Salisbury assault suspect sees charge dropped

Dave Rogers, The Daily News of Newburyport, Mass.
·2 min read

May 7—SALISBURY — A local man charged with stabbing an acquaintance with a hypodermic needle saw the charged dropped Wednesday during his appearance in Newburyport District Court.

Douglas S. Plourde, 35, of Cable Avenue was arraigned in late February on charges of assault and battery with a hypodermic needle, assault and battery of a family/household member, threatening to commit a crime (murder) and intimidating a witness. The charges stem from multiple incidents, according to court records.

Plourde was arrested a few days earlier on a warrant after a car crash in Amesbury.

During Wednesday's court appearance, Plourde pleaded guilty to all charges except assault and battery with a hypodermic needle — which was dismissed.

Judge Peter Doyle sentenced Plourde to two years in jail with 73 days to be served. But because he served the same number of days behind bars, Plourde was released soon after his appearance.

Plourde will be on probation for the rest of the two years with the following conditions: stay away, no contact and no abuse of his victim; and remain drug free with random screens.

Plourde also pleaded guilty to an unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle charge and was sentenced to 60 days in jail with all jail time suspended for 18 months while on probation.

At an April 8 hearing in the same courthouse, Plourde's attorney told the same judge the victim admitted she was unsure if he stabbed her on purpose. She had accused him of stabbing her during an argument Feb. 8.

Days later, the two got into another argument, prompting the woman to call for help, but Plourde grabbed her phone and smashed it. About the same time, Plourde allegedly threatened to "put a bullet" in her father's head.

Court documents say the woman purposely smashed her car in Amesbury after Plourde "held a knife up to her during the driving which resulted in the crash, and prior to crashing was screaming at her and driving erratically in the car," Salisbury police Sgt. Jim Leavitt wrote in his report.