Pennsylvania State Police trooper accused of firing gun, aggressively pulling over family while off-duty

A Pennsylvania State Police trooper is accused of firing a gun and recklessly pulling over a family while off-duty and after he had been drinking at a bar.

Trooper David Levy, 36, of Kennett Square, was charged with official oppression, reckless endangerment, possessing an instrument of a crime, and simple assault, the Chester County District Attorney’s Office said on Friday.

“No one is above the law,” Chester County District Attorney Deb Ryan said in a statement. “We hold law enforcement to the highest standards, and the defendant betrayed his sworn oath by endangering all those on the road with his reckless conduct.”

Levy is a member of the force’s Media barracks but was off-duty on the evening of Dec. 28 when the incident happened near Longwood Gardens in Chester County.

Around 6 p.m., Levy is accused of driving aggressively in front of a family’s van on southbound Route 1, forcing them off the road and onto the grass.

The family had been on their way to the gardens to see the popular holiday light show, according to the District Attorney’s Office.

Levy then allegedly activated his flashers and approached the family’s car with a gun in his hand, screaming and accusing them of cutting him off.

Shortly before Levy exited his vehicle, witnesses say they heard a gunshot. Investigators would later find a bullet hole in Levy’s dashboard and a 9mm shell inside the vehicle.

Levy fled the scene when one of the victims inside the pulled-over vehicle said they were recording him on a dashcam and were calling the police.

Police later learned that Levy had been drinking earlier that night at a bar in Aston Township, Delaware County.

Levy joined the force in February 2021. After the incident he was suspended without pay.

He is being held on $20,000 bail and is scheduled to appear in court on Feb. 8.