Posted on 11/30/2006 12:17:48 PM PST by Teflonic
ROCKINGHAM -- Army Pfc. David Barrett's plane was two hours late and so the last thing he wanted to do on his way through Vermont was stop. But the young soldier didn't know that he was about to save a few lives.
Barrett, 20, flew into Bradley International Airport, in Windsor Locks, Conn., just after 6 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 18.
His sister Sarah Barrett, 18, of Ludlow, was there to greet him. Her friend Jennifer Aldrich, 18, and Christopher Sanborn, 18, both of Ludlow, came along for the ride, and a few hours later they were just outside of Putney, traveling north on Interstate 91, on their way home for the Thanksgiving holiday.
Sanborn says he remembers looking over in the southbound lane and noticing one set of headlights that didn't seem to match the others.
"I saw the red lights on the wrong side of the road," he said Tuesday, remembering that night.
Charles Molloy, 50, of Guilford, Conn., was in the other car, according a Vermont State Police report, he was drunk, and he was traveling on the wrong side of the highway.
Sarah Barrett said Molloy was going fast, probably approaching 80 miles per hour, and she said he swerved, barely avoiding a head on collision. She called the State Police on her cell phone to report the driver. The dispatcher gave her directions.
"Try to stop him," the dispatcher said. "Try to take his keys away. Be careful."
Aldrich was driving and she kept pace, flashing her lights, honking the horn, and doing what she could to get his attention and avoid a crash.
Molloy finally saw through the alcohol haze, state police said, and pulled into the median.
David Barrett and Sanborn got out. They didn't know if Molloy had a weapon, Barrett said, or if he was going to be violent. But Barrett said he was pretty sure that if he got back on the highway there was good chance someone was going to end up in the hospital.
Molloy's car started rolling and Barrett reached in and grabbed the keys. He and Sanborn stood in the way until two state troopers pulled up and arrested Molloy for driving under the influence and for gross negligent operation.
Molloy is scheduled to appear in Windham County Court on Dec. 5.
Sarah and David Barrett, Aldrich and Sanborn visited the State Police barracks in Rockingham Tuesday to receive a special Commander Citation for stopping a alleged drunk driver that night.
Troop commander Capt. Kevin Anderson said it is likely that the four saved a life or two that night.
"Disregarding your personal safety, you took action to protect the lives of others," Anderson said, reading from the citation. "There is no doubt your selfless action prevented a tragedy."
Anderson said he wasn't sure he would recommend the group of four friends react the same way if confronted with the same situation. It is dangerous to stop in the middle of an interstate with cars flying by at 70 miles per hour on both sides.
And you can never be sure how an intoxicated individual is going to act.
"The truth is we need the public to help," Anderson said. "We're happy you guys stepped up to the plate that day."
Trooper Earl Dessert, who was one of the first to report to the scene that night, said he had seen more than his share of bloodshed on highways. "Thank you for doing what you did," he told the group. "You probably saved someone's life."
David Barrett said he was going to fly home to North Carolina this weekend, down Interstate 91, back to Bradley.
Finally, one of these cases that doesn't end with 5 people dead.
No kidding. Drunk, driving way too fast, driving the wrong way - amazing this story had a happy ending...
We had one out here a couple weeks ago that killed five, with one survivor (the drunk died too, but I don't add them to the total) and another which killed the drunks (2 in vehicle) when they ploughed into a semi.
'"The truth is we need the public to help," Anderson said. "We're happy you guys stepped up to the plate that day."'
Wow. Usually the cops tell everyone not to be a hero so they can't steal their limelight. It's Ok to chase down a wrong way driver but if someone had used a gun to stop an armed robber, what would these cops have been saying?
I've been told by State Police that NC also leads the nation in drunks who lay naked on hot summer nights on warm highways and railroad tracks.
The key? Flash your high beams on & off repeatedly.
My third encounter was in my personal vehicle with family aboard, at night. Used same technique.
I'm glad your encounters turned out okay, and I'm glad you were able to get the wrong-way drivers off the road -- you probably saved some lives.
Army Pfc. David Barrett's
ARMY STRONG, yes? Yes.
Chances are that he'll be given a slap on the wrist and will be back drunk driving on the street in time for Christmas.
Works for snakes.
Then he saw them: a naked man slumped over, caught in the jaws of a huge alligator amid thick cattails in bloodied water. He said the man, who had been using drugs and lost a lot of blood, seemed oddly calm. ... Judd said Apgar told deputies he had been smoking crack cocaine at the adjacent park, but it was unclear why he was naked or how he was attacked by the alligator.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1746482/posts
All three were head-on encounters. The third one I got to move back into his lanes of travel before I was to run my vehicle (backed off to 20 mph) into the right hand ditch...he kept going.
Have you a 68 Skylark?
Your post sounds as though the drunk passenger was equally to blame.
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