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Alleged Hit-And-Run Driver Denies Charges, Held On Bail |
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Friday, 21 August 2009 |
By STEVE BLAKE
Managing Editor
The man police say hit two women with his truck, killing one and severely injuring the other, pled innocent Thursday morning to felony charges of leaving the scene of an accident which resulted in a fatality and leaving the scene of an accident which resulted in serious injury, and a misdemeanor charge of leaving the scene of an accident which resulted in property damage.
Michael J. Lucier, 29, of Newport Center was held at the Northern State
Correctional Facility in Newport for lack of a $10,000 deposit on
$50,000 bail. If he makes bail, Lucier must be released into the
custody of a responsible adult approved by the court. He must live in
Orleans County and abide by a 5 p.m. to 7 a.m. curfew, and he must stay
away from his alleged victims’ families.
Bethany McAlister, 21, was killed and Alyssa Burns, 17, suffered broken
bones and lacerations after being hit by a pickup while walking along
the North Jay Road in North Troy Tuesday.
The police listed McAlister’s address as Hyde Park, but neighbors say
she was living on North Jay Road. Burns lives in Newport, according to
the state police.
The truck that hit the women was heading up an incline where there is a slight curve.
Witnesses of the incident told police that the truck was a blue Ford F150, and one said it.
was the truck owned by Lucier, says an affidavit from State Trooper William Warner.
After the truck hit the women, it hit a nearby utility pole and continued up the road. The affidavit says that while he was on his way to the hit-and-run site Warner received word of another accident in Richford, a head-on collision with a utility pole, involving a blue F150 driven by Lucier. The truck didn’t have a right tail light or a passenger side exterior mirror. A broken tail light and mirror were found at the hit-and-run scene. The police found blood on the side of the truck and hair in the windshield.
McAlister was pronounced dead at North Country Hospital. Burns was also taken to the hospital where she was treated for cuts, a broken leg, and emotional stress, the affidavit says.
Lucier was taken to the Northwestern State Hospital in St. Albans with minor injuries. He was released and screened by Trooper Julie Hammond, a drug recognition expert, who says Lucier was using depressants. Lucier admitted using methadone and Ambien, a sleeping pill. A breath test indicated that Lucier’s breath alcohol concentration was over 0.1 percent, according to Warner’s affidavit. A sample of Lucier’s blood will be sent to the state lab.
He admitted he had been drinking between 3:30 and 6:30, the affidavit says. It says he remembered the accident in Richford and said he could have hit something in North Troy.
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Last Updated ( Monday, 24 August 2009 )
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