The man who made a viral video as he was dragged from his car in Albany by two female state troopers last spring was sentenced in Conway’s circuit court on several charges Tuesday.
The video made by Jean Ronald Saint Preux, 34, showed him appearing to be ripped out of his car near Albany Town Hall on May 20. After the video was posted to worldstarhiphop.com, it was viewed more than 342,500 times.
N.H. State Police said that after Saint Preux was stopped for an inspection sticker violation, he refused to give his license and registration or cooperate with troopers and was put under arrest.
He was charged with driving an uninspected vehicle, disobeying an officer, resisting arrest and two counts of assault on an officer (for allegedly swatting and hitting the hands and pushing the arms of Trooper Hawley Rae and Trooper Margaret Ready.
On Tuesday, Saint Preux was before Judge Charles Greenhalgh briefly for plea and sentencing, which took just under five minutes.
He was represented by attorney Jonathan Cohen of Cohen & Winters of Concord. The prosecutor was Kim Tessari of New Hampshire State Police.
“We have a negotiated disposition in this matter?” asked the judge.
Tessari confirmed that there was.
Saint Preux pleaded guilty to disobeying an officer and was fined $620 and received 180 days in jail. Both were suspended for one year pending good behavior. He also was given a $74 fine after pleading guilty to having an uninspected vehicle.
The simple assault charge pertaining to Ready was placed on file while the one concerning Rae was dropped.
“The state is pleased the defendant took responsibility for his actions and believes the plea was in the interest of justice,” Tessari said in a statement emailed to the Sun.
Saint Preux and Winters declined to comment.
In May, Saint Preux told the Sun the car belonged to his girlfriend but they both use it. He maintained that the inspection sticker, from Portland, Maine, was good until June. He claims the police never asked for his license or registration and that the video shows he was prepared to give them the information.
He said the troopers, who were wearing masks, approached him aggressively and demanded he get out of the car. “I was afraid for my life,” said Saint Preux.
State police issued a statement in May saying the troopers acted appropriately.
Saint Preux said on the night in question he was heading south on Route 16 and the troopers were heading north. He said he made “eye contact” with the troopers near the White Mountain Moose Lodge, which is about a mile from the town hall. He said he pulled over at the Albany Town Hall because it would have cameras there and that made him feel safer.
In May, Saint Preux set up a GoFundMe account to raise money for legal and car repair costs. To date it has raised $6,147, more than the $5,000 being sought.
Saint Preux’s arrest came just days before the death of George Floyd, a Black man whose death while in custody of Minneapolis police set off riots and protests around the country.
Saint Preux, who also is Black, said he’d been working at a hotel and retail store but has been on unemployment because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
After the video was posted, his case was fodder for discussion in Concord. Gov. Chris Sununu addressed national outrage over Floyd’s death and fielded questions about Saint Preux’s case at a press conference on May 29. He was asked if troopers handled the arrest of Saint Preux appropriately.
“As for the New Hampshire situation, I can say that so far, in terms of my discussions with the Attorney General’s Office and the Department of Safety, all indications are yes,” said Sununu. “But we’re going to keep looking into it.”
On June 1, the Attorney General’s Office told the Sun it was planning to conduct “an independent and comprehensive review of the facts and circumstances surrounding the May 20, 2020, arrest of Mr. Jean Saint Preux to ensure that the conduct of New Hampshire State Troopers Margaret Ready and Hawley Rae conformed with the law.” The review is expected to be completed soon.
Following the incident, Sununu also created the Commission on Law Enforcement Accountability, Community, and Transparency, which in August released 48 recommendations for change in New Hampshire.
“The list includes extending the length of police training from 16 weeks, improve training for School Resource Officers, abolish the part-time police academy, implement more mobile crisis response teams for those facing a mental health crisis, mandate implicit bias training for new officers, improve de-escalation training and work better with the hearing impaired,” InDepthNH.org reported.
The commission also encourages all law enforcement agencies to use body and/or dash cameras.
In May, Senate Democrats issued a statement regarding Floyd’s death that mentioned Saint Preux. “We know that New Hampshire is not immune to systemic racism,” the statement said. “Last week, we watched the live video feed from Jean Ronald Saint Preux as his car window was smashed and he was forcibly pulled from his vehicle by two New Hampshire state troopers, one of whom was not wearing a mask and gloves despite ongoing concerns about the transmission of COVID-19. We urge the governor, the Attorney General, and the Division of State Police to respond appropriately and deliberately.”
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