crime
The Newburyport man who allegedly struck a state trooper also faces a charge of operating under the influence.
A Newburyport man faces multiple charges after striking a state trooper in a crash on the interstate Sunday morning.
Just before 2 a.m., a trooper from the State Police Danvers Barracks saw a wrong-way driver traveling south in the northbound lane of Route 1 in Peabody, State Police said in a statement. The agency said the policeman “took immediate action” and informed his fellow soldiers.
Police said that state forces had developed a plan to stop the wrong-way driver and protect the public by preventing other vehicles from entering the highway. Minutes later, the driver struck a trooper in his marked car, according to state police.
The policeman and the driver were taken to a local hospital, police said. The policeman, whose identity was not revealed, sustained non-life-threatening injuries.
The driver, Lucas Gustavo Brajac Dealmeida Benedetto, 41, was released from the hospital later that day, according to state police. He is charged with operating under the influence of alcohol, negligent operation of a vehicle, and driving in the wrong direction on a state highway.
De Almeida Benedetto is scheduled to be arraigned Monday in Peabody District Court, police said. It was not immediately clear whether he had appointed a lawyer.
Sunday’s crash marks the second wrong-way crash involving a Massachusetts state trooper this month. On May 6, Trooper Kevin Trainor was beaten head-on in Lynnfield by Hernan Marrero, 50, of Roslindale. Both men died in the accident.
Trainor, 30, was among several troopers who responded just after 2 a.m. to reports of a wrong-way driver. He was buried a week later in Salem.
After Trainor’s death, the Massachusetts Senate unanimously approved a bill amendment The fiscal year 2027 budget requires new infrastructure and multi-sensory warning devices on the roads. These protocols will include directional lines, signage and lane markings.
If the amendment is adopted into law, the Massachusetts Department of Transportation will “develop, implement and maintain a comprehensive system to prevent wrong-way driving on limited access roads,” according to the Senate. The organization will also be responsible for creating a new detection system to alert wrong-way drivers, public safety agencies, and other motorists.
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