A driver who appeared to be impaired by marijuana hit and injured four state troopers standing near a driveway on Route 202 in Hollis on Sunday night, police said.

Troopers Jake Mowry, David Lemieux and Dakota Stewart and trooper recruit Shane St. Pierre were trying to mediate a family disturbance at the intersection of Hollis Road (Route 202) and Star Lane. As they stood near the breakdown lane just before 11:15 p.m., 24-year-old Tyler Croston, of Westbrook, drove a 2017 Subaru WRX into all four troopers, York County Sheriff William King said.

The road was closed for several hours Sunday night as police investigated.

The troopers were taken to Maine Medical Center in Portland, King said. Croston also was taken to the hospital with minor injuries. He was later released and booked into the York County jail. His passenger, Amber Gedaro, 27, of Westbrook, was treated at the scene.

Maine State Police Col. William Ross said at a news conference Monday afternoon that the troopers were conscious and alert immediately after the crash, but incapacitated and “in significant distress at the scene.” They were in obvious pain when he talked to them at the hospital, he said.

Mowry, who was critically injured but is now in serious-but-non-life-threatening condition, took the “brunt of the crash,” said Shannon Moss, spokesperson for the Maine Department of Public Safety. He underwent surgery for fractures to his legs.

Lemieux was discharged from the hospital Monday morning after being treated for fractures to one of his legs. St. Pierre remained hospitalized Monday afternoon with serious-but-non-life-threatening injuries and was expected to undergo surgery. Stewart was treated and released from the hospital with several broken bones in his right foot.

“While this is very tragic, we’re fortunate none of them were killed,” state police Maj. Lucas Hare said in an interview Monday.

‘HORRIFIC CRASH’

Croston was charged with aggravated driving under the influence, aggravated driving to endanger and reckless conduct with a dangerous weapon.

He also was charged with violating two sets of bail conditions. Because of those charges, he is not eligible for bail before his first court appearance on Wednesday, King said. State police later said the bail violations were for previous domestic violence charges.

A criminal history record check with the Maine State Bureau of Identification shows the 2018 domestic violence charge was dismissed in exchange for Croston pleading guilty to a lower-level charge of disorderly conduct. He spent 24 hours in jail.

King said Monday that there was “sufficient evidence” to charge Croston with operating while impaired.

York County Chief Deputy Jeremy Forbes said during a news conference Monday that evidence at the scene and witness statements indicated the possibility that Croston had been using marijuana. Croston consented to a series of tests with a drug recognition expert at the hospital that indicated he was under the influence of narcotics, Forbes said. Investigators also took a sample of Croston’s blood to test.

Police are seeking warrants for the results of the blood test and to search his vehicle.

“When we do the warrant for the blood work, we’ll be able to decipher what the drugs are,” Forbes said.

Before they were hit, the troopers were talking to people involved in a domestic disturbance in the grassy area near a driveway. One cruiser was parked in the driveway and two cruisers were parked along the eastbound breakdown lane with their emergency lights on, King said. One trooper was talking to a woman who was leaning against the bumper of a cruiser.

Croston, who was driving east, “veered to the right for reasons unknown” and went to the right side of the parked cars and into the grassy area, King said.

“That’s where he mowed the troopers down,” he said.

Ross said the crash and injuries were unlike anything he has seen in New England over the last 20 years. The driver somehow managed to avoid hitting any of the cruisers and the ditch along the road, hitting only the officers, he said.

“The best way to describe it is like threading a needle. From the rear end of the cruiser in the driveway to the vehicles parked in the breakdown lane – to try and do it would be a difficult thing,” he said.

Ross said it’s unclear how fast the Croston’s vehicle was traveling prior to the incident, saying a reconstruction of the crash could provide some clues. The speed limit in that area is 50 mph. The crash was captured on dashboard cameras, police said.

King said it is remarkable that none of people speaking with the troopers was hit.

“It’s surprising that it wasn’t worse. It was a horrific, horrific crash,” he said. “It highlights how dangerous rural patrol is and how dangerous traffic enforcement is.”

When asked Monday if there is any indication Croston intentionally hit the troopers, King said police are still investigating and have drawn no conclusions. He said there is no evidence that Croston hit his brakes.

‘SCARY AND FRUSTRATING’

All of the injured troopers are relatively new to Maine State Police. Lemieux, 33, joined the agency in August 2019. Mowry, 28, was hired in February and Stewart, 33, was hired in January. St. Pierre, 22, began field training in July and is scheduled to attend the state police academy in October, Hare said.

He said it is “both scary and frustrating” to have troopers injured while they’re responding to calls. Troopers are trained to try to stop vehicles in clear, visible places and as far off the road as possible, Hare said, but close calls still happen regularly. Anecdotally, it seems to be happening more regularly because people are distracted while driving, he said.

“So many crashes are caused by people being distracted, not paying attention to what they’re doing and where they are,” he said. “That should be an easy fix. It’s something we can all do better at.”

Hare said a “pretty high number” of troopers have been hit at some point in their careers. Last summer, a trooper who pulled over in a highway breakdown lane had a close call when a passing vehicle hit his side mirror. When Hare was patrolling the Maine Turnpike a few years ago, he partially tore his ACL jumping out of the way of a passing car whose driver wasn’t paying attention.

Most of the 12 state troopers who have died in the line of duty were killed in incidents involving vehicles, Hare said. In 2019, Detective Ben Campbell, 31, of Millinocket, was killed on Interstate 95 when he was hit by a wheel that came off a passing logging truck as he assisted a stopped motorist.

Hare said state police have taken steps in the past few years to try to make cruisers more visible to passing drivers. They have added reflective tape to cruiser doors and installed LED light bars and lights on the rear of cruisers.

“We really need the public’s cooperation to follow the law when it comes to moving over when you see emergency lights,” Hare said.

Hollis does not have its own police department and is covered by state police. Because the crash involved state troopers, it is being investigated by the sheriff’s office and was reconstructed by the Kennebunk Police Department. Investigators have conferred with the York County District Attorney’s Office and will work with them as the investigation moves forward, King said.

When the reconstruction is done, state police will take a “very hard look” at the incident to see what the troopers did and if there is anything that could have been done better, Hare said.

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