Mass. Off-Duty EMT Killed in Car Crash

MassLive.com, Springfield, Mass.

Keith Arsenault was running an errand before starting his shift at work when he was fatally injured in a head-on crash in Auburn on Feb. 27.

The 34-year-old man from Douglas and Woonsocket, Rhode Island was going to be married on Jan. 2. Just a few days before the crash he posted a message on Facebook.

“3 more weeks and I’ll be sitting on a beach in Ft Lauderdale shirtless with my toes in the sand with my soon to be wife,” he wrote.

Arsenault died Sunday, days after the crash at UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester.

Maccarone has since been cited by Auburn police for motor vehicle homicide. He was also cited for negligent driving and a marked lanes violation in the crash.

Arsenault leaves his mother Paula Arsenault; his sister, Susan Arsenault; his fiance, Laura Knight; his maternal grandmother, Marjorie Mielnicki; and several relatives and friends.

Arsenault and Knight planned to get married in January, according to a GoFundMe post created to help Arsenault’s fiance.

Arsenault went to Douglas public schools and graduated from Blackstone Valley Regional Vocational Technical High School in 2003.

He worked as an EMT for several companies and recently worked as a mental health associate at UMass Memorial Health Care’s Psychiatric Treatment and Recovery Center in Worcester, according to Arsenault’s obituary.

Arsenault died just a few weeks shy of his birthday. In August 2015, he was on the ABC show “Save My Life” while working as an EMT.

“He and Laura were making plans for their future together along with their dogs, Vincent and Peyton,” Arsenault’s obituary reads.

Arsenault was an avid bodybuilder, loved country music and going to sporting events.

In the GoFundMe post, Arsenault was described as “dedicated, reliable, compassionate" and “a gentle giant.”

Arsenault and Knight had a “fairytale wedding planned.”

“We would love to ease any potential financial stressors for Laura and allow her to continue to pursue the dreams they shared without any excessive financial burden,” the fund reads. “We hope Laura is able to celebrate his life and continue encouraging others to ‘Do the right thing,’ as Keith so often would say."

According to records from the Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles, Maccarone has been cited a handful of times for speeding in the past.

A preliminary investigation shows Maccarone was driving eastbound on Route 20 in Auburn when he crossed into the westbound lane. He struck the Subaru driven by Arsenault head-on, police said.

Arsenault tried to swerve but was unable to avoid the truck.

Auburn police asked the state RMV to suspend Maccarone’s license. His license was suspended on Friday.

A police statement of facts on filed in court associated with the negligent driving and marked lanes violation citations said Maccarone was standing outside of his truck and on the phone when officers arrived at the scene.

Arsenault was found severely injured in his Subaru.

Maccarone, according to the police statement, told Police Chief Andrew Sluckis Jr that his knee hit the steering wheel and that caused him to cross into the other lane.

Sluckis asked Maccarone how fast he was driving at the time of the crash and Maccarone replied, “40-ish,” according to the statement.

Maccarone was cited for speeding on Route 20 just five minutes before the crash. He was driving 70 mph in a 40 mph zone about two miles from the crash, police said.

As of Wednesday, Maccarone only had the negligent driving and marked lanes violations listed on a criminal complaint filed in Worcester District Court. His arraignment is scheduled for March 16.