U.S. Press Freedom Tracker

TV photographer nearly hit by car after Pennsylvania court hearing

Incident details

Date of incident
February 18, 2026

Assault

Was the journalist targeted?
Yes
SCREENSHOT VIA WPXI

The car that advanced toward WPXI TV photographer David Clark and reporter Gabriella DeLuca while they were covering a court hearing in Cheswick, Pennsylvania, on Feb. 18, 2026.

— SCREENSHOT VIA WPXI
February 18, 2026

David Clark, a photographer for TV station WPXI, was nearly run over by a car outside a court building in Cheswick, Pennsylvania, on Feb. 18, 2026. The station identified the driver as the father of the defendant whose case he was covering.

After the hearing in the Pittsburgh suburb, Clark and reporter Gabriella DeLuca were questioning Sean Dicer, a former teacher accused of sexually assaulting students, according to the Tribune-Review, which identified Clark.

Video published by the station shows Dicer and his father, Harold Dicer, getting into a white car and backing out of a parking space before accelerating toward the news crew.

“Are you going to run me over?” Clark can be heard saying.

In DeLuca’s news report, she said Sean Dicer avoided the camera and questions, but his father did not.

“He shouted explicit language toward our crew, and at one point accelerated his car, coming inches away from hitting us,” she said.

Harold Dicer is charged with simple assault, harassment and disorderly conduct, court records show. A preliminary hearing in the case is scheduled for April 22.

Clark did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The U.S. Press Freedom Tracker catalogs press freedom violations in the United States. Email tips to [email protected].