Former Sergeant James B. Rode, 50, was found guilty of vehicular homicide in a Greenfield District Court on Monday.
The crash killed James Arcellana, 29, of Hinsdale, N.H. He died 3 days after the crash of blunt force trauma to the head. The passenger in Arcellana’s vehicle survived with minimal injuries.
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Rode was responding to a call for an erratic driver on Routes 5 and 10 near the town line with Deerfield. He was going 83 mph in a 30 mph zone on High Street. Having spotted the oncoming car off Sanderson Street, Rode was able to slow to 63 mph before colliding with Arcellana’s 2010 Subaru Impreza.
Neither driver was wearing a seatbelt.
Rode was sentenced to 2 years in jail, but will serve just nine months, with 15 months to be suspended while he is placed on probation and will be required to follow all court ordered requirements or return to jail.