A Massachusetts State Trooper was struck by a car and injured while conducting a traffic stop on Church Street in Lowell Sunday night, and police have since issued a warrant for the 23-year-old Methuen man accused of driving away and hitting the trooper as he fled. The trooper suffered only minor injuries, but the incident has triggered a long list of criminal charges against the suspect, who remains at large.
According to Boston 25 News, the trooper, based out of the Concord barracks, pulled over a black Infiniti sedan around 9 p.m. Sunday for a license plate violation. The outlet reports the driver was removed from the vehicle and questioned about what appeared to be marijuana inside the car, based on preliminary information from state police. That driver then allegedly got back behind the wheel and fled, striking the trooper in the process.
State police issued a be-on-the-lookout alert for the suspect's vehicle following the collision, and a warrant has since been issued for the driver's arrest, per the same Boston 25 News report. The suspect, a 23-year-old Methuen resident, now faces a lengthy roster of charges, including felony assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, resisting arrest, negligent operation of a motor vehicle, a marked lanes violation, a number plate violation, no inspection sticker, furnishing marijuana to a person under 21, and failure to stop for police.
What the Charges Could Mean
The felony assault and battery with a dangerous weapon charge is one of the counts the suspect faces. Under Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 265, Section 15A, that offense — which covers using a motor vehicle to strike another person — carries a penalty of up to 10 years in state prison or up to 2.5 years in a house of correction, plus a fine of up to $5,000, according to the Serpa Law Office.
The furnishing marijuana to a minor charge carries its own separate exposure. Under Chapter 94G, providing marijuana or marijuana products to someone under 21 is a criminal violation punishable by up to one year in prison, a fine of up to $2,000, or both, per the Hampden District Attorney. Massachusetts legalized adult recreational cannabis in 2016, but the law still strictly bars providing it to anyone under 21.
The marijuana spotted during the stop also ties into a narrower civil infraction. Massachusetts law under M.G.L. c. 94G, § 13(d) bars open containers of marijuana inside passenger vehicles, a violation that on its own would carry only a civil fine of up to $500, according to Scituate FACTS.
Chapter 90, Section 25 addresses willfully refusing to stop for an officer upon demand and provides a $100 fine. The negligent operation charge, meanwhile, carries up to two years in a house of correction plus fines and license suspension under Chapter 90, Section 24, according to DelSignore Law, and requires prosecutors to show the driving endangered public safety.
A Concord Trooper on a Lowell Corridor
The trooper involved in Sunday's stop works out of the Massachusetts State Police Concord Barracks.
Another Methuen Driver Fleeing Police
This is not the first time this year that a Methuen resident has fled a traffic stop. In August, a 47-year-old Methuen man triggered a high-speed chase after fleeing a stop conducted by New Hampshire State Police on I-95 in Greenland, New Hampshire, at 108 mph before he was taken into custody and faced numerous charges, including felony charges, according to Hoodline's earlier reporting. That case involved a pursuit and numerous charges, including felony charges.
As of now, it remains unclear whether the 23-year-old suspect from Sunday's Lowell incident has been taken into custody under the issued warrant. The exact amount of marijuana observed or recovered from the vehicle has also not been specified in reporting on the case, nor has the trooper's current medical status beyond the description of minor injuries.
