Illinois man accused of assaulting father waives charges to court
An Illinois man accused of assaulting his father last month during an argument as the two drove along a Robinson Township highway waived his case to court Thursday.
Eric Robert Fehrenbacher, 32, of Newton, a community in southeastern Illinois, was charged by state police at the Pittsburgh station with robbery of a motor vehicle, aggravated assault, having a prohibited offensive weapon, simple assault, reckless endangerment and harassment. He had been scheduled for a preliminary hearing before District Judge Traci McDonald.
The two men were driving west on Routes 22/30 near Toll 576 (Southern Beltway) in Robinson Township about 11:40 p.m. Feb. 13 when the two reportedly got into an argument over directions.
Fehrenbacher, who was a passenger in the pickup truck, allegedly stabbed his 64-year-old father twice in the right bicep.
The elder man told police he pulled to the side of the road and got out. His son reportedly chased him around the parked vehicle before getting in the truck and driving off. The 64-year-old was found standing along the side of the highway by state police.
A trooper spotted the truck going east on the highway and stopped it near the Imperial exit. Police said they found a pair of brass knuckles inside the driver’s door of the truck.
The elder man was taken to Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh, where he was treated and released.
Fehrenbacher remains free on $50,000 bond posted two weeks after his arrest. He will be formally arraigned on the charges May 8 before Judge Valarie Costanzo.