A Rhode Island man was convicted this week of dragging two Boston police officers by their arms after rolling up his car window on their limbs during a traffic stop and slamming the gas pedal down. Nathaniel Fenton, 36, was found guilty of two counts of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and drug possession charges stemming from the May 26, 2023 confrontation on Columbia Road in Dorchester.
According to MassLive, officers pulled Fenton over on Columbia Road, but he refused to get out of the car when they asked him to. As officers tried to unlock his door from inside through the window, Fenton allegedly rolled the window up, trapping two officers' arms inside before putting the SUV in drive and accelerating, dragging both men several car-lengths before they managed to free themselves. He then drove abruptly over a raised median and nearly struck a third officer standing in front of the car, per the same report.
A Chase That Ended With Drugs Hidden in a Yard
Fenton did not stop there. His silver SUV went on to hit a nearby house before he fled on foot, according to MassLive's reporting. Police arrested him on Blue Hill Avenue, where officers said he displayed heavy breathing, poor coordination, sweating, shaking, and avoidance of eye contact. He also had a burning cannabis cigarette on him at the time of his arrest, the outlet reported.
Investigators say Fenton hid a clear plastic bag containing 20 white oxycodone pills in a nearby yard before he was caught, a moment that homeowner security camera footage reportedly captured. A search of his car turned up 37 additional oxycodone pills, one unidentified blue pill, five ziplock bags of cannabis, 23 packs of THC edibles, and a large sum of money, according to the Suffolk District Attorney's Office.
Superior Court Conviction and Sentencing
Fenton was tried in Suffolk Superior Court, which handles felony indictments carrying state prison terms that district and municipal courts cannot impose. Under Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 265, Section 15A, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon can carry up to 10 years in state prison when prosecuted there, according to Caselden Law. Massachusetts case law treats ordinary vehicles as dangerous weapons when they are operated in a way capable of causing serious harm, which is the legal theory that applied to Fenton's SUV even though it is not a traditional weapon, per the Serpa Law Office.
He was sentenced to four to six years in state prison for the assault charges and one year for the drug charges, which he will serve concurrently, per MassLive. Oxycodone is classified as a Class B controlled substance under Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 94C, Section 34, where illegal possession carries a maximum penalty of one year in a house of correction for a first offense, according to Urbelis Law.
Prosecutor Says No Officer Suffered Permanent Harm
Suffolk District Attorney Kevin Hayden said the incident was extremely dangerous but did not result in serious injuries to the officers involved. Hayden thanked the jurors for holding Fenton accountable for his reckless actions and said assaults on people protecting neighborhoods will not be tolerated.
Columbia Road functions as a primary arterial corridor linking Boston Police Department District B-2 in Roxbury and District C-11 in Dorchester, making it a high-volume location for traffic stops and neighborhood patrols, according to the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office. That volume comes with real risk: FBI Law Enforcement Officers Killed and Assaulted program data shows more than 79,000 U.S. officers were assaulted in the line of duty in 2023, a 10-year high, with traffic stops remaining among the most hazardous routine duties, per Police1.
Not an Isolated Incident for Boston Officers
Fenton's case is not the only recent instance of a Boston officer being dragged during a stop. Hoodline reported on a similar case from December 2025, in which a New York woman was charged after allegedly dragging a Boston officer with her vehicle during a confrontation. Academic research published in 2023 in The Handbook on Violent Crime and Society found that roughly 10% of U.S. police officers are assaulted annually, with 25% to 30% of those assaulted sustaining nonfatal physical injuries, according to a study on ResearchGate.
