A preliminary hearing was waived for court Friday morning before Magisterial Judge Paul Gasper in the driving under the influence case against a Pleasant Valley High School teacher.

A formal arraignment will be held Aug. 31 for Thomas Murphy Jr., 44, a 12th-grade English teacher and varsity baseball coach at PVHS. He was charged with the DUI in March following a traffic stop by State Police based in Fern Ridge.

According to an affidavit of probable cause, police encountered Murphy around midnight on March 4 when two officers on patrol saw a silver 2021 GMC Sierra 1500 pickup truck leave the Old Mill Pub parking lot in Hamilton Township. The truck failed to yield to oncoming traffic.

The truck traveled on Hamilton Road at an unsafe speed, police said. As it went around a left curve, the truck crossed the white fog line with both passenger-side tires and went into the shoulder. The truck continued to weave in its lane, then attempted to turn left onto the entrance ramp to Business Route 209 from Hamilton Road, but missed the turn.

The truck entered the incorrect entrance ramp to Route 209. Police said they turned on their emergency lights and made a traffic stop.

Officer Jonathan Lazarchick said he approached the driver side of the truck to talk to the driver, later identified as Murphy. There were no passengers. He said he noticed a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage emanating from the truck.

Lazarchick asked Murphy for his driver’s license, registration and proof of insurance, and told him why he had been stopped. He said Murphy told him that he had been at the Old Mill Pub and did drink some alcohol.

Lazarchick said he asked Murphy to exit his truck, which he did. The trooper asked Murphy to perform the standardized field sobriety test.

During the test, Murphy showed signs of impairment, which Lazarchick said would make him incapable of safe driving. He was asked to do a preliminary breath test to measure the amount of alcohol in his breath. Murphy refused the test.

The police said Murphy was taken to the Monroe County Correctional Facility where he was given O’Connell Warnings. The O’Connell Warning informs a person suspected of driving under the influence that he or she does not have the right to an attorney or anyone else before undergoing a blood alcohol test. If they refuse the test, then they automatically lose their driving privileges for at least one year, whether they are found guilty or not.

Murphy refused chemical sobriety testing to determine his blood alcohol concentration.

The police charged Murphy with DUI/unsafe driving, which is a misdemeanor, and eight summary offenses related to the incident. He is out of jail on $5,000 unsecured bail.

Prior to the preliminary hearing, Superintendent James Konrad said he cannot comment on personnel issues, but the school district will review the official documentation.

“We investigate and make sure we have the facts and then problem solve,” Konrad said.

According to the school district’s contract with the teacher’s union, serious infractions of the school district policy and/or the Pennsylvania School Code could result in immediate unpaid suspensions of an employee for up to 10 days.

Murphy has been a teacher in the school district since 2003.