BRIDGEWATER, MASS. (WHDH) - A Weymouth man was arraigned Monday on charges that he intentionally hit two Bridgewater State University students with his car during a homecoming event on the university’s campus Saturday morning.
Steven Mayle, 44, is charged with two counts of attempted murder, two counts of reckless operation of a motor vehicle, one count of leaving the scene of personal injury, and a marked lanes violation.
In a statement, Bridgewater State University President Frederick Clark Jr. wrote in part, “On Saturday morning, a car driven by a man unaffiliated with Bridgewater State University struck two students. One student suffered serious but non-life-threatening injuries and was transported to the hospital where she remains. The second student sustained only minor injuries.”
Prosecutors said the man, identified by police as Mayle, was driving fast near the Moakley Center when he jumped the curb, hit two students, then reversed his car and sped off.
Clark said Mayle was subsequently arrested by Bridgewater State University Police (BSUPD) on Burrill Avenue and taken for a psychiatric evaluation.
“Video evidence indicates the driver intentionally drove his vehicle towards the victims. However, there is absolutely no evidence that the driver, a male in his early 40s from East Weymouth, who had been involved in an earlier road rage incident in East Bridgewater, was targeting those specific students,” Clark said in his statement.
A parent who was visiting her son on campus said she saw the crash, and directed her husband to go help. As her husband went towards the scene, he said he realized the car was headed toward him. He told 7NEWS he put his hands up, and Mayle stopped.
“Like ‘stop, stop, stop, like, you know, this is crazy, please stop!’ And then before you know it, he pulls to a stop, he gets out, he leaves the car door open, and I’m like, ‘just come on out…let’s just go sit over here,'” said Fernando Gonzalez, who stopped Mayle.
Bridgewater State University students said this is a troubling situation to have happen on campus.
“With all the things going around college campuses, it’s scary and sad to think that the school you go to – something like that happens,” said Maddy Batchelor, a Bridgewater State University student. “I feel like it’s sad, because, like, students should be able to walk around campus without feeling like they’re going to get hurt.”
Mayle appeared to be crying in court, with his head pressed against the glass. His defense attorney said his client struggles with his mental health, and there is no evidence it was a deliberate act.
“It was, at worst, a tragic accident that was precipitated by a mental health crisis,” said Josh Weinberger, Mayle’s Defense Attorney.
Prosecutors said Mayle was involved in another road rage incident in East Bridgewater earlier in the day before the accident at the university, where they said he showed a knife.
The doctor who evaluated Mayle testified that he is mentally ill and is unaware of the charges he’s facing.
Mayle is being held without bail while undergoing further mental health evaluations at Bridgewater State Hospital.
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