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Police close in on hit-and-run suspect
Law enforcement officials have moved a step closer to apprehending a suspect involved in a tragic New Year’s Day hit-and-run accident that claimed the life of 17-year-old Wareham resident Andrew Dexter.
Bourne police have impounded a damaged blue Ford Explorer they believe was involved in the hit-and-run accident. Bourne Police Chief Earl Baldwin told the media that a warrant was obtained for the vehicle after a tip was received. The vehicle reportedly showed heavy damage, including a large dent to the passenger side of the vehicle. The State Police forensic team in now investigating.
Andrea Mastandrea, a 28-year-old resident of Plymouth, is the registered owner. Police described her as "a person of interest," although no charges had been filed as of Wednesday. She reportedly was working at the Mezza Luna Restaurant in Buzzards Bay on New Year’s Eve, not far from the site of the accident.
Dexter was found dead early New Years Day alongside the Head of the Bay Road in Bourne. His body was discovered behind a guard rail at 8:10 a.m. by James Thomas of Plymouth. Thomas told police at first he wasn’t certain if he had seen a body or a mannequin.
Bourne police believe Dexter was struck sometime between 2:40 and 3:15 a.m. His death came just two days before his sister’s 14th birthday.
A Facebook page has been created in Dexter’s memory. More than 1,000 people have linked to the site.
Following the accident Fox 25 News quoted Sgt. Dennis Woodside of the Bourne Police Department as saying "The victim was thrown to the other side of the guard rail. Some parts from vehicle were on-scene. We are following leads. It seems to be a 2002-2004 Ford product."
Police believe the vehicle was travelling in the same direction as Dexter, who was walking home after a New Year’s Eve party. Dexter was crushed between the guardrail and the SUV, according to police.
On Monday Bourne police interviewed "a person of interest" who was accompanied by her attorney – Augustus Wagner Jr. of Hyannis. Bourne police have not identified the person who was interviewed.
Dexter, a big Celtics fan and an avowed surfer, attended Upper Cape Cod Regional Technical School in Bourne before transferring to high school in Plymouth. He dropped out of school during his senior year to work for his father, who owns a home medical supply company. Dexter had spent time living in the both Wareham and Plymouth. He’s parents are divorced and reside in each community.
Dexter will be buried in the South Monument Beach Cemetery on County Road. His funeral is scheduled for Friday the Chapman, Cole & Gleason Funeral Home on Cranberry Highway. Only immediate family members are asked to attend.
"It would be a lot easier if I knew the person had even made an attempt to try to save my son," Andrew Dexter Sr. told Fox 25 News. "We all know accidents happen, but it’s not an accident that you drove by and don’t report it. This is wrong, and I really hope they get the person that killed my son."
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Robert Slager |
Cheers and Jeers
Move Wareham Forward - The good folks of Wareham have a new web page at www.movewarehamforward.com and a new page on Facebook. The Observer will continue to support Move Wareham Forward’s non-political efforts to raise the level of civility in Wareham. We encourage you to do the same.
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Letters to the Editor
TO THE EDITOR:
Mr. DeFelice’s Standard Times letter of Dec. 30, 2009 included a laundry list of false, inaccurate and incomplete statements. Given the length and breadth of his claims it is not possible to address each one of his statements in this letter.
It is much easier to let loose with a litany of accusations and false statements without providing any basis in fact than it is to provide proof of one’s statements. I will address only one ongoing matter that relates to two significant sources of controversy in the town.
First, DeFelice stated “Following is a list of actions initiated by this board and the outcome:”
According to DeFelice the two-year lawsuit with the library trustees resulted in selectmen paying $40,000 of trustees’ legal fees, along with “intangible relations with the board of trustees.”
The real facts of the matter are as follows:
The former board of library trustees initiated the lawsuit when members claimed their civil rights were violated after selectmen asked them to reapply for their positions so the town could be in compliance with state law and the town charter. The trustees, who also served as board members for The Wareham Free Library Inc. (a private non-profit corporation), transferred hundreds of thousands of dollars to the private corporation’s affiliates - the Friends of the Wareham Free Library and The Wareham Library Foundation. The Wareham Board of Selectmen filed a counter suit claiming that the private corporations had transferred funds intended to be used for the public Wareham Free Library.
It was discovered that the former trustees formed a new private corporation- the Wareham Library Foundation - and transferred nearly $400,000 of funds that had been raised for the benefit of the public library to a private corporation. This private corporation’s mission was not solely related to supporting the public library and would allow them to use the charitable funds for other purposes.
The members of the Wareham Free Library, Inc., while claiming to be a private corporation and thus not subject to answering to the taxpayers for their actions, proceeded to file a third-party lawsuit against the Town’s insurance carrier after the insurance carrier refused to pay legal fees on behalf of the private corporation. You see, it became convenient for the board members of this private corporation to now claim to be a public board in order to for the town’s insurance to pick up their legal fees.
