Cops cope with rash of OUIs

Local police said they made an unusually high three drunk-driving arrests in a single night over the weekend, with one car driving on the wrong side of the road for a hundred feet, and another tearing up the lawn of a Bussey Street home.

"That's pretty unusual," Lt. Robert Nedder said of the three OUI arrests. "That's a pretty high rate."

Miguel Torres, 62, of 46 Seabeds Way, Apt. 35, Needham, was arrested early Saturday morning and charged with driving under the influence of liquor and assault and battery, Nedder said.

He said that beginning at 1:38 a.m., Officer Kenneth Ellis followed a gray Nissan Xterra as it drove erratically through Dedham Square. A little farther north, the Xterra went through the intersection of Ames and Bridge streets and onto Pine Street, where it crossed over the double yellow line and traveled on the wrong side of the road for about 100 feet, Nedder said.

Ellis stopped the SUV in front of 157 Pine St., and detected an alcoholic odor on Torres' breath, Nedder said. A 49-year-old Needham woman said that she, Torres, and a 48-year-old Needham woman in the Xterra had been drinking and that no one was sober, Nedder added.

As Ellis went to talk with an arriving backup officer, he heard yelling from the Xterra, and returned there to see the 49-year-old woman crying, Nedder said.

"Torres told her to keep her mouth shut and punched her in the head," Nedder said.

Torres failed field sobriety tests and was arrested, he said.

Torres was arraigned yesterday in Dedham District Court, pleading not guilty. He was released without bail and is due back Oct. 7 for a pretrial hearing.

In the second incident, at about 2 a.m., police went to 20 Bussey St. on a call about a car on a lawn, Nedder said. Officer Paul Cady said saw Christopher Reissfelder standing next to his car, a purple 1995 Chevrolet Caprice sedan, Nedder said.

"He just kept saying, 'I'm going to jail. Can I just finish my cigarette?' " Nedder said.

Reissfelder, 20, of 52 Grayfield St., West Roxbury, was unsteady on his feet, slurring his words, and told a woman on the scene, "I'm f'ed up. I'm going to jail," according to Nedder.

Reissfelder's car was speeding north on Bussey Street when he lost control, went over the sidewalk and onto the lawn, Nedder said. The car knocked over big cement flower pots, hit a front corner of the house, and spun around as it damaged the front steps.

The Chevy also tore up the lawn and damaged bushes in front of the house, Nedder said. He said Reissfelder apparently tried to leave after his crash but his car got hung up on the bushes, Nedder added. He did not have a damage cost estimate.

No one was injured in the accident, Nedder said. Reissfelder was arrested and charged with OUI liquor and driving to endanger. He was due to be arraigned yesterday in Dedham District Court.

Wrapping up the long night, Nedder said, an officer was dispatched to High and Ames streets at about 6 a.m. Saturday after a passing motorist reported he had seen a Jeep parked in the road, and that he had seen a beer bottle thrown onto the road.

Officer Daniel Duchini found a 2007 black Jeep Compass nearby in front of 577 Bridge St. (Rte. 109), where it was stopped with its headlights. The the driver, Kelly St. Martin, 35, and passenger, a 25-year-old Dedham man, appeared to be sleeping, Nedder said.

Duchini shined a spotlight on the SUV, and St. Martin, 35, of Stoughton, lifted her head and then slumping forward again, Nedder said.

Duchini found a Corona beer bottle beneath the driver's door, St. Martin picked up her head again, opened the door halfway, said something, and slumped forward once more, Nedder said.

After about 30 seconds of banging on her window, St. Martin finally opened her door, Nedder said, adding, "Then she turned the vehicle off, handed the keys to the officer, and said she was not driving."

St. Martin had a strong alcohol odor on her breath, had trouble standing, and could not complete field sobriety tests, he said.

She was arrested and charged with OUI liquor, Nedder said.

St. Martin, of 433 Buckley Road, was arraigned yesterday in Dedham District Court, where she pleaded not guilty. She was released without bail and is due back on Oct. 7 for a pretrial hearing.

Daily News staff writer Edward B. Colby can be reached at 781-433-8336 or ecolby@cnc.com.