ATHOL — On Thursday, Nov. 23, 2023, at 8:35 a.m. Officer Brandon Newell of the Athol Police Department was dispatched to the area where New Sherborn Road intersects with Adams Road following a report of a single car motor vehicle accident.
(The account and quotations in this article were taken from the printed Personnel Narrative of Officer Newell.)
The reporting party said she saw a man strike a tree with his car and then take off on foot.
“The reporting party said that she saw a man walking away from the car and when she asked if he was okay, he said he hit his head in the accident,” Officer Newell said.
Officer Newell requested the fire department and their ambulance respond to the scene. Sergeant Jarret Mousseau and Officer Craig Devereau responded as backup.
When he arrived on scene, Officer Newell saw a red Mazda SUV in the opposite lane with heavy front-end damage. The driver of the vehicle was not there.
Officer Newell had dispatch run the license plate of the Mazda. The license plate came back to Charles Habershaw, a 68-year-old Athol resident, who was the registered owner of the vehicle.
Since the driver wasn’t on scene, Officer Devereau went to Habershaw’s home to see if he was there.
While waiting to hear back from Officer Devereau, Sgt. Mousseau told Officer Newell that he saw a man walking toward the scene of the accident. Officer Newell approached the individual, who identified himself as Aaron. Aaron told Officer Newell that he fell asleep while driving the Mazada, which caused the crash.
“I asked Aaron if he had a license and he said he doesn’t carry an ID,” Officer Newell said. “I asked Aaron what his last name was and he said he didn’t remember because of the accident. Aaron then went into the back of the ambulance to be evaluated.”
When Officer Devereau spoke with Habershaw, he said he didn’t know his vehicle was missing.
“Charles said he last had it in his driveway Wednesday night and that is where it should be,” Officer Newell recounted. “No one had permission to drive it.”
Officer Devereau returned to the scene and relayed this information to the other officers.
“I asked Aaron whose car he was driving and Aaron said it was his,” Officer Newell said. “Aaron stated he bought the car from a Black guy in Greenfield, MA, Wednesday night for $500. I asked who sold him the car and he said he didn’t want to tell me. I asked Aaron if he had the keys to the Mazda and Aaron said yes. Aaron then took the keys out of his backpack and handed them to Officer Newell. At this time, the Athol Fire Department transported Aaron to Athol Memorial Hospital (AMH) for treatment. I was then told to go to AMH and find out more information about the accident.”
At the hospital, Officer Newell obtained permission from medical staff to speak with Aaron in his room.
“I walked into the room Aaron was in and read him his Miranda warnings from the plastic card that I carry while on patrol,” Officer Newell explained. “Aaron said he understood his rights. I then asked Aaron what his last name was and he said his name was Aaron Caldwell. Aaron told me that he bought the Mazda from a Black guy in Greenfield for $250, not $500 like originally stated, and he said he did not have a bill of sale. Aaron told me that the guy was shady and the vehicle probably wasn’t good. I asked Aaron what that meant and he said it was probably stolen.”
According to court documents, Aaron Caldwell, 33, is homeless in Greenfield.
Officer Newell told Caldwell that the vehicle’s owner said his car was taken from his driveway without his permission.
“Aaron seemed frustrated and asked me why the Athol Police Department went to the house that the registered owner lived at,” Officer Newell said. “I explained to Aaron that due to concern for the operator’s wellbeing, we wanted to rule out the person being home. Aaron then told me that he wanted a lawyer present and did not want to talk any further. I then left the hospital room where Aaron was. Aaron then became loud and told medical staff that he wanted to leave and did not want to be at the hospital anymore. Due to Aaron signing himself out of hospital care, I explained to Aaron that he was under arrest. Dispatch was given Aaron’s information and Officer Newell was notified that Aaron has a suspended Massachusetts driver’s license.”
Officer Newell transported Caldwell to the Athol Police Department for booking, where he was booked without incident.
Caldwell’s bail was set at $3,000.
After he was booked, Aaron called his father twice unsuccessfully. He was then transported to the Franklin County House of Corrections.
Caldwell was charged with the following (Officer Newell’s reasoning for the charges are included):
- Leaving scene of property damage – Aaron walked away from the accident and prior to police response
- Receive stolen property +$1,200 Subsequent Offense – Aaron admitted to Officer Newell that he bought the vehicle from a man who Aaron thought stole it
- Receive stolen motor vehicle, Subsequent Offense – The registered owner of the vehicle said his car was taken and was in Aaron’s possession. Aaron had the keys to the vehicle in his backpack
- Use without Authority, 2nd Offense – Aaron did not have permission to use the Mazda per the registered owner of the vehicle.
- License suspended, Operation of a Motor Vehicle, Subsequent Offense – Aaron admitted to Officer Newell that he was driving the Mazda on a public way. Officer learned that Aaron’s license was suspended after he told Officer Newell his name and DOB (date of birth)
Caldwell was arraigned in Orange District Court on Nov. 27, 2023. During his arraignment, Caldwell’s bail was reduced from $3,000 to $1,500. He was then released on his own personal recognizance.
Caldwell attended a pretrial hearing on Dec. 22, 2023. The pretrial hearing was continued to Feb. 2, 2024.
Disclaimer: If you are wondering why the incident in this story was from November, that’s because I had to file FOIA request(s) to get the court documents for the incident. FOIAs are time consuming.
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