Jul 19, 2022 2 min read

A driver who crashed into an off-duty police officer and another man trying to help a disabled motorist on the Speers-Belle Vernon Bridge along Interstate 70 last year was convicted on felony charges Friday during a non-jury trial in Westmoreland County.

Brian Daniel Keegan, 20, of California, was convicted of two felony counts of aggravated assault by vehicle and two misdemeanor charges of reckless endangerment following a single-day bench trial before Westmoreland County Court of Common Pleas Judge Christopher Feliciani.

Keegan was driving east on I-70 about 6:40 a.m. Feb 6, 2021, when he struck two vehicles that were stopped on the bridge and the two motorists who were out of their cars to assist the driver of another vehicle that had crashed moments before and was disabled on the interstate.

Michael Natale, a police officer heading to his shift in West Newton that morning, and Anthony Kurtz were seriously injured after being struck by Keegan’s car. Natale suffered a head injury and concussion, while Kurtz suffered a broken pelvis after he was pinned between a vehicle and the concrete barrier on the bridge. The driver of the other vehicle involved in the original crash was not injured.

Feliciani also found Keegan guilty of summary offenses of duty of driver in emergency response areas, reckless driving, careless driving and following too closely. Keegan will be sentenced by Feliciani on a later date.