The young widow of a West Penn Township business owner relived the horrific events at a preliminary hearing Friday of the day her husband died after he was run over by a man driving a dump truck who police say did it intentionally.

Mark T. Boyle, 35, died in a hospital hours after being hit on Aug. 2.

After listening to the testimony of his widow, Elizabeth Boyle, and that of township Police Chief James E. Bonner, District Judge Andrew J. Serina found there was sufficient evidence to send charges of third degree murder, aggravated assault, homicide by vehicle, theft of services, and recklessly endangering another person against the driver, Michael Albert, 60, of Scranton, on to Commonwealth Court.

“Call 911. I’m dying,” Elizabeth Boyle remembered Mark saying to her as he lay on the driveway between his business, Mark T. Boyle Welding & Industrial Sandblasting, and their home along Route 443 in West Penn Township.

She testified that Albert arrived at the shop to pick up his dump truck, which had been in for frame repairs.

She had been in their home, vacuuming the dining room, when Mark, who had been talking with Albert about his refusal to pay the remaining $7,500 owed on his bill, called her cellphone.

“Hey Liz, can you come down here? This is getting pretty ugly. I don’t think it’s going to end well,” he said.

She walked down, and told Albert he couldn’t take the truck until he paid the bill.

He told her he was going to take it “whether her husband was dead or alive,” she testified.

She then went into the shop office, where Mark was on the phone with Shawn Nihen, a former Coaldale police officer who works as a painter at the shop.

It was about 5:45 p.m., and she and Mark chatted about dinner plans when they heard the truck start up. Mark, still on the phone with Nihen, told him what was happening. The couple both went out to see Albert taking off with the truck.

“He waved and smiled,” she testified.

Mark, still on the phone, walked toward the truck, telling Albert “stop, wait.”

Then, Elizabeth testified, Albert swerved toward him, hitting Boyle with the left axle tire and knocking him under the truck.

Albert slowed.

“He saw that Mark was under the truck and he took off,” Elizabeth testified.

Another vehicle had pulled into the drive, and Albert was unable to get around it to leave.

“Oh my God! You ran over my husband,” Elizabeth screamed. “He just kept going,” she testified.

Nihen, hearing what was happening, hung up and called 911, as did Elizabeth.

Connor Evans, an emergency medical technician and firefighter, happened to be there picking up something for his employer, and immediately rendered aid to Mark.

Albert, Elizabeth testified, “laughed in my face. His daughter laughed in my face. He said he deserved it,” she testified.

“How could you do this?” she asked Albert. “He said he didn’t care,” she testified.

First Assistant District Attorney Michael J. Stine also called Bonner to testify.

He testified that when he arrived, Penn Mahoning Ambulance was there, working on Boyle. Medevac was also ready to fly Boyle to a hospital.

He was taken to Lehigh Valley Health Network, Lehighton, where he went into cardiac arrest and was revived, but again went into cardiac arrest and was revived again.

He was taken to Lehigh Valley Hospital, Cedar Crest, Allentown via medevac. There, he again went into cardiac arrest, but couldn’t be resuscitated.

He was pronounced dead at 9 p.m.

Bonner testified that the autopsy determined Boyle died of blunt force trauma because of being struck, and that the manner of death was homicide.

Albert’s public defender, Christopher M. Reidlinger, objected to the manner of death, saying that was for a jury to decide.

He did not call his client to testify.

Reidlinger moved to have the theft of services charge dropped, saying Albert had paid $7,500 down.

District Judge Serina denied his motion, saying Albert had refused to pay the remaining half.

Outside the Schuylkill County courthouse, where the hearing was held for added security and because officials expected more people to attend, Mark Boyle’s mother, Christine Boyle, and his cousin, Eric Leiby, spoke with reporters.

“I was shaken. I was in shock, still. It was hard,” Christine Boyle said of seeing Albert in the courtroom.

Hearing Albert plead not guilty “that killed my heart. It crushed my heart. I don’t know how he could have done this,” she said.

Mark, she said, “would do anything for anybody. He would drop what he was doing” to help someone.

It breaks her heart that Mark’s daughters, ages 3 and 1, will grow up without their daddy.

“He was my first born son. I loved him so much,” she said.

“I’m in shock right now because the guy pleaded not guilty, and I just can’t believe that,” Leiby said.

“Justice needs to be served for Mark,” he said.

Heather Bernitsky, a family friend and former employee of Mark’s, was angry that Albert “didn’t apologize. He could have just turned around and apologized to (Boyle’s) grandmother and mom. He doesn’t look like he has any feeling about any of it at all. I hope he’s (found guilty) of all the charges,” she said.

Albert is being in jail without the possibility of release on bail, a judge ordered last month.