Greenfield's interstate saw a different kind of traffic stop in the early hours of last month. A man, later identified as Joseph Cadorette of Williamstown, VT, was arrested on suspicion of multiple offenses, including cocaine trafficking. According to a Massachusetts State Police report, the incident happened on Interstate 91 around 2:20AM, when Trooper Scott Boutell, who'd been monitoring traffic, spotted a speeding motorcycle with an obscured plate.
After pulling over the motorcycle, the trooper discovered the Vermont registration plate was not on file with the Vermont RMV. Cadorette could not produce any identification or paperwork for the vehicle and attempted to identify himself with a family member's information—an act that brought upon him a set of handcuffs and a trip to the barracks for booking.
Trooper Boutell, joined by Trooper Anthony Negron, then searched Cadorette, uncovering a crack pipe and two bags of crack cocaine, with a combined weight of more than 41 grams. The find turned what began as a routine traffic violation into a far more serious criminal matter.
Cadorette was subsequently arraigned in Greenfield District Court on several counts, including "Trafficking In Cocaine," "Unlicensed Operation Of A Motor Vehicle," and "Unregistered Motor Vehicle," among other charges. It was a sharp detour for what began simply as a case of speeding and an obscured number plate. His encounter with the law illustrates how swiftly circumstances can spiral from the mundane to the judicial, ensnaring individuals in the net of the state’s prosecutorial power.
