LANCASTER, Pa. — A Lancaster County truck driver will spend up to 66 months in prison for trying to run over a Caernarvon Township fire police lieutenant with his 18-wheeler last year.
Craig Robert Godfrey, 65, was convicted in September of aggravated assault by physical menace and recklessly endangering another person.
He was sentenced to a prison term of 33 to 66 months by Judge Dennis Reinaker on Wednesday, according to the Lancaster County District Attorney's Office.
First Assistant District Attorney Travis Anderson, who prosecuted the case, said Godfrey “prioritized convenience” over the safety of others and used his truck as a weapon against a fire police lieutenant who was working to protect both firefighters and property.
“All of us rely on first responders to keep us safe,” Anderson said, “they deserve the full protection of the law.”
Speaking to the court before he was sentenced, Godfrey questioned whether the victim used “sound judgment” in instructing him to turn away from the scene of the fire, saying the victim “escalated the situation” by trying to stop him and calling the victim’s actions “negligent” and “cavalier.”
Reinaker told Godfrey he found his statements to the court to be “offensive,” adding that it was “not an option” to ignore instructions from fire police.
“We don’t get to override the instructions of someone in (the victim’s) position,” Judge Reinaker said.
According to testimony at his two-day trial in September, Godfrey, who was driving an 18-wheel tractor-trailer at the time, encountered fire police Lt. Timothy Cunningham at the intersection of Conestoga Creek and South Red School roads in Caernarvon Township the morning of June 3, 2023.
Cunningham attempted to direct Godfrey’s vehicle around the scene of a large barn fare on South Red School Road, but Godfrey insisted on driving his truck through the closed portion of the roadway.
Godfrey repeatedly lurched his truck toward Cunningham, who had to repeatedly back away from the truck’s advance.
Godfrey ultimately drove at Cunningham, requiring the lieutenant to physically push himself away from the truck to avoid being run over.
A portion of the incident was captured on Godfrey’s dashboard camera.
Trooper Joshua Croyle of the Pennsylvania State Police filed the charges.
