Suspect In Trooper Hit & Run Ordered Held On $2,500 Bail
DORCHESTER (CBS) – The one person arrested after a state trooper was struck by a car Thursday was ordered held on $2,500 bail Friday.
WBZ NewsRadio 1030's Carl Stevens reports
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Police arrested 25-year-old Brandon Smith at a homeless shelter in Chinatown Thursday afternoon, hours after 41-year-old Trooper Scott Flaherty was hit by a stolen rental car at the Neponset Street Bridge during a construction detail.
Smith pleaded not guilty to a stolen vehicle charge.
The prosecutor said Friday Smith was in the 2012 Toyota Yaris with an expired rental agreement and that makes it a stolen car.
Troopers approached the car on the bridge Thursday morning, but the driver did a u-turn, hit Flaherty and sped off as other troopers fired at it.
Smith's attorney, Joseph Mahaney, said no one identified his client at the scene. He also claimed there was no evidence his client was in the car.
"They never even found him near the scene, they found him quite a distance away, with no evidence of ownership of the motor vehicle," Mahaney told WBZ NewsRadio 1030.
If the state determines that Smith was driving, there could be more changes.
Trooper Flaherty is at home recovering from several injuries, including a broken ankle and a broken wrist.
