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Nearly a week after the tragic incident, a woman appeared before a judge following accusations that she struck and killed Roderick Macleod, a Grammy-nominated musician, while he was out walking his dogs.
In Hopkinton, Rhode Island, Shannon Godbout, 41, faced arraignment on Thursday on several serious charges, including driving to endanger resulting in death and possession of narcotics with the intent to deliver, as reported by WPRI.
The court has ordered that she be held without bail. Due to her extensive criminal history, the case has been escalated from District Court to Superior Court, according to WPRI.
Godbout’s legal troubles are not new, as she has been arrested over 100 times, including eight arrests by the same police department that investigated the recent fatal crash. Her record includes numerous court warrants for failure to appear, alongside misdemeanors or non-violent felonies, as reported by WJAR. Additionally, her driving history is marred with approximately 40 traffic citations.
Her case moved from District Court to Superior Court due to her extensive criminal record, WPRI reported.
She has been arrested more than 100 times, eight by the same police department that responded to this crash. She has dozens of court warrants for failing to appear and misdemeanors or non-violent felonies, according to WJAR. Police say she had roughly 40 traffic citations on her record.
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone else over the 100 mark,” Hopkinton Police Chief Mark Carrier told WPRI.
The Hopkinton Police Department said Macleod, 70, was walking his dogs on the shoulder of a road when he was hit by a car Saturday, Dec. 6. He was taken to the hospital, where he later died.
Police said Godbout was driving when she left the road and also struck several objects, including two telephone poles.
At the scene of the crash, officers found she was in possession of “numerous illegal narcotics and packaging materials commonly associated with drug distribution.”
Godbout was arrested at the scene and taken to the hospital where she stayed for at least two days before seeing a judge, according to police.
Macleod, who had a 50-year career as a musician and also taught guitar, banjo and upright bass and was a member of the Rhode Island Music Hall of Fame, was honored by fans and colleagues online after his death.
“In recent years, MacLeod had become a guiding light in the roots music community as a performer and educator alongside his wife and musical partner, fiddler Sandol Astrausky, serving as Teaching Associates at Brown University and directors of Old-Time String Band.”
