GREENFIELD — A Franklin County Superior Court judge has taken under advisement the state’s request to withhold the right to bail for a Rhode Island man accused of hospitalizing eight motorcyclists after crossing the centerline while driving on Route 10 in Northfield last weekend.
Ryan T. O’Farrell, 32, of Westerly, Rhode Island, faces 23 charges related to the May 29 incident. The state has requested O’Farrell be held without bail due to his criminal history, his record of missing court dates and the belief that he was under the influence of narcotics at the time of the accident. Judge Jane Mulqueen, attending Friday’s bail hearing via Zoom from Springfield, said she plans to render her decision Sunday afternoon or “first thing Monday morning.”
O’Farrell was arraigned in Greenfield District Court on Tuesday but the case was transferred to Superior Court due to its severity. He has pleaded not guilty to seven counts of operating under the influence of drugs causing serious bodily injury, seven counts of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon causing serious bodily injury, two counts of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, two counts of child endangerment while operating under the influence; and single counts of operating under the influence of drugs, negligent operation of a motor vehicle, unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle, having an unregistered motor vehicle (trailer) and a marked lanes violation.
Judge William Mazanec III in District Court had set bail at $100,000 cash or $500,000 surety, should conditions change allowing for bail.
According to authorities, O’Farrell was driving south on Route 10 near 272 Main St. in an SUV pulling a trailer carrying a motorcycle at approximately 1 p.m. on May 29 when he crossed the centerline and smashed into five motorcycles — traveling in a pack of nine as a part of a Connecticut motorcycle club ride — heading north in the oncoming lane.
O’Farrell’s attorney, Alan Rubin of the Committee for Public Counsel Services, told Mulqueen there is “no evidence that it was an intentional assault and battery.” He said withholding the right to bail is supposed to be a “rare remedy in extreme cases” and argued that assault and battery charges do not amount to extreme. Rubin said O’Farrell took several prescribed medications on the morning of incident, as he does daily, and they can produce drowsiness. He reiterated that his requested $10,000 bail is likely more than his client can afford.
“He has every intention of returning to this court,” Rubin said.
The state has said O’Farrell had a suspended driver’s license in Rhode Island and Connecticut. But Rubin said his client was unaware of that. In fact, he said, he had in October been returned his Rhode Island driver’s license.
Chief Trial Counsel Jeremy Bucci, who is prosecuting the case for the state, said the prosecution requests a $250,000 bail if O’Farrell is not held. He said the defendant should not have been driving anywhere due to the license suspensions.
Bucci said O’Farrell was leaving a motocross event with his 10-year-old stepson and that boy’s 13-year-old friend when he stopped at a gas station and the 13-year-old noticed O’Farrell in possession of a white powder, “a telltale sign of heroin or cocaine.” The 13-year-old reportedly told authorities that within minutes of leaving the gas station, O’Farrell began “nodding out.” Bucci said the 13-year-old was asked how he knew the term “nodding out” and responded that his own father struggles with addiction.
The 13-year-old, according to Bucci, suffered two black eyes in the crash while the stepson was “badly bruised.” Bucci previously said the boys were taken to Brattleboro Memorial Hospital in Vermont for evaluation and released.
Bucci told Mulqueen on Friday it had been learned within the prior 24 hours that one of the women O’Farrell struck has had her left leg amputated. He said another motorcyclist needed an elbow fused, meaning he will be on disability for the rest of his life. Bucci had on Tuesday mentioned one rider needed some fingers reattached, and another was in and out of consciousness. He said his Northwestern District Attorney’s Office is monitoring the patients’ conditions.
Reach Domenic Poli at:
dpoli@recorder.com or
413-772-0261, ext. 262.