A Bensalem man who killed a Croydon Army vet in a Christmas Eve hit-and-run sentenced to prison

A Bensalem man who fled the scene of a fatal crash on Christmas Eve 2021 was sentenced Tuesday to 2.5 to 5 years in state prison.

Kevin Baker Jr., 21, entered a no-contest plea to involuntary manslaughter in the death of John Dugan, an Army veteran and Croydon resident who had fallen while crossing State Road in front of his home. During Tuesday’s hearing, Baker also pleaded guilty to drug possession with intent to deliver for selling THC vape cartridges to a confidential informant earlier this year while out on bail in the other case.

Bucks County President Judge Wallace Bateman, in handing down Baker’s sentence, said that while he didn’t believe Baker intended to harm Dugan that evening, he still needed to be held accountable.

“All these people describe a genuinely nice man, a family man, who is sorely missed,” Bateman said, of Dugan. “He didn’t have to be, but for your recklessness.”

On the day of the crash, Dugan, 65, stumbled and fell as he crossed State Road about 5 p.m., authorities said. As he lay on the ground, Baker ran over him in his Chevrolet Silverado, narrowly missing Dugan’s fianceé, Christina Mazzatenta. Baker didn’t stop nor check on Dugan after the crash, and didn’t report it to police until days later.

Mazzatenta, wearing a hoodie depicting Dugan with angel wings, choked back tears Tuesday as she described how the loss of her soulmate has devastated her.

“He would’ve done anything for anyone. He was genuine. He was just a great, wonderful human being,” she said.

Dugan’s daughter Jamie Santos described her father as a doting family man and a survivor, having beaten stage 4 throat cancer years before the fatal crash. Christmas Eve has since become a time of bittersweet emotions for her and her children, she said, as they wrestle with how to process the loss of someone who was so crucial to their lives.

“I’m ready to move on, to heal and assist my kids through their new reality because Pop-pop isn’t coming back,” she said. “In the meantime, I will always, always miss my dad, and wish there was a chance to make things happen differently that night.”

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On the night of the crash, surveillance footage captured the distinct, cherry-red pickup truck, but detectives were unable to get a clear look at its license plate, according to the presentment filed by the grand jury who investigated the case.

Days later, investigators in Bristol Township received a tip from a caller who provided them with video footage of Baker and his fiancée pouring hot water onto the front of a Chevy truck that matched the description of the one that killed Dugan.

The next day, five days after the incident, Baker and his father took the truck to Bristol Township police, saying they had seen a news report about the crash that had featured video surveillance of the truck.

Baker’s father, Kevin Baker Sr., later testified before the grand jury and said he only learned that his son had been involved in a crash after seeing news coverage about Dugan’s death.

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When asked whether he had discussed the crash with his son, the elder Baker invoked his Fifth Amendment rights against self-incrimination, and the grand jurors said they found his testimony “not completely truthful.”

Speaking Tuesday, the younger Baker apologized to Dugan’s family, and again asserted he was initially unaware that he had struck Dugan.

“This does not showcase the type of person I am, and I can’t wait to move past this,” he said.

His attorney, Louis Busico, said after the sentencing that the resolution in the case “was in the interest of justice.”

“Obviously it was a bittersweet day for both families, the Dugan family and the Baker family,” Busico said. “But we thought this resolution was a way to give closure to everybody, to give Kevin Baker a chance at life.”