Please Support Local Advertisers
HAMILTON — A Brockton man has lost his license for 45 days after he appeared in Ipswich District Court to answer a charge of operating under the influence (OUI) of drugs.
Michael S. Sawler, 43, of 60 Sharon Street in Brockton saw his case before Judge Jean Curran continued without finding for one year, according to court records.
That means Sawler admits the prosecution has enough evidence for a reasonable jury to find him guilty of the charged offense, according to one law firm, Urbelis Law LLC.
Instead of fighting the case, the defendant is placed on probation for one year. If probation is completed with no further infractions, the defendant emerges without a guilty conviction on their record, Urbelis said.
In the meantime, Sawler was ordered to pay $600 in fees and assessments, along with ongoing court charges, and enrolled in a driver education program, records said.
In his complaint, Hamilton officer Sean Vasque said dispatcher Steve Jones heard Ipswich radio traffic about an erratic operator heading south on Route 1A.
Hamilton police were told to watch out for a gray Jeep Grand Cherokee. Vasque said he and Officer Michael Girolimon (in a separate cruiser) passed the Jeep on Bay Road near the intersection with Cutler Road.
They got behind the Jeep and turned on their blue lights, the report said.
“As the operator was attempting to pull over, the vehicle struck the curb several times,” Vasque wrote in his report.
He described the driver as “visibly shaking,” “lethargic,” and “struggling to respond to my questions.”
“These body tremors would continue throughout the entirety of the traffic stop,” Vasque said in his complaint.
He said Sawler agreed to a field sobriety test and was arrested after police said he was impaired.
Police said Sawler took a portable breath test, which registered no alcohol. Ipswich Officer David Moore was asked to help due to his drug recognition expertise.
Vasque said Hamilton police took Sawler back to the station while Moore waited for Paul’s Auto to take the Jeep.
He also inventoried the car and reportedly found a bottle with 54 pills of Gabapentin and two of Lorazepem, Vasque said.
Gabapentin is used to “prevent and control partial seizures and relieve postherpetic neuralgia after shingles and moderate-to-severe restless legs syndrome,” according to the Cleveland Clinic.
Lorazepam is “sometimes used to treat nausea and vomiting from cancer treatment and to control agitation caused by alcohol withdrawal,” drugs.com said.
“When Michael was asked if it was possible he took too much of these drugs, he said it was possible,” Vasque said in his complaint.
Sawler was also charged with driving with a suspended license, but that charge was dropped at prosecutors’ request, according to the disposition.
