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By Michael Donoghue
Vermont News First
HIGHGATE — A Windsor County man, who authorities say killed his mother while driving under the influence of drugs in 2017, was arrested again on Saturday on a felony charge of DUI — drugs, third offense, after crashing into a Highgate motel.
Vermont State Police said they lodged Joseph Mailhoit, 49, of Rochester at the Northwest State Correctional Facility in St. Albans for lack of $5,000 bail. He is facing charges of DUI third offense and driving while his license was under suspension, police said.
The latest DUI arrest came in Franklin County when Vermont State Police said they were called about 11:49 a.m. Saturday to the Europa Motel on U.S. 7 in Highgate near the Swanton line for a report of a vehicle that hit the business.
State Trooper Adam Lippa reported that the investigation revealed the driver, later identified as Mailhoit, appeared to be under the influence of drugs and his license was suspended.
Mailhoit was jailed and told he would be arraigned in Vermont Superior Court in St. Albans on Monday afternoon, police said.
The Highgate Volunteer Fire Department responded to assess damage to the building and determined there was not significant structural issues, Lippa said.
The Rutland Herald reported in July 2019 that Mailhoit was sentenced to serve 1-to-5 years in prison after pleading guilty in Vermont Superior Court in Rutland to operating under the influence with death resulting for his mother during a single-vehicle crash in Killington in October 2017.
He crashed his northbound 2007 Toyota Tacoma pickup off Vermont 100 and struck six trees, including five on the passenger side, Killington Police said. They said his mother, Delta Coltey Mailhoit, later died from head and chest injuries at the Rutland Regional Medical Center shortly after the 12:25 p.m. crash.
Mailhoit admitted that he had taken a variety of legal and illegal drugs, including 5 milligrams of oxycodone, a “matchhead” of heroin, along with unspecified amounts of marijuana, Robitussin, Aleve and penicillin before the crash near the Green Mountain National Golf Course, news accounts show.
The Vermont State Police Crash Reconstruction team said it determined Mailhoit’s vehicle went off the road and continued 152 feet before it stopped while never braking.
Mailhoit claimed he had not slept for three days and had mononucleosis and strep throat, police said. Mailhoit was taken to the Rutland Police Station where Cpl. Adam Lucia, a certified drug recognition expert, examined him and later had a blood sample taken at the hospital.
Mailhoit said that he had sustained a knee injury and was prescribed opiates. He said he later turned to illegal painkillers, the Herald reported.
Sentencing Judge Thomas Zonay saluted Mailhoit at the time for getting clean, especially after losing his father, his brother and having his house destroyed by fire in the two years between the crash and the sentencing, the newspaper reported.
Mailhoit sustained another DUI arrest on March 21, 2024 when Vermont State Police said they responded to another motor vehicle crash on Vermont 100 in Killington. He was driving a 2018 GMC truck during the 1:30 a.m. crash with minor damage, police said. The outcome of that case was unknown Saturday.
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Categories: Public Safety
The word ” Incorrigible ” comes to mind. “Incorrigible (adjective) describes a person or their habits that are impossible to change, reform, or improve.” Simply put, this individual obviously can not be trusted to be a safe, and positive influence on polite society. Consequences for this behavior need to be sever enough to impact his ability to interact with possible victims of his behavior. It’s obvious that his last encounter did not provide the needed stimulus to alter his behavior. Crank up the heat !
This is where very severe/long prison sentences for multiple DUIs are entirely appropriate. It is to protect society from, as Patrick accurately alluded to, incorrigible behavior of such a wanton, reckless, and dangerous type.
To me, how is it really different than walking into a public area drunk and wantonly shooting rounds from a firearm? Why is this any different?
I don’t think that DUI offenders ought to ever be “saluted” by judges. Their irresponsible reckless selfishness poses great danger to society. How many of these multiple DUIs do we continue to see because the ostensibly rehabilitative component of the crime far outweighs the retributive component, and judges are so quick to salute and commend offenders when the proof of a lifetime of never drinking/driving again is the only appropriate benchmark?
In a case like this, retributive punitive deterrents seem to be the only remaining options for administering justice when “rehabilitation” has failed due to incorrigibility.
We have the technology to eliminate 99.9% of drunk driving incidents, it’s called the Breath Alcohol Ignition Interlock Device (BAIID). Have them mandatory in every vehicle manufactured and registered. Everyone would have to use it to show they were not intoxicated in order to start their vehicle.
Why not, until vehicle thefts became a problem one never needed an ignition key to start their vehicle. The interlock devices operates on the same premise, you need an ignition key to prove the care is legally yours and a breathalyzer to proof you are legally sober to drive.
Sure there are ways around it, just as there are ways to steal cars, but it would stop 99% of the drunk drivers. Is that really too steep of a price to pay? Certainly cheaper than prison sentences . . . that have been proven not to be 99% effective, anyway.