Concord Man Arrested Twice in Three Days

A local man was arrested on a slew of charges last month involving two incidents on the Heights, according to arrest reports and court affidavits.

James J. Caruso, 55, of Alton Woods in Concord, was arrested at 10:55 a.m. on Oct. 19, 2015, on two counts of driving while intoxicated, DWI-second offense, unregistered vehicle, and uninspected vehicle. At 9:37 p.m. on Oct. 22, he was arrested again on two counts of default or breach of bail conditions.

Editor’s note: This post was derived from information supplied by the Concord Police Department. It does not indicate a conviction. Click this link to find out how to get a name removed from a New Hampshire Patch police report.

According to a court affidavit, an officer on Loudon Road noticed a Ford Ranger pickup truck take a sharp right turn onto Hazen Drive.

The officer ran the plate and found that it has expired vehicle registration from May. The officer caught up with the vehicle as it pulled into the Supreme Court parking lot and stopped. The driver reportedly got out of the vehicle and walked toward the police cruiser. The officer requested that the driver get back in the vehicle, which he did.

“Upon making contact with Caruso, he told me that he was trying to go to the Department of Motor Vehicle to get his license back,” the officer reported. “Caruso told me that he was trying to drive from Alton Woods to the DMV on Hazen Drive. However, he was lost. Caruso told me that he had lived in Alton Woods for six years (but) he was confused as to where he was going. Caruso was also unable to tell me how the DMV ended up with his license. After further review, I discovered he had previously been arrested for operating after suspension.”

While speaking with Caruso, the officer alleged that he was slurring his words and his eyes were bloodshot. When asked if he had been drinking, he reportedly stated that he hadn’t had a drink since 1 a.m.

“I asked Caruso if he should be driving and he told me that he did not really know,” the officer alleged.

Caruso agreed to field sobriety tests and allegedly had difficulty standing up and needed to use the truck to hold himself up. During a request to stand on one leg, he allegedly replied, “I could not do that even if I was sober,” according to a court affidavit.

Caruso was then arrested.

According to the report, during the ride to police headquarters, he allegedly asked multiple times why he was being arrested. When told it was for DWI, Caruso reportedly stated that he was previously arrested for drinking and diving. A check yielded a conviction in Concord District Court in January 2009. His truck had not been inspected since May 2014, according to police.

Caruso refused bail and was held.

A few days later, officers were called to Alton Woods Drive to assist deputies with Merrimack County Pre-trial Services who state that Caruson had allegedly violated his bail.

After being arraigned on Oct. 20, 2015, he was released on $20,000 personal recognizance bail. Two conditions of the bail were to refrain from drinking and to not be in possession of firearms. At around 8:20 p.m., the deputies checked on Caruson and when he answered the door, he allegedly smelled like alcohol. A breath test, according to the court affidavit, yielded a 0.086 reading.

One of the deputies asked if he had any firearms in the home. Caruso allegedly stated that he was still in possession of two pistols, a rifle, a shotgun, and ammunition. He was arrested and held on $4,000 cash bail and arraigned on Oct. 23.