News

Man Denies DUI After Crash

By Patrick Mcardle
THE RUTLAND HERALD
A Rutland County man was arraigned on a felony charge of driving under the influence of alcohol after police said he crashed his car at the intersection of Merchants Row and Center Street on Friday morning and, after being arrested, fought with police and kicked one officer in the forehead.

Michael Reyes, 32, of Fair Haven, pleaded not guilty on Friday in Rutland criminal court to a felony count of driving under the influence of alcohol and misdemeanor counts of leaving the scene of a crash, assault on a law-enforcement officer and violating a requirement to use an ignition interlock device.

The charge of driving under the influence of alcohol against Reyes was modified to a felony because he was previously convicted of similar charges in 2011 and 2019. On Friday, Reyes was accused of refusing to provide an evidentiary breath sample to police.

An ignition interlock device can be ordered for some drivers, usually those who have been accused of driving while under the influence of alcohol. The device will not allow the vehicle to start unless the driver has blown into the device to indicate the driver is not under the influence of alcohol.

The charges against Reyes are based on an affidavit written by Officer Timothy Rice, of the Rutland City Police Department, who said he and Officer James Rajda were dispatched to investigate a report of a single vehicle crash around 12:35 a.m. on Friday.

A caller had reported a Toyota Corolla had crashed into a concrete medium and the driver got out of the car but then got back in and drove off although the caller said the crash had apparently damaged one of the tires. The caller said the driver had driven off even though one of the Corolla’s tires was flat.

Rajda got to the scene first and found the crash had damaged two street signs and “taken out” vegetation planted in the median. He also reported there was a “large amount of vehicle debris in the roadway.”

Police found the Corolla on Strongs Avenue near South Main Street. The car had extensive damage to the front end and a blown front tire. It was also leaking oil and all of its airbags had been deployed.

Reyes was found walking near the area where the car had been found, the affidavit said. Police said he denied being involved in a crash when first questioned and said he didn’t have any vehicle keys while talking to police, but officers could hear him jingling keys in his pocket.

Reyes eventually admitted the Corolla, which was registered to him, was his.

Rice said Reyes agreed to perform field sobriety tests. He said he noted several signs that Reyes was impaired.

According to the affidavit, Reyes told police during the process that the “test was dumb and how he could run in a straight line.” Rice said Reyes then began to run away from the officers at the scene, but Rice grabbed him and placed him under arrest.

Once Reyes was taken to the police station, he became “combative and uncooperative.” Rice said Reyes was not released from the handcuffs that had been placed on him because of his “combativeness.”

Reyes allegedly told police he was drunk several times but declined to provide a breath sample.

“Reyes continued to shout and scream at officers and demanded he be released. He then began giving officers time limits on how long they had to release him before he would assault them,” Rice said in the affidavit.

Rice said Reyes began to pull at the wiring of the light fixture in the cell at the police station so officers decided to remove him from the cell. During the process, Reyes resisted forcefully, according to the affidavit, and tried to kick officers.

Once Reyes was moved to a bench outside the cell, he kicked Rajda, allegedly hitting him in the left side of his forehead before police were able to secure his legs to the bench.

After Reyes was arrested, he was held on $500 bail but during his arraignment, Marco Kushner, a public defender who represented Reyes, asked Judge David Fenster to strike the bail and release Reyes.

Kushner said Reyes “considers Vermont his home” and said he was a former student at the College of St. Joseph. He said Reyes’ history showed no record of any failures to appear in court or violation of probation.

“The allegations that he was uncooperative with the police officers, under the influence of alcohol, is quite different from whether or not Mr. Reyes will appear in court,” he said.

Ray Sun, a deputy state’s attorney for Rutland County, asked Fenster to continue the bail. He said the allegations in the affidavit were “very concerning” and that Reyes’ alleged conduct while in custody was “appalling.”

Sun noted that Reyes was under a restriction not to drive a vehicle without an ignition interlock device, but the Corolla, registered to Reyes, did not have the device.

Fenster said Vermont law would only allow him to impose bail if the defendant demonstrated he or she was a risk to avoid court proceedings.

“Bail may only be used to assure the defendant’s appearance and cannot be used as a means of punishing the defendant or protecting the public so while the court certainly recognizes the conduct that’s alleged to have occurred in the early morning hours of today, the court can only consider that conduct under Vermont law to the extent that it might bear on whether or not the defendant presents a risk of flight from prosecution,” he said.

Reyes was released without bail but ordered not to drive or purchase or drink alcohol.

If convicted of all the charges against him, Reyes could be sentenced to up to 11 years in prison.

patrick.mcardle @rutlandherald.com

Avatar photo

As your daily newspaper, we are committed to providing you with important local news coverage for Sullivan County and the surrounding areas.