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New London resident Billy Ray Goff turned himself in to authorities on Monday, Aug. 19 on an active arrest warrant related to a crash in September 2023 on the Gold Star Bridge in the New London County town of Groton, Connecticut State Police announced.
The bridge carries Interstate 95 over the Thames River.
According to police, on Thursday, Sept. 7, 2023, just after 3 p.m., a 2019 Toyota Camry driven by Goff crashed into the back of a cruiser occupied by Sergeant Christopher Vaillancourt of the Connecticut State Police, who had been working an overtime construction assignment at the time.
Vaillancourt's cruiser was hit while he was traveling around 6 miles per hour in the bridge's right lane with his emergency lights activated, authorities said, adding that he had been following construction workers picking up signage signaling the lane closure.
After striking the police cruiser, Goff's vehicle then spun out and struck two other vehicles, a 2022 Toyota Highlander and a 2023 Kia Forte, according to authorities.
Arriving police and first responders found Goff lying on the ground injured in the grassy area of the center median. Meanwhile, Vaillancourt was found trapped in his cruiser's driver seat. He was later extricated and taken to Yale New Haven Hospital, where he underwent surgery.
Vaillancourt suffered serious injuries in the crash, including a fractured radius and ulna in his left arm.
According to Goff's arrest warrant, an investigation into the incident eventually revealed that he allegedly did not brake before striking Vaillancourt's cruiser and had been speeding, as detailed by statements given by witnesses and those involved in the collision.
Additionally, a YouTube video containing an interview with Goff also played a role in the investigation. During the video, Goff allegedly admitted to being distracted and speeding:
"Yeah so I uh, it was, um, I had hit a parked car on the highway, it was a trooper that was blocking some debris, um, and I had just gone that way earlier and there was nobody there but in the time that I had passed, um, and I was just being lazy and not paying attention, I was looking at the side of the highway as I was coming over and then I looked down at all the fancy new gadgets," Goff said in the video, also explaining that he had just purchased the car for his mother hours before.
Goff also admitted to going above the 55 mph speed limit on the bridge, according to the warrant.
Based on the investigation, Goff was charged with the following after his arrest on Monday:
- Second-degree assault;
- Reckless driving;
- Endangering a highway worker;
- Distracted driving;
- Failure to drive at a reasonable distance apart;
- Failure to slow down.
Goff was later held on a $50,000 court-set bond and taken to New London Superior Court for arraignment.
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