Massachusetts Personal Injury News
Off Duty Lowell Police Officer Killed in Crash
A tragic motorcycle car collision in Lowell, Massachusetts early on Saturday claimed the life of 6-year police veteran and a father of two, Patrick Johnson, 31.
Johnson was riding his Harley-Davidson motorcycle while off duty when a car driven by Theary Chan, 26, also of Lowell, struck him at the intersection of Princeton Boulevard and Foster Street.
Chan was allegedly drunk when he ran a stop sign and struck Johnson’s motorcycle sending him flying from his motorcycle and onto a lawn three houses away. Johnson suffered fatal injuries. He was rushed to Lowell General Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Chan sustained minor injuries and was arrested on charges of motor vehicle homicide while operating under the influence, failure to stop at a stop sign, and an open container violation.
Chan had two passengers in the car, who might have been under the influence of alcohol, too. An open beer container was found in the back seat. Even Chan himself admitted to having a couple of beers prior to the accident.
During his appearance in court yesterday Chan was ordered held on $5,000 cash bail (far lower than $25,000 Middlesex Assistant District Attorney Sean Griffith requested). Chan is due back in court October 13.
Registry of Motor Vehicles records show that Chan has at least a half-dozen entries on his record, including one for failure to stop and another for an accident in Lowell in 2005. His license, which has now been revoked, has been suspended on previous several occasions for failing to take a required driving test.
Johnson, who leaves his wife and two young children behind, will be remembered as a children’s charity volunteer, and a dedicated police officer who helped take guns off the streets as part of an elite unit.
Lowell residents living in the area of the accident said that there have been accidents at the intersection in recent months and that they have implored the city to make it a four-way stop.
News Source: The Boston Globe.
