WATERVILLE — A woman driving with a suspended license and wanted on moving violation warrants was taken away in handcuffs Friday morning after the pickup truck she was driving north on Front Street sideswiped a utility pole next to the City Hall parking area and then crashed into two vehicles before smashing head-on into another pole.

The 2005 Toyota Tacoma pickup truck Natalie Johansmeier was driving hit Code Enforcement Officer Garth Collins’ 2007 Toyota Camry before knocking City Manager Michael Roy’s 2002 Toyota Tacoma pickup truck out of its parking space, according to police Sgt. Lincoln Ryder, who was at the scene.

Natalie Johansmeier

Johansmeier, 33, of Waterville, was arrested by Officer Matt Libby and taken to Kennebec County jail after the crash, Ryder said.

“It appears she was fatigued and fell asleep at the wheel,” he said.

At the time of the crash, Johansmeier’s driver’s license was suspended under habitual offender status, a class C felony, according to Ryder. She also was wanted on a warrant for failure to appear on a charge of operating after suspension, as well as a warrant for failure to appear on a charge of failure to report a traffic accident, he said.

“During a search of her person and the vehicle, we found marijuana, drug paraphernalia, Suboxone and cocaine,” he said.

Johansmeier was charged with civil possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia, and she was summoned on two counts of unlawful possession of a schedule W drug for the Suboxone and cocaine, he said.

The accident occurred around 9:15 a.m. as one-way traffic on Front Street was zooming by the back side of City Hall, where Roy and Collins park their vehicles.

City Hall employees, hearing a boom, rushed out the back door to see what had happened as police and fire officials were sent to the scene.

Roy, the city manager, began inspecting the damage to his vehicle.

“I just had $1,300 worth of work put into it — two new tires,” he said.

The accident occurred in the parking lot formerly used by police when the Police Department was housed in the basement of City Hall.

A chunk of wood was gouged out of a utility pole that the pickup truck sideswiped before crashing into Roy and Collins’ vehicles. Wood splinters from the utility pole were strewn around the parking area.

Collins, estimating damage to his car at $5,000 or $6,000, said he thought his car was a total loss. He pointed to a dent and rust spot near the rear passenger door on the driver’s side of the car, saying five years ago a vehicle had struck a parking sign outside City Hall, sending the metal sign flying across the parking lot and striking his car. The area is the site of numerous accidents, including one a couple months ago that damaged the city assessor’s car.

Amanda Esler, Roy and Mayor Nick Isgro’s executive assistant, said she was in her office talking to former Councilor Ed Lachowicz when they heard the crash.

Esler said Linda Sack and her granddaughter, Sarah, were in a vehicle waiting to back out of their parking space when the accident happened.

Linda Cote, Sarah’s other grandmother, who also is the city’s tax collector, thought Sack’s car had been hit because the crash was so loud, but it had not been struck.

Esler, whose husband is Waterville fire Capt. Shawn Esler, was one of the first people to arrive at the accident scene, with Lachowicz right behind her. Esler said she immediately approached the truck driver.

“I just asked her if she was all right,” she said. “She said she was all right, but she was worried about her truck. It was still running and I told her to turn it off so it wouldn’t catch fire.”

Lachowicz, who is attending graduate school in St. Louis but is in Waterville for the holidays, said he was standing in Esler’s office before the crash and wondered what had happened.

“We heard the bang and ran into (Mayor) Nick Isgro’s office to look out of the window,” Lachowicz said. “It was quite the bang.”

The noise also brought employees and customers of the Morning Sentinel building, across the street, to see what had happened.

Roy said city officials had worried about such an accident occurring in that area and possibly knocking out a fiber-optic cable that runs from the tower on top of City Hall to the Police Department on Colby Street and is attached to one of the poles in the parking area, as that could knock out police communications. Friday’s accident apparently did not knock out that cable.

A new tower has been installed outside the Police Department on Colby Street, but the city is awaiting license approval for the tower before police can use it, Roy said.

Meanwhile, Ryder said Johansmeier’s cash bail on the warrant for failure to appear on the operating after suspension charge is $300. The cash bail on the warrant for failure to appear on a charge of failure to report a traffic accident is $300. The cash bail on the license suspension under habitual offender status charge is $250 cash.

Ryder said Johansmeier has several court dates scheduled for various charges. She is scheduled to appear Jan. 25 in Kennebec County Superior Court in Augusta on the habitual offender and drug charges and Feb. 8 on the warrants, according to Ryder. She is scheduled to appear Feb. 16 in Waterville District Court on the marijuana possession charge, he said.

“She was cooperative and told us what happened,” Ryder said.

He said it did not appear Johansmeier was impaired or under the influence at the time of the accident, despite the fact that police found drugs in her truck.

“Her manner and demeanor did not lead us to believe she was using drugs or alcohol or anything,” he said.

Amy Calder — 861-9247

acalder@centralmaine.com

Twitter: @AmyCalder17

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