On Jan. 19, 1993, Crawford shot a man three times in Cheltenham. The following day, he pointed a gun at Cheltenham police officers who tried to question him. A jury convicted him in July of aggravated assault and related crimes.
According to court documents, Crawford fired five shots at 20-year-old Leslie Minor outside the LaMott Community Center, wounding him three times in the legs. The next day, Crawford pulled the gun on an officer who was trying to question him, but dropped it when police drew their weapons.
RESTITUTION ORDERED. The former chief of the Barren Hill Volunteer Fire Company, charged with stealing nearly $800 from the company, was ordered last week to pay it back.
In return, charges against Lane McElree were dropped as part of a first- offenders program.
"Given the time that he (McElree) has given to the community, we think it is an appropriate outcome," said Assistant District Attorney Ed Campbell.
The agreement also bans McElree, 49, of Lafayette Hill, from trying to reclaim a police-dispatcher job he held at the time of his arrest. The agreement was approved last Thursday by Judge Lawrence A. Brown.
Court documents say McElree double-dipped on his expense vouchers by billing the fire company for purchases that had been paid for. The vouchers included receipts for refreshments served at a 1992 Whitemarsh Republican Club post-election party and at a 1990 fire company Christmas dinner.
McElree also was accused of billing the fire company for rented movies such as The Blob, Malibu Beach and 101 Dalmatians; for auto parts used on his Chevrolet Blazer; for restaurant food; and for belts and pants bought at Sears.
Judge Brown ordered McElree to pay restitution of $786 to the fire company within 90 days. McElree remains active in the organization, Campbell said.
"It is the fire company's decision as to his status," the prosecutor said.
