Driver accused in man’s wild ride
State police arrested a 51-year-old woman late Sunday on charges including reckless endangerment after they were waved down by a man who said he was taken on a wild ride in the back of a pickup truck that police stopped on Jefferson Avenue in Washington.
Lois Dawn Golitko, who state police said is homeless, also was charged with allowing a passenger to ride in an open truck, disorderly conduct and reckless driving. Online court records show she most recently listed a McDonald address.
State police were driving north on Jefferson, approaching the intersection with Wylie Avenue, about 11:50 p.m. when they saw a man, later identified as Salvador Patrick Lascano, in the back of a pickup truck that was traveling in the opposite direction on Jefferson. Police said he was yelling and waving his arms. The troopers stopped the truck after it turned onto West Wylie Avenue in Canton Township.
Lascano reportedly told the troopers, “Thank God you’re here. She wasn’t going to stop.” Lascano told police that Golitko had driven at a high speed as he yelled, begging her to let him out. Golitko allegedly was swearing at Lascano, telling him that she was not going to slow down to let him get out.
Lascano told police that the two had gotten into an argument over construction equipment. He said he was trying to remove the property from the bed of the truck when she sped off. The incident reportedly started on Moon Road in the Washington Estates Trailer Park in Canton and Chartiers townships off Henderson Avenue (Route 18) and continued until the truck was stopped by police.
Golitko was arraigned Monday morning before District Judge David Mark and placed in Washington County jail on $5,000 bond. She is scheduled for a preliminary hearing before Mark on Oct. 31.