Man charged after crashing truck in front of police station

TEWKSBURY >> A single-vehicle crash in front of the police station on Main Street resulted in the arrest of a 58-year-old Tewksbury man on several charges, including his third drunk driving offense.

The Tewksbury Police said Kevin O’donnell crashed his pickup truck into a tree on the front lawn of the police station, located at 918 Main St., on Wednesday night, and then drove away.

A police report about the incident states at about 10:40 p.m., police were notified about the operator of a Toyota Tundra driving erratically on Main Street, crossing over the double yellow line and almost hitting a passing vehicle. The witness told police the Tundra then drove up on the curb before striking the tree.

Police said officers responded to the scene, locating the damaged tree, along with tire tracks in the grass, which were approximately 10 to 15 feet off the roadway. The vehicle involved, however, was no longer on scene. The truck was tracked down by police in the area of Main Street and Victor Drive.

During a traffic stop, police said they observed damage to the passenger side of the truck. The operator, identified in the report as O’donnell, claimed the damage was from a previous accident, and he denied any involvement in the crash on Main Street.

Police said when he exited the vehicle, they “detected an odor of alcoholic beverage emanating from Kevin’s breath in the outside open air.” According to the report, O’donnell had “glassy eyes,” his “speech was slow and slurred,” and his balance was off. When asked how much he had to drink, O’donnell said a single beer, according to police.

O’donnell consented to a standardized field sobriety test, including the horizontal gaze nystagmus, the nine-step walk and turn, and the one-leg stand. Police said during each test, O’donnell displayed clues indicating impairment. O’donnell also consented to a preliminary breath test, which showed he had a blood alcohol content of 0.113%, which is over the legal limit of 0.08%.

After O’donnell was in custody, police said a search of his vehicle turned up several containers of alcohol, including some that were open or empty.

On Thursday, O’donnell was arraigned in Lowell District Court by Judge Zachary Hillman on the charges of operation under the influence of liquor, negligent operation of a motor vehicle, leaving the scene of a property damage accident, marked lanes violation, and possession of an open container of alcohol in a motor vehicle.

O’donnell was held on $500 cash bail, which he posted the same day. O’donnell, who has not yet been assigned an attorney, is scheduled to return to court for a pretrial hearing on Jan. 18.

According to the police report, O’donnell had been arrested for OUI on two previous occasions, including the first offense which was nearly three decades ago.

Police said O’donnell’s Board of Probation report showed he was charged with OUI in Woburn District Court in March 1996. The charge was continued without a finding, and later dismissed. O’donnell was again charged out of Woburn District Court in February 2001. The second offense led to a two-year probationary sentence.

Follow Aaron Curtis on X, formerly known as Twitter, @aselahcurtis