2 Charged With Drunk Driving In State Police Cruiser Crashes
BOSTON (CBS) - Two Massachusetts state police cruisers were hit by other vehicles in separate crashes overnight and two drivers are now charged with drunk driving.
WBZ NewsRadio 1030's Ben Parker reports
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The first crash happened in Randolph on Route 24 at 1:20 a.m.
State police said a Nissan Murano going the wrong way in the southbound lanes struck a cruiser and three other cars.
No one was seriously hurt.
"The trooper was outside of the cruiser -- he was attempting to deploy stop sticks to puncture the wrong way operator's tires -- when the cruiser was hit," State police spokesman David Procopio said in a statement.
The Nissan driver, 25-year-old Mary McLaughlin of Weymouth, was arrested and charged with operating under the influence, negligent operation of a motor vehicle, and wrong way operation.
She will be arraigned Wednesday afternoon in Quincy District Court.
A short time later, at 2:45 a.m., a state trooper was working a paid construction detail on the westbound side of the Massachusetts Turnpike just before exit 16 in Newton, when a Toyota RAV4 SUV plowed into the back of his cruiser.
"The force of the impact caused the other vehicle to flip over, trapping the driver. Newton firefighters extricated that driver, who has been transported to an area hospital," Procopio said.
The driver, 30-year-old Peter Okarma of Reading, will be cited for operating under the influence, entering a restricted zone, and operating to endanger.
The trooper was taken to Massachusetts General Hospital where he was treated for minor injuries and released.
