Gardner man arrested for hitting ex-wife with truck after argument

WINCHENDON — On Friday, January 24, 2025, at approximately 5:29 p.m., Officer Alexander Favreau of the Winchendon Police Department was dispatched to 13 Maynard Street after a woman called 911 to report a fight between her daughter and her daughter’s ex-husband, Michael Rathier.

(The account and quotations in this article were sourced from the printed Personnel Narrative of Officer Favreau and do not reflect any political perspective or personal opinion of News Link Live, which is strictly a business entity.)

According to police, Michael T. Rathier, 36, is a resident of 48 Knowlton Street, Gardner, MA.

When he arrived on scene, Officer Favreau saw the 911 caller standing in the street with her daughter.

Officer Favreau asked them what happened. Rathier’s ex-wife stated that Rathier had come to her residence and, during his visit, swore at her, calling her “f&ck*ng ridiculous.”

“I asked if he had assaulted her in any way and she said Mike hit her with his truck when he was ‘peeling out’ of her driveway,” Officer Favreau said. “I asked what started the argument and [Rathier’s ex-wife] said they were in the house when Mike started making comments to her that she did not like and that started an argument. [Rathier’s ex-wife] and Mike went outside and continued arguing when Mike got in his truck and began to leave.”

Officer Favreau asked Rathier’s ex-wife if she was in the road or tried to prevent him from leaving in any way. She responded that she was off to the side and was not obstructing his departure.

“I observed footprints matching hers on the road in the snow and tire marks on the pavement coming close to the footprints,” Officer Favreau said. “[Rathier’s ex-wife] showed me her sweatshirt which was covered in what appeared to be road salt from a vehicle coming in contact with her.”

Officer Favreau informed Rathier’s ex-wife of her right to obtain an Abuse Prevention Order [209A] and provided her with the 209A form. She signed it and stated that she intended to seek a restraining order on Monday.

“I asked [Rathier’s ex-wife] if the kids heard or saw the fight and she said they heard the minor argument in the house but did not see or hear the argument or vehicle incident outside,” Officer Favreau said. “I returned to the station and called Mike, who had already called the station requesting to speak to an officer. I asked him what happened and he said [his ex-wife] blocked him from leaving the house after he told her to ‘shut the f*ck up, that she was being f*ck*ng ridiculous.’ Mike said they both went outside and he attempted to leave in his truck but [his ex-wife] stopped him and ‘body slammed’ him into his truck. I later made note that I did not notice any salt marks on his clothing consistent with what he described. I thought this was odd since [his ex-wife’s] shirt was coated in salt from the truck. Mike said he was returning to his house at 48 Knowlton Street in Gardner. I asked him if he was interested in coming to the station to speak with us regarding the incident and he refused.”

Since Rathier was already in Gardner, Officer Favreau called Gardner dispatch to request a Gardner police officer take Rathier into custody based on probable cause for a charge of Assault and Battery with a Dangerous Weapon.

“Gardner police took Mike into custody and held him while I went to pick him up,” Officer Favreau said. “I took custody of Mike and transported him back to Winchendon Police Headquarters for booking. Mike was booked and given two phone calls and was read his Miranda rights, which he signed. Mike was afforded all applicable rights and placed in Cell #3. Bail Commissioner [David] Weiss was contacted and bail was set at $500 dollars.”

“As Michael Rathier was operating his vehicle which hit [his ex-wife] subsequently causing the intentional, unconsenting touching of another by means of a dangerous weapon, he was charged with Assault & Battery with a Dangerous Weapon,” Officer Favreau said.

Rathier was arraigned in Winchendon District Court on Jan. 27, 2025. Following his arraignment he was released on bail under the condition that he stay away from and not contact the victim.

Rathier attended a pretrial hearing on Feb. 5, 2025, which was continued to Feb. 14, 2025.

Disclaimer: If you are wondering why the incident in this story was from earlier this month, 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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