Watch CBS News

Driver In Fatal Wareham Wheelchair Crash Held On $20,000 Bail

WAREHAM, Mass. (AP) — A Middleborough man charged with driving drunk when he struck and killed a Wareham man in a wheelchair was ordered held on $20,000 bail at his arraignment Wednesday.

John Vandeusen
John Vandeusen. (Photo courtesy: Wareham police)

A lawyer for John Vandeusen, 28, entered pleas of not guilty on his client's behalf to several charges in Wareham District Court, including drunken driving and motor vehicle homicide.

Vandeusen struck Joshua Macro, 24, with his pickup truck in the Onset section of town at about 1 a.m. Saturday, prosecutors said. The impact threw Macro from his wheelchair, which split in two, prosecutors said. Macro was pronounced dead at a hospital.

Joshua Macro
Joshua Macro. (WBZ-TV)

Vandeusen failed three field sobriety tests and had a blood alcohol content of more than twice the legal limit, prosecutors said.

Vandeusen is an employed, law-abiding citizen who stopped and helped look for Macro, his defense attorney said.

Macro and his roommate, Ryan Santos, had been returning home after playing pool, Santos said. Santos was on foot, and both men were in a bicycle lane, he said.

Santos says Vandeusen was crying during the search. He is due back in court July 7.

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

MORE LOCAL NEWS FROM CBS BOSTON

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.