A North Brookfield woman has been cleared of charges in a crash that resulted in the fatality of a National Grid worker in 2019, MassLive reports. Madeline Polselli, 74, stood trial before Judge Michael G. Allard-Madaus in Worcester’s Central District Court and was found not guilty of motor vehicle homicide by negligent operation and negligent operation of a motor vehicle on Tuesday.
According to a Telegram interview, Polselli was driving her 2019 Nissan Juke on Route 9 when she struck Paul Germano, who was marking pipes for construction near Greenville Street. Germano, dressed in a safety vest, was said to be clearly visible to other drivers, yet Polselli asserted she never saw him. At the scene of the crash, working without a police detail, victims often go unseen.
Germano, 50, who had been employed by National Grid as a dig safe technician for 13 years, succumbed to his injuries on August 12, 2019, at UMass Memorial Medical Center. The loss has reverberated through the Worcester community where Germano, a local native, spent his life residing and working.
Despite the tragic outcome, Polselli maintained her defense, claiming no knowledge of Germano's presence at the time of the incident. She had reportedly taken methadone the day before the crash, while on her way to a clinic, causing the tragic mishap. A police report obtained by the MassLive noted that she was not texting at the time of the accident, destroying the myth that only distracted drivers are behind the wheel in such crashes.
The defense, led by lawyer Adam D. Schmaelzle, has suggested that the incident, while heartbreaking, was simply a tragic accident. “This was an accident. It was tragic and it’s heartbreaking but it was an accident and accidents do happen," Schmaelzle stated in an interview with the Telegram. "Sometimes, there are situations where tragedy strikes without fault."
The jury's acquittal signals an end to the legal battle that has spanned several years, but the memory of Germano and the tragedy itself will remain imprinted on the Worcester community for many years to come.
