SHREWSBURY — On Friday, April 19, 2025, Trooper Jacob Mick of the Massachusetts State Police was working the midnight shift out of the State Police barracks in Holden.
(The account and quotations in this article were sourced from the printed Statement of Facts of Trooper Mick and do not reflect any political perspective or personal opinion of News Link Live, which is strictly a business entity.)
At approximately 1:50 a.m., Trooper Mick said he was advised by dispatch that there was a motor vehicle with no lights on and the hood up on the off ramp of I-290 exit 26B in Shrewsbury.
“This is a public right of way, with posted no access to pedestrians,” Trooper Mick said.
When Trooper Mick arrived on scene, he observed a black 2019 Honda Civic with Massachusetts plates in the travel lane of I-290 exit 26B off ramp. Shanequa Nickerson, 31, the front-seat passenger, exited the vehicle to speak with the officer.
“She advised that the car broke down and she is trying to figure out her location to get assistance,” Trooper Mick said. “I told her that I would get a tow truck started for her, to which she agreed.”
Trooper Mick then walked over to the driver side window to speak with the operator of the vehicle, who was later identified as Desmaray Nickerson.
According to police, Desmaray J. Nickerson, 29, is a resident of Common Street in Lynn.
“When I made eye contact with Desmaray,” Trooper Mick said. “I observed her eyes to be glassy and bloodshot. As I spoke with her, I could hear that her speech was both slowed and slurred. The odor of alcoholic beverage emanated from the vehicle and her breath as soon as I made contact with Desmaray.”
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Trooper Mick asked Desmaray where she was headed, and she stated she was going to Worcester. Trooper Mick then noted that she was traveling eastbound on I-290, which is away from Worcester.
“When I advised Desmaray that she was traveling the wrong way to get to Worcester she appeared confused and continuously stated that she was coming from Littleton and headed to Worcester,” Trooper Mick said. “After multiple attempts to explain to Desmaray that she was traveling the wrong direction, Desmaray and Shanequa Nickerson both became agitated and asked why I was asking about things unrelated to her car. At this time, I asked Desmaray if she had anything to drink tonight, to which she stated she did not.”
Trooper Mick stated that, due to the presence of five individuals in the vehicle and their agitated demeanor, he returned to his cruiser and requested an additional trooper for assistance before asking Desmaray to exit the vehicle and perform Standardized Field Sobriety Tests (SFST).
“While waiting for Trooper Franco to arrive on scene advised Desmaray of my intentions to conduct SFST’s and asked her to exit the car. For approximately six minutes while waiting for Trooper Franco to arrive, I advised Desmarary that she needed to exit the vehicle or she would be placed under arrest. Desmaray refused every request and order provided to her.”
Once Trooper Franco arrived on scene, Trooper Mick opened the door and again ordered Desmaray to exit the vehicle. Desmaray refused to comply and would not exit, according to Trooper Mick.
“Based on the…facts and circumstances and no SFST to dispel my opinion that she was under the influence, I formulated the opinion that Desmaray was operating a motor vehicle under the influence of an intoxicating liquor,” Trooper Mick said. “At this time, I grabbed Desmaray by the arm and attempted to escort her out of the vehicle. Desmaray pulled away and used physical strength to negate me from escorting her out of the vehicle and place her under arrest. After applying more strength, I was able to successfully pull Desmaray out of the vehicle and place her under arrest.”
Desmaray was handcuffed behind her back, with the handcuffs double locked and checked for tightness. She was then placed in the rear of Trooper Mick’s cruiser for transport to the State Police barracks in Holden.
“While attempting to place Desmaray in the rear of my cruiser Desmaray pushed away and would not get in,” Trooper Mick said. “Desmaray needed to be lifted and escorted into the rear of my cruiser.”
Cranston’s Towing was notified and towed the vehicle without incident after Trooper Mick conducted a vehicle inventory. No alcoholic beverages were found inside the vehicle.
“Upon reentering my cruiser, I detected the odor of alcoholic beverage in the cruiser which was not there prior to placing Desmaray in the cruiser,” Trooper Mick said. “Desmaray’s right to operate in Massachusetts has an expired nonrenew status as of April 9, 2025.”
When Cranston’s Towing arrived on scene to tow the vehicle, Trooper Mick requested the remaining occupants to exit the vehicle.
“At this time, Shanequa reached over to the driver side area and removed the keys from the ignition,” Trooper Mick said. “I advised Desmaray to leave the keys in the vehicle to which she did not comply. In order to not damage vehicles while towing I asked for the vehicle keys to provide to the tow operator so that they can properly tow the vehicle and manipulate it. In addition per policy all motor vehicles are inventoried before they are towed.”
The vehicle’s trunk button was not functioning, and the key was needed to attempt to open the trunk, Officer Mick added.
“The vehicle did not belong to Shanequa and the 12 hour hold related to Melanie’s Law was still in effect when Shanequa refused to give me the keys,” Officer Mick said. Officer Mick stated that he again asked Shanequa to hand over the keys, but she refused.
“When I attempted to take the keys out of Shanequa’s hands, she pulled away and would not let go of the keys,” Officer Mick said.
The officer advised Shanequa multiple times that if she did not provide the keys, she would be placed under arrest for interfering with a police officer.
“Shanequa continued to prolong this interaction on a public highway and there were now vehicles stationary on the off ramp that could not get by creating a hazard for the motoring public,” Officer Mick said. “Shanequa continued to refuse to provide me the keys. At this time, I placed Shanequa under arrest. She was handcuffed behind her back, double locked, and checked for tightness.”
Officer Mick then placed Shanequa in the rear of his cruiser so he could transport her back to the State Police barracks in Holden.
Desmaray was charged with:
- OUI Liquor
- Unlicensed Operation
- Resisting Arrest
Shanequa was charged with:
- Interfering with a Police Officer
Desmaray was arraigned in Westborough District Court on April 22, 2025. Following her arraignment, she was released on personal recognizance. Her next court date is a pretrial conference scheduled for June 13, 2025.
The arraignment information and subsequent court dates for the other defendant were not contained in the court documents obtained by News Link Live in its FOIA request of the incident.
Disclaimer: If you are wondering why the incident in this story was from April, 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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