Judge sets bail for driver charged in wrong-way fatal Hopkinton crash
FRAMINGHAM — A Framingham District Court judge set bail at $100,000 for a Taunton man accused of driving the wrong way while drunk down Interstate 495, resulting in a fatal multi-vehicle collision.
Devin Arroyo, 29, pleaded not guilty to charges of operating under the influence of liquor; motor-vehicle homicide while under the influence of liquor; negligent operation of a motor vehicle; driving the wrong way on a state highway; and a marked-lanes violation.
State police said Arroyo was driving a van in the wrong direction on I-495 in Hopkinton at about 12:15 a.m. Wednesday when he collided head-on with an Infiniti in the northbound lane. A tractor-trailer traveling behind the Infiniti was unable to brake in time and also struck the car, whose driver was later pronounced dead.
Earlier: Man dies in multi-vehicle crash on I-495 in Hopkinton. Charges filed against Taunton man
In court, Assistant District Attorney Caitlin Gemmill described the “grisly” scene that troopers came upon as they responded to the crash, noting the deceased was “found in the roadway, with extreme injuries and no pulse.”
Arroyo crawled shirtless and bloody from the window of his van, which had rolled onto its side following the crash, according to a state police trooper's report. He was taken to the University of Massachusetts Medical Center in Worcester with minor injuries.
The trooper noted in his report that Arroyo’s speech was slurred and his eyes were red and glassy at the time, and there were allegedly three empty vodka nips and an empty hard iced tea can on the passenger seat of his vehicle.
At the time of the crash, Arroyo was on probation in two separate courts, Gemmill noted. In addition to $100,000 cash bail, she requested several bail conditions, including house arrest with a GPS bracelet, no alcohol consumption and random screenings, no driving, and no contact with witnesses or the victim’s family.
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Gemmill said the conditions and high bail were necessary because Arroyo poses “an extreme flight risk.”
The charges stretch beyond the district court’s jurisdiction, she noted, adding that the motor-vehicle homicide charge is “imminently going to be the subject of indictment.”
Arroyo will face mandatory minimum state prison penalties on that allegation alone, Gemmill said.
Arroyo’s attorney, Kenneth Gross, called the bail request excessive, telling the court that his client has a track record of showing up for court appearances.
He said Arroyo, who grew up in Framingham, has four children and a fiancée, as well as a steady job of six years.
“These are serious charges, but he’s not a flight risk,” Gross said. He proposed instead that bail be set at $2,000, though Judge David Cunis ultimately opted for the higher amount.
Arroyo will be due back in court on Sept. 19 for a probable cause hearing.
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This article originally appeared on MetroWest Daily News: Hopkinton wrong-way driver pleads not guilty to OUI, homicide charges
