SALEM — Police arrested a man on his fourth drunken driving charge Sunday after he nearly drove head-on into a police cruiser while traveling the wrong way on a one-way street, police said.
Natalio Rodrigues, 52, reportedly honked his Honda Civic's horn at the police car as he kept driving the wrong way down Derby Street. He was arrested and charged with drunken driving (fourth offense), driving negligently to endanger and driving down a one-way posted street after police stopped him at 12:30 a.m.
Officers Deni Gaito and Gilbert Priddy said they were in a marked police cruiser, wearing full uniforms, when they saw Rodrigues turn off Fort Avenue onto Derby Street going the wrong way. The officers "observed the vehicle coming straight at them, and made no effort to stop or pull to the side. This officer (Gaito) had to swerve to the right of the road to avoid a head-on collision."
Rodrigues drove about 200 yards more before he stopped. Officers said he smelled of alcohol and failed field sobriety tests, but then refused a blood test. Police, with Registry of Motor Vehicles notification, "seized and destroyed" his driver's license.
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