hancock Street, as she was traveling westbound, police said.
Suddenly, a green 1999 Honda Accord sedan, allegedly driven by Portillo, drove around the other car and directly into the opposing lane of traffic. Police said Portillo was speeding toward the vehicle head-on, thus the victim had to drive her car onto the sidewalk to avoid a collision.
However, Portillo’s Honda hit the left side rear fender of the victim’s car, and drove off without stopping, police said.
A witness came to Lansdale Police afterward with video of an alleged road rage incident that caught the accident, according to the complaint. The video, police allege, showed Portillo and another driver near Fazio’s Auto Tags yelling back and forth, and then the cars drive around one another.
The video, police said, shows Portillo braking hard in the Honda, so much so that smoke emanated from both rear tires and left skidmarks on the road.
Police said the video shows the Honda’s left front side hit the victim’s rear fender area, and then proceeding to the light at East Hancock Street and Church Road.
On July 28, at 3:30 p.m., police responded to Portillo’s home and found the Honda in the driveway with driver’s side front end damage, per the complaint. Police used a Spanish translator to interview Portillo, according to the report.
Police said Portillo, who was uninjured, was asked to describe the incident, and he told police another driver in front of him was braking and not letting him drive around it. Portillo said he tried to pass the car on the left side, after passing the railroad tracks, but instead hit another car, according to the affidavit.
Portillo said he followed the other motorist to the traffic light at Church Road, where he tried to take a picture of the other car’s license plate, but failed, per the complaint. He then left the area without checking on the victim or calling police, police said.
He told police he did not call them because he did not think that anyone spoke Spanish at the station, police said.
Portillo awaits a preliminary hearing before Magisterial District Judge Edward Levine on Sept. 25 at 10:30 a.m.
All suspects and defendants are innocent until proven guilty. This story was compiled using public court records.
