The son-in-law of college football coaching legend Joe Paterno was charged with leaving the scene of an accident that killed a 23-year-old Pennsylvania man, authorities said.
According to court records, Christopher Craig Hort, 53, of State College, was charged Thursday with a felony count of an accident involving death or personal injury, PennLive.com reported.
Hort, is married to Mary Kay Paterno, the daughter of the longtime Penn State University coach who died in 2012. Hort was arraigned Thursday and released on $50,000 unsecured bail, the website reported.
Despite “extraordinary damage” to his Honda Pilot, Hort left the scene of the accident and told authorities he believed he had hit a deer, according to court documents.
In fact, Hort had hit a scooter, driven by John David King, 23, of Centre County, according to the Centre Daily Times.
The incident occurred at 8:59 p.m. on April 17, PennLive.com reported. King died at the scene from his injuries, police said.
Hort’s lawyer, Tony De Boef, called county District Attorney Bernie Cantorna days after the crash, the Daily Times reported. In an interview with officers, Hort repeated his belief that he hit a deer, but said he did not stop because he believed his tire would deflate, the newspaper reported.
Investigators wrote that Hort concealed his damaged vehicle in a garage and cleaned part of it, calling the actions “consciousness of guilt,” according to the affidavit.
Joe Paterno coached at Penn State from 1966 to 2011, winning 409 games. He won two national titles but was dismissed from the team in November 2011 as a result of a child sex abuse scandal that rocked the football program.