Stalking, harassment charges against Franconia man reduced

FRANCONIA >> Two cases against 36-year-old Michael Brown Jr. will move forward to Montgomery County Court after the Franconia resident waived his right to a preliminary hearing Dec. 3.

In exchange for the waivers, the number of counts of the charges in one case is being reduced and one of the charges is being withdrawn in the other case, Montgomery County Assistant District Attorney Lauren Marvel said during the Dec. 3 proceedings before District Judge Albert Augustine, Harleysville.

Brown, of the 300 block of Allentown Road, was charged by Franconia Township Police Department in early November with two separate harassment charges, stalking and disorderly conduct after police said video showed he drove past another family’s home multiple times, including just before and after the school bus stopped at the home, and drove past the family’s vehicle during Souderton Braves football practices. He was also accused of parking in a neighboring driveway to watch the victim family’s home through binoculars.

In that case, he was initially charged with 37 counts of each of the four charges, bringing the total to 148 counts.

In mid-November, he was charged by Lower Salford Township Police Department with simple assault, harassment and recklessly endangering another person after police said a woman, who is a friend of the family Brown was accused of stalking, reported Brown drove his vehicle toward her vehicle and stopped inches from hitting it while there were seven children between the ages of 11 and 14 in her vehicle in the Montgomery County Sports Performance Center parking lot. Brown was initially charged with eight counts each of simple assault, recklessly endangering another person and harassment, for a total of 24 counts in that case.

With the waiver, the number of counts in the Franconia case is being reduced to five counts on the one harassment charge, one count of stalking, four counts of the other harassment charge and five counts of disorderly conduct, Marvel said.

In the Lower Salford case, the reckless endangerment charges are withdrawn, with the simple assault and harassment charges remaining, she said.

Brown sat quietly beside his attorney, William Denardo, of Plymouth Meeting, during the Dec. 3 proceeding.

He remains free on bail. Conditions on the bail, reviewed at the Dec. 3 proceeding, include having no contact with victims or witnesses in the case, not driving on the road on which the family in the Franconia case lives and not returning to the Montgomery County Sports Performance Center.