Man who dragged state trooper in Holyoke given multiple charges
HOLYOKE, Mass. (WGGB/WSHM) - Traffic on 91 North was at a standstill Friday afternoon after a traffic stop took a dramatic turn
A Massachusetts state trooper was dragged on the road by a car. According to State police, the trooper was trying to stop the driver for traffic violations at a nearby rest stop.
The trooper eventually detached himself, and the driver took off, minutes later crashing his car and fleeing the scene on foot...
Sometimes people just make the impulsive decision to try and get away.
After an hours-long search, 45-year-old Michael J. Williams Jr. of Greenfield was found by a K-9 unit and taken into custody.
He was charged with the following:
- Assault and battery with a dangerous weapon
- Negligent operation of a motor vehicle
- Operating after the license was suspended for a prior OUI offense
- Leaving the scene of a crash that caused personal injury
- Failure to stop for police
- Speeding
- Marked lanes violation
- Resisting arrest.
Criminal Justice Professor Creaig Dunton breaks down the charges.
“It’s a series of charges, it would represent trying to flee from police, but then also the laws around traffic safety,” said Dunton.
Dunton tells Western Mass News, it’s hard to predict what a sentence can look like, but it’s important to note Williams’ probation violation and the injured trooper.
“I also imagine it’s almost all caught on video I imagine the officer’s dashcam from the traffic stop probably caught all of it occurring so it also means that it’s going to be a lot harder for someone to try to get out of all of these charges,” said Dunton.
Dunton adds, that fleeing police is not rare.
This comes one week after an officer faced a similar situation in Brockton. where another state trooper was dragged by a driver fleeing the scene during a traffic stop.
More and more people are probably less likely to engage in doing that because it is obvious then when everything’s recorded, a person’s likelihood of escape from law enforcement is not very high.
Williams’ arraignment is scheduled for Monday. Dunton goes on to tell me, that traffic fatalities count for nearly half of officers in the line of duty, which is why it’s important for traffic stops to be done safely.
Copyright 2023. Western Mass News (WGGB/WSHM). All rights reserved.
