Franklin man arraigned, held on $250K bail after crash that killed 5-year-old girl
A Franklin man admitted to drinking a large amount of vodka and beer prior to a weekend crash that killed a 5-year-old girl and severely injured her mother and brother, a prosecutor said in court on Tuesday, May 27.
James Blanchard's blood alcohol level of .19, taken shortly after the crash on Saturday, May 24, is more than twice the legal limit of .08, prosecutor Christopher Meade said during Blanchard's arraignment Tuesday in Wrentham District Court.
Franklin Police responded to Grove Street at 6:22 p.m. Saturday after receiving reports of a crash. Meade said that when police arrived, they found a pickup truck in the middle of the road and a Honda Accord to the side with heavy damage.
Earlier: Franklin man, 21, faces several charges related to crash that killed young girl
A woman, identified as Minaben Patel, was on the ground and being assisted by people, including a doctor, who came upon the crash. Patel's 5-year-old daughter, whose name was not disclosed in court and is redacted in court documents, was also being assisted.
According to court documents, the young girl suffered critical injuries, including injuries to her leg, midsection, chest, face and head.
Meade said emergency workers immediately called for a medical rescue helicopter for the girl. She was declared dead at UMass-Memorial Medical Center in Worcester.
'They noted on the way to transport by LifeFlight that her condition got worse,' Meade said.
The girl's mother and 14-year-old brother, who also was not identified, were also transported to UMass-Memorial Medical Center and are in critical condition. The father, identified as Atulkumar Patel, was 'panic stricken' at the scene, according to court documents. He was later taken to UMass-Memorial where he was treated and released.
Patel told police that he was driving his family to Blackstone to celebrate his son's birthday, which was Saturday, according to the prosecutor.
'He said he saw the truck in his lane, and he tried to avoid the truck by turning left in his lane, but the crash still occurred,' Meade said.
When officers spoke to Blanchard, they said he had blood on his nose and bloodshot eyes, according to Meade. While Blanchard told the officer interviewing him that he was 'OK,' Meade said the officer noticed Blanchard tried to not speak directly to the officer's face. But the police officer could smell alcohol coming from Blanchard's breath, the prosecutor said, and he noticed Blanchard was slurring his words.
The officer also saw an empty 1.75-liter bottle of vodka in the truck, a second mostly empty bottle and some beer cans in the cab.
Blanchard initially denied drinking, Meade said, saying he was just driving home from work in Plainfield and 'all of a sudden there was a crash.'
He agreed to take a portable breath test and as he was getting ready to take the test, he told the officer he had one beer. But he blew a .19 on the breath test, according to Meade.
Blanchard was taken to Milford Regional Medical Center to be treated and to have blood drawn. He was later interviewed by police when he admitted to drinking a large amount of alcohol, Meade said.
Police charged Blanchard with motor vehicle homicide while OUI; two counts of operating a vehicle under the influence of liquor causing serious bodily injury; driving to endanger; and possession of an open container of liquor.
Meade asked Judge Thomas Finigan to hold Blanchard on $250,000 bail. If Blanchard posted bail, Meade asked Finigan to order Blanchard to drink no alcohol and to wear a device that checks alcohol usage.
Blanchard's lawyer, Timothy Flaherty, called the bail request 'excessive," noting his client had no criminal record. Flaherty asked Finigan to set bail at $10,000 and to send him to an alcohol treatment facility.
Finigan determined that Meade's request was appropriate and set the bail at $250,000, agreeing also with the requested conditions should Blanchard post bail. the judge noted the seriousness of the charges, the possibility of additional charges and the likelihood the case will be indicted.
'Any loss of life is tragic, but it's even more so when it's a young child,' Finigan said.
Blanchard is due back in court on June 24 for a pretrial conference.
Norman Miller can be reached at 508-626-3823 or nmiller@wickedlocal.com. For up-to-date public safety news, follow him on X @Norman_MillerMW or on Facebook at facebook.com/NormanMillerCrime.
This article originally appeared on The Milford Daily News: Franklin man arraigned, held on $250,000 bail after fatal crash
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