Police: alleged drunk driver travels off road and into stream - wwlp.com
According to police, Stephen M. Galvin, 49, first rear-ended Ronald Baldwin’s 2007 Dodge Dakota near 507 Southampton Road. Baldwin phoned police shortly before 10 p. m. Thursday night to say that a 2002 Ford was behind him on Southampton Road, struck his vehicle and continued to pass him on the right, using the shoulder of the roadway. Next, Baldwin said he witnessed Galvin turn left onto Egleston Road, and run off the roadway near 60 Egleston Road into Arm Brook. Police received additional calls from residents of Egleston Road telling police that the driver was attempting to flee the scene. Timothy Fanion, the Westfield Police officer on the scene, observed Galvin had “glossy blood shot eyes, slurred speech, unsteadiness on his feet and a strong odor of alcoholic beverage emitting from his breath,” according to court records. Police had to employ a crane to get Galvin’s vehicle out of the stream. Thirty minutes following his arrest, on charges of leaving the scene of property damage, negligent operation of a motor vehicle and operating a motor vehicle under the influence of liquor, Galvin refused to take a breathalyzer test, according to... Under “Melanie’s Law,” refusing a breathalyzer test for those 21 years of age or older results in an automatic and immediate 180-day license suspension for first time offenders, according to the Registry of Motor Vehicles. Source: wwlp.com
