Traffic stop allowed in trial

CANTON — St. Lawrence County Judge Jerome J. Richards ruled from the bench at a hearing Friday to allow into trial a traffic stop March 28 that led to a driving while intoxicated charge against George E. Olmstead Jr.

The felony DWI trial of Mr. Olmstead, 51, of 5451 County Route 14, Chase Mills, begins Tuesday.

Mr. Olmstead, who has a history of drunken driving, was accused a few weeks before the March 28 arrest of hitting 12-year-old Matthew N. Caldwell with a pickup truck on Chase Mills Road in the town of Madrid. The youngster, who was driving a snowmobile when he was hit, died of his injuries.

In the fatal accident, Mr. Olmstead was charged with felony leaving the scene of an accident without reporting and two counts of tampering with physical evidence.

Mr. Olmstead's public defender, Brian D. Pilatzke, argued that evidence in the DWI case should be thrown out because state police did not have reasonable suspicion to stop Mr. Olmstead's vehicle, that Mr. Olmstead had told troopers he wanted to speak to his attorney before he took a breathalyzer test and that police should have given him Miranda warnings faster than they did.

According to the testimony of two troopers, Mr. Olmstead was stopped on County Route 14 in the town of Louisville because his passenger, Timothy Currier, Hannawa Falls, wasn't wearing a seat belt.

Mr. Currier testified that he told the arresting officer he was mistaken.

"I told him I had my seat belt on," Mr. Currier said. "He told me I was a liar."

Mr. Olmstead also took the stand, testifying that he told troopers that he was waiting to hear from his attorney, but that they asked him at least three times to take the test before he agreed.

Judge Richards found the stop justified and allowed the breath test.

"The court questions the credibility of Mr. Currier," Judge Richards said. "When asked a number of questions, he simply responded, 'I don't recall.'"

The judge determined the 15-minute period when troopers put Mr. Olmstead through field sobriety tests before giving him his Miranda rights wasn't unduly long.

Mr. Olmstead was waiting at the Massena barracks for his attorney to call him back when he agreed to take the breath test. His blood alcohol content was 0.08 percent, the legal threshold for intoxication.

"DWI warnings are not like Miranda warnings," Judge Richards said. "It's up to the defendant to say 'I want to continue to talk to my lawyer.' The defendant agreed to take the test."