MONROE, CT — A 40-year-old Monroe man was charged with DUI, reckless driving and evading after allegedly hitting a police vehicle head-on on East Maiden Lane, and hitting another vehicle on Elm Street with his silver 2017 BMW 330 on the evening of Dec. 22.
At approximately 5:13 p.m., two officers, who reported being involved in the crash, said the BMW’s wheel well and tire were left behind as the driver took off.
Police later found another vehicle in the 620-block of Elm Street with disabling damage. The driver, a 51-year-old Monroe woman, told officers the silver BMW hit her vehicle, pushing it onto a front lawn.
A witness called dispatch to report seeing the disabled BMW in the 40-block of West Maiden Lane and officers arrived to find the driver standing beside it.
They smelled the odor of an alcoholic beverage on his breath and police said he appeared unsteady on his feet and admitted to drinking during lunch earlier in the day. Police said he did not perform field sobriety tests to standard.
The driver, who was taken to the hospital by Monroe Volunteer Emergency Medical Service personnel, was charged with DUI, two counts of reckless driving, two counts of evading responsibility and failure to obey a stop sign.
He was released on a total surety bond of $6,000 for a Jan. 7 court date.
Police said the other driver was not taken to a hospital and that the two police officers involved in one of the crashes reported minor injuries.
Yard damage, evading
A 72-year-old Bagburn Hill Road woman told police the driver of an Enterprise box truck couldn’t fit under the bridge near her home just before noon on Dec. 23, so he used her driveway to turn around, damaging her front lawn and running over her mailbox in the process.
She reportedly yelled for him to stop, but the driver kept going.
The homeowner described the driver as an Hispanic man wearing sunglasses, who appeared to be 20 to 30 years old. She could not make out the registration plate, but believes it was a Maryland plate, police said.
A stolen check
A 65-year-old Elm Street woman reported a check stolen after noticing a higher amount and a different recipient for the check number, while reviewing her finances on Dec. 26.
Police said she made the check out to a utility company, placed it inside her mailbox and put the red flag up on Dec. 2. Someone later altered the check to increase the amount from $296 to $956 and cashed it for that amount, according to the report.
The victim notified M&T Bank to put a hold on her checking account and she was advised to open a new account and move her funds over from old one. She was also advised to dispute the fraudulent check and $956 loss.
Police told the victim she should refrain from placing checks in her mailbox in the future, because of the frequency of checks being stolen.
The Sun’s Policy on Using Names in Police Reports
Editor’s Note: After seeing several gray areas over the past year, this policy should be revised.
Before the internet, newspapers routinely published names in the police blotter. The arrestees would be embarrassed for a few days, before most people forgot about it. They served their penalty and could move on with their lives. The issue with the article was archived in a library and could become an issue again if someone researched it.
Since the internet, the arrestees’ names can be searched online and the article will always come up. Even if the arrest was long ago and they are leading better, more productive lives, the report always looms over them.
Because of this, The Sun only uses names of people in police reports for some of the more serious crimes and incidents: murder, brutal beatings, robberies, burglaries, car thefts, thefts of thousands of dollars or more, sexual assault and fatal crashes.
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