One only needs to read the settlement agreement between the Town of Wareham and the various Library entities to determine that the counter suit by the Board of Selectmen was indeed in the best interests of the town and a very appropriate and prudent use of taxpayer dollars ,as is demonstrated below in a summary of what the town received as part of the Settlement.
As part of the settlement:
1) The Wareham Free Library, Inc. must dissolve and the Town of Wareham will appoint new trustees. These new trustees will be fully accountable to the town.
2) The federal judge that acted as the mediator of the settlement required that the Wareham Library Foundation amend its by-laws to reflect that all funds currently held by them, nearly $400.000 be “earmarked” for the public library of Wareham unless another library is accepted by the town as an official branch of the Wareham Free Library.
Based on the conditions that the courts imposed upon the trustees and the Wareham Library Foundation, one must ask the questions:
a) If all the various library entities had acted under the letter of the law, why would a federal judge recommend that a private corporation - Wareham Free Library, Inc. - be dissolved entirely?
b) Why would a federal judge recommend a private corporation to amend its by-laws to require it to “earmark” all of its assets - nearly $400,000 - for the use of the one existing library, unless another library is approved by the town in the future?
A copy of the Settlement Agreement and other documents related to the litigation can be found at: www.movewarehamforward.com or at: http://dockets.justia.com/docket/court-madce/case_no-1:2007cv11807/case_id-111766/
Finally, to address one other statement by Frank DeFelice: “Do the Wareham selectmen care about costing the town unnecessary legal expenses? When will the Board of Selectmen get it right, and when will the lawyer bills stop?”
Do the Library groups care about costing the town unnecessary legal fees?
The Selectmen have got it right!
The legal bills will stop when frivolous lawsuits like the one bought on by the library groups stop.
Michael Schneider
Wareham
TO THE EDITOR:
When Cup of the Bay shut down its flagship eatery in Onset last fall, the commercial vacancy rate on the village’s main thoroughfare reached a staggering 30 per cent.
The owner of the nearby Laundromat has publicly gone on record stating that his business cannot survive another winter without relief from the town’s exorbitant sewer fees.
And if the new proprietors of the corner grocery can’t come up with a surefire recipe for maintaining a loyal customer base, that longtime establishment could soon go the way of the dinosaur.
Unlike Wareham Village, where a trip to Shaw’s or the dentist often requires a drive down Main Street, Onset’s central artery is off the beaten path. Unless one lives in the immediate area, there’s little incentive to pass through, except for the beach and various festivals in the summer months.
The Community and Economic Development Authority and all other interested parties need to sit down and formulate a strategy for recruiting attractive businesses that bolster Onset’s appeal as a desirable, year-round destination. Landlords with vacant commercial space should supplement CEDA’s efforts with generous rental terms to lure prospective tenants.
Moody Street in Waltham is a noteworthy example of a former no-man’s-land transformed into a vibrant commodity of go-to restaurants. And the east end of Provincetown’s commercial district boasts an eclectic mix of contemporary art galleries, which draws collectors from throughout the Cape and beyond.
The sole obstacle standing in the way of a viable restaurant presence in Onset remains the short supply of available liquor licenses.
But we now have an untapped resource in the salesmanship of our recently hired CEDA director, Chris Reilly. If anyone can convince the state’s licensing authority of the town’s noble intent, Mr. Reilly can.
Christopher Gay
Onset
TO THE EDITOR:
I have a different observation to yours on the past snow storm. The morning after I felt I should call the highway department and congratulate them on their “new” policy of just making the side streets passable enough for anyone with any intelligence at all to get to any main thoroughfare in town while saving the town thousands on their snow removal budget. I would guess 90 percent of vehicles on the road today are either front wheel drive, all wheel drive or four wheel drive and with intelligent speed fully capable of navigating all our side streets after the initial plowing.
We have become “spoiled silly” by town highway departments worried by political town governments and local newspaper editors who will scream bloody murder unless they see bare pavement after every snow storm.
Unlike some, I don’t think there is anything wrong with having to drive at 25 MPH in unusual circumstances and as was evidenced after the past storm when we had no reported accidents (I believe you quoted one in 1991) people paid a little more attention when out. Probably left their cell-phones in their pockets. I noticed very few parking places in the Wareham Crossing Mall. Nobody had any problem getting out.
For the amount of money being saved I believe the highway department should be complimented rather than jumped on by political hacks.
This town is and has been in financial trouble and as long as the policy is to just keep the roads open to access to main thoroughfares at great savings I think congratulations rather that jeers are in order!
Ed Schweitzer
Wareham
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