Two-Car Crash Ends in DUI Arrest for Driver

Warwick, RI – A Warwick man pulled onto Main Ave. March 4 at about 3 p.m., crashing into  the right hand side of a car traveling in the right lane, causing no injuries but leading to his arrest for driving under the influence of alcohol.

When Officer Robert Hart arrived on the scene, he saw both cars had pulled onto Modena Drive,to avoid traffic, according to the officer’s report. Sgt. Earl Read, the first officer to respond to the crash, informed Hart he suspected the driver of one of the cars, a gray 2013 Mazda 6 sedan, was intoxicated.

Read said the second driver, a 19-year-old woman, said she’d been driving on Main Avenue  when the Mazda came flying out of the street and hit her car.

Hart spoke with the Mazda’s driver, Gregory Rimay, 55, of 201 Burbank Drive, Warwick, who seemed very slow in his movements, according to the officer’s report. Rimay also seemed confused and easily distracted when asked for his registration, and needed to be asked three times for his insurance card. His speech was also slurred, Hart reported.

Hart reported an odor of alcohol coming from Rimay’s breath. He also noted a paper bag of unopened Guinness cans and a bottle of wine, as well as several opened Smirnoff Vodka nips.

During a sobriety test, Rimay showed a lack of smooth pursuit in his vision, broke heel-to-toe cadence during the walk-and-turn test, nearly falling backwards, and was unable to keep his balance during the one-leg-stand, Hart reported.

Hart arrested Rimay, charging him with suspicion of operating under the influence of alcohol, and transported him to Warwick Police Headquarters at 99 Veterans Memorial Drive, where he refused to submit to a breath test. Hart also cited him for refusing to submit to the test.

His car was towed from the scene by Bill’s Towing.