NH man arrested after 3-car crash

SALISBURY — A New Hampshire man was twice the legal limit for drunken driving when he caused a three-car crash Saturday evening at the intersection of Rabbit Road and Main Street, injuring two people, according to a police report.

Brett Bourassa, 25, of East Kingston was arraigned Monday in Newburyport District Court on charges of drunken driving, negligent operation of a motor vehicle, and failure to stop or yield. He was released on personal recognizance and ordered to return to court Nov. 14 for a pretrial hearing.

When Salisbury police Sgt. Keith Forget arrived at the crash site about 9:30 p.m., he saw a black Kia with heavy damage to the passenger side resting against a utility pole, a red Subaru with heavy front-end damage, and a Honda Accord with moderate damage to its front passenger side.

Two people, both teens, were still inside the Kia, one of them was semiconscious and unable to communicate. The other person complained of back pain.

Bourassa, who was in the Subaru, and a woman were sitting on a grassy island near the intersection. Neither was hurt but Forget was told by a witness that Bourassa appeared intoxicated.

“The kid’s toasted, the driver of the red car,” the witness told Forget, according to his report.

The same witness said Bourassa drove through a red light at the busy intersection and struck the Kia in the side, sending it spinning several times before crashing into the pole. As the Kia was spinning, it struck the Honda Accord.

When asked by Forget what happened, Bourassa said he and his friend were driving back from an Amesbury brewery.

“Next thing I knew, collision, airbag deployed, my shin to my chest, ahhh, etc. etc.,” Forget wrote in his report, adding that Bourassa was slurring his words as he spoke.

Forget then asked Bourassa to take a series of field sobriety tests after learning he was not injured. At first, Bourassa declined but changed his mind. He quickly failed the tests, prompting Fogrget to charge him with drunken driving.

At the police station, Bourassa registered a .183 blood-alcohol level, more than twice the legal limit of .08 for drunken driving, according to Forget’s report.

Other witnesses described the crash similarly, saying when the light turned green at the intersection from Route 286, cars began driving through the center.

The Subaru then raced through the intersection at speeds close to 60 mph and hit the Kia. The car spun three or four times before coming to a stop. The driver of the Kia was crying in agony while his passenger was unconscious, according to Forget’s report.

Dave Rogers is the editor of the Daily News of Newburyport. Email him at: drogers@newburyportnews.com. Follow him on Twitter @drogers41008.