LEOMINSTER — On Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024, at around 10:29 p.m., Officer Caulin Salvi of the Leominster Police Department was dispatched to Entertainment Cinemas at45 Sack Boulevard following a report that an intoxicated driver crashed into a car in the parking lot and was still attempting to drive.
(The account and quotations in this article were sourced from the printed Personnel Narratives of Officer Salvi and Officer Ronald Olin and do not reflect any political perspective or personal opinion of News Link Live, which is strictly a business entity.)
The reporting party witnessed the crash and gave the car’s plate number to dispatch. Dispatch ran the plates and found out the vehicle was registered to Raymond Fitzgibbons. In addition, the FBI’s Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS) database indicated that Fitzgibbons’ license had been suspended after refusing to take a breath test on July 11, 2024, Officer Salvi said.
According to police, Raymond J. Fitzgibbons, Jr., 56, is a resident of 100 Haverhill Street, Haverhill, MA.
“When I arrived on scene Officer [Timothy] Galvin explained that Romina [last name redacted] and her husband Brian had just left their movie when they observed the green [Honda] CR-V driven by the male party sideswipe a black Ford Explorer at the end of a parking row and attempt to drive away,” Officer Salvi said.
Officer Salvi said that when he arrived on scene, he located Fitzgibbons, who was parked approximately six parking spaces away from Popeye’s drive-through in the parking lot of Entertainment Cinemas.
“At the time of this incident approximately 20 rows of cars, seven columns wide, were nearly at capacity in the parking lot of the theater,” Officer Salvi said. “The vehicle was parked approximately 20 rows away from the Ford Explorer that was struck. Multiple groups of pedestrians were walking throughout the lot, including the witnesses.”
Officer Salvi said that he approached Fitzgibbons’ vehicle, took his keys, and placed them on the roof of the vehicle.
“I began speaking with Raymond, whose speech was very slurred,” Officer Salvi said. “I could smell a moderate odor of alcoholic beverage coming from the open window while standing at the B pillar.” (The “B pillar” is the vertical support post located between the front and rear doors of a vehicle, connecting the roof to the body. In the context of the statement, Officer Salvi was standing near the B pillar, next to the front seat window, when he detected the odor of alcohol coming from inside the vehicle).
“I asked Raymond where he was coming from and he stated that he was from Framingham and wanted to live in Leominster,” Officer Salvi said. “I asked him for his license and he said he did not have it. Raymond told me it was suspended by the Department of Revenue for unpaid child support. Please note, Raymond’s driver’s license was suspended for unpaid child support on 8/30/24 after it had already been suspended for a breath test refusal on 7/11/24.”
Officer Salvi asked Fitzgibbons if he had anything to drink that evening and he said that he had a gin and tonic.
“He gestured to his cooler that was in the passenger seat as if the drinks were inside,” Officer Salvi said. “They were not, but I recognized the clear plastic top of the handle of some spirit bottle next to the cooler and a bag of chips. This was later identified as a 1.75 liter (handle) of Gordon’s vodka.
Officer Salvi said that Fitzgibbons’ speech was “still very slurred” and it sounded as if it were painful for him to speak, because he took long breaths before saying only a few words and would then stop talking.
“I asked Raymond to step out of the vehicle and he appeared to hesitate,” Officer Salvi said. “I asked him what was going on and he mumbled something that did not sound like words. I asked him if he was a diabetic and he told me he was not. Raymond did not appear to want to step out of his vehicle.”
Officer Salvi said that after he asked Fitzgibbons to exit his vehicle a second time, Fitzgibbons stepped out by using his open door and the roof of his vehicle to support himself.
“Raymond then turned and used both arms to ‘hug’ the roof and appeared so unsteady on his feet that if he let go, he would fall over,” Officer Salvi said.
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The officer asked Raymond if he would be able to stand on his own when Raymond turned to his right, leaving his left arm on the roof, because he still appeared to be unsteady.
“Raymond stated that he was sorry and that he was done. Raymond stated that he wasn’t going to do what we asked him to do,” Officer Salvi said. Adding, “I determined that SFSTs [Standardized Field Sobriety Tests] were not feasible given Raymond’s statement that he would not cooperate. I told him to place his hands behind his back. I told Raymond that he was under arrest for OUI and placed him in handcuffs. I double locked the cuffs and assisted in escorting Raymond to Officer Galvin’s cruiser. Each step Raymond took he seemed to shake as if he did not have good footing. Raymond was wearing laced up work boots with what appeared to be good tread and the parking lot was flat with no slope.”
Officer Salvi secured the bottle of vodka, locked Raymond’s vehicle, and proceeded to attempt to identify the owner of the vehicle Raymond had hit.
“The owner of the ford was in the theater likely watching a film,” Officer Salvi concluded. “I left an accident card, and the witnesses left their own note on the handle of the driver’s door.”
When Fitzgibbons arrived at the Leominster Police Department, he was booked by Officer Ronald Olin. “Officer Olin attempted two breath tests. Raymond could not complete either,” Officer Salvi said. Later adding, “Officer [Cedric] Crawford witnessed the second attempt that has been logged as the refusal.”
Officer Olin reported that after Fitzgibbons was read the “Statutory Rights and Consent Form” and asked if he would take a breathalyzer, Fitzgibbons said yes to the breath test.
“After the booking process, I assisted Raymond to the department breathalyzer machine – [Drager] Alcotest 9510,” Officer Olin said. “Note: While walking Raymond to the Alcotest 9510, Raymond was stumbling and uneasy on his feet. Raymond took the test, but he was unable to complete it correctly. I allowed Raymond to take another breathalyzer test, but he could not complete that one either.”
Fitzgibbons was charged with the following:
- OUI Liquor or .08% (2nd offense)
- Operating Motor Vehicle with License Suspended
- Negligent Operation of a Motor Vehicle
- Leave Scene of Property Damage
Fitzgibbons’ bail was set at $2,500.
He was arraigned by Judge Mark Noonan in Leominster District Court on September 9, 2024. After the arraignment, Fitzgibbons was released on bail with the conditions that he remain drug and alcohol free, submit to drug and alcohol screenings, and refrain from driving while the case is pending.
Fitzgibbons attended a pretrial conference on October 2, 2024, which was continued to October 3, 2024.
Disclaimer: If you are wondering why the incident in this story was from September, 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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