Northfield man charged after traffic flagger hit
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By Thatcher Moats Times Argus Staff - Published: November 14, 2009
NORTHFIELD – A former Northfield village trustee and frequent political candidate was arrested on Friday on two criminal charges after he allegedly hit a traffic flagger with his pickup truck in Northfield.
Lawrence "Larry" Drown, 65, was cited to appear in Vermont District Court in Barre in January to face charges of aggravated assault and negligent operation of a motor vehicle after the Northfield Police Department responded to a report of an accident at the intersection of Wall and Water streets, which is near downtown, police said.
After responding to the scene, which a town employee said was the site of a water project, police arrested Drown.
The flagger allegedly hit by Drown's truck is an employee of the excavating company J.P. Sicard, which is doing the project, said Jason Sicard, a manager at the business. The victim was transported to Central Vermont Medical Center in Berlin, police said.
Northfield Police Chief Jeffrey Shaw and Sicard refused to release the name of the flagger, but Shaw said it was his understanding the injuries were not life-threatening.
Northfield police issued a news release that contained few details of the incident and Shaw did not want to provide much information beyond what was in the release.
The investigation into the accident is continuing with assistance from the Vermont State Police accident reconstruction team, the news release said.
Drown, a Northfield resident, is a vocal community member who has run for a variety of local and national political offices over the years, including U.S. senator, Vermont secretary of state, Vermont attorney general and state senator.
In March, he lost a race for a Northfield lister position and was defeated in a write-in campaign for Northfield grand juror.
Drown has been charged in criminal court twice before — including in a case that involved what was said to be a road rage incident — but a jury acquitted him in both cases, according to records
Drown was charged with simple assault and disorderly conduct after he and another driver had a dispute in 2006, and he was found innocent after acting as his own attorney at his trial, court papers show.
In 1994, a jury acquitted him of simple assault, court records state.
Calls to Drown's residence on Friday either were not returned or elicited a busy signal.
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