Man to face judge on new charges for deadly Christmas crash in Somerset
FALL RIVER, Mass. (WLNE) — The man accused of driving drunk in a crash that killed a family on the Veterans Memorial Bridge on Christmas night will be arraigned on new charges.
The Bristol County District Attorney’s Office said 41-year-old Adam Gauthier will appear in Fall River District Court on Tuesday on new charges of manslaughter while operating under the influence and motor vehicle homicide — OUI of liquor.
The new charges came after the death of 68-year-old Donna Arruda on Friday, Dec. 29.
Floriano Arruda, 73, and the couple’s 15-year-old grandson, Jacoby, were also killed in the head-on crash on the Somerset side of the bridge at 11 p.m. on Christmas.
Loved ones said goodbye to the family in a triple funeral last week.
Gauthier was already being held on $100,000 cash bail after his initial arraignment from a hospital bed.
Prosecutors said Gauthier was driving the wrong way on Route 6 while crossing the bridge when he hit the family’s SUV head-on. Prosecutors further allege that Gauthier was drunk.
The crash also injured two people in a third car. They were treated for minor injuries at Charlton Memorial Hospital.
Gauthier is a New York City resident who formerly lived in Somerset.
