HOLYOKE — While responding to a report of a pick-up truck stopped in the right travel lane of I-91 South on the early morning hours of Sept. 21, state troopers discovered a driver asleep with his foot on the brake and his car in drive.
It took one minute of knocking on the window of the locked Chevrolet Silverado with a flashlight to finally wake the driver, who was later identified as an off-duty Holyoke police officer, according to State Police.
Michael Robert Everett, 40, of Springfield, was arraigned in Holyoke District Court on Sept. 23 on one charge of drunken driving, for which he was arrested. His case was transferred to Palmer District Court on Thursday. Everett was released on personal recognizance and was driven home by his family on the morning of his arrest. He is due back in court for a pretrial hearing in Palmer on Dec. 23.
State police first received a report of a car stopped in one of the highway’s travel lanes just before Exit 15 at 3:57 a.m., where two troopers discovered the truck was stopped partially in the lane, with the driver asleep and his foot on the brake, according to a statement prepared by State Trooper Matthew Trombley of the Northampton barracks.
Everett finally woke up in a “disoriented state,” at which point State Trooper Benjamin Siok gave him “multiple instructions” to place the truck in park, which he eventually did, Trombley wrote.
“Trooper Siok advised that he detected a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage coming from Everett,” Trombley wrote. “Trooper Siok also advised me that he observed Everett to have bloodshot and glassy eyes as well as slurred speech.”
“I asked Everett why was sleeping in the middle of the highway, and he stated that he was tired,” Trombley wrote.
After Everett refused field sobriety tests, Trombley told him he was under arrest and began to search his truck. In the center console, Trombley found a partially full can of Bud Light, according to his report. While being booked at the Massachusetts State Police Northampton barracks, Trombley wrote in his report that Everett refused to take a breath test.
Mike Bloomberg, Mayor Alex Morse’s chief of staff, said Friday that Everett has since been placed on paid administrative desk duty by the Holyoke Police Department. Everett is not allowed to drive a cruiser or go on patrol, Bloomberg said. The incident is under investigation by the State Police, he said.
Michael Connors can be reached at mconnors@gazettenet.com.