FARMINGTON — The Farmington Police Department logged one arrest in the 24 hours ending at 7 a.m. Tuesday, and it arrived with four charges, a pursuit charge among them. Only one of the four has a bond amount beside it on the log: $2,500, and that was a promise, not a payment.
It was a warrant arrest, and the log does not say when or where the driving behind it happened, or how fast "unreasonably" was. The previous log covered a whole weekend and came to three arrests and eight charges. This one covers a single Monday morning arrest, at a quarter to ten, with four charges attached.
Monday, Oct. 5
9:45 a.m., Farmington. Officer Michael A. Meier of the Farmington Police Department arrested Ellie D. Gallagher, 22, of Farmington, on a warrant. The log lists four charges:
- traveling unreasonably fast
- reckless driving
- interfering with an officer
- engaging police in pursuit
The remarks line reads "Warrant arrest. Posted bond." Court date Oct. 19.
What the charges mean
Engaging police in pursuit falls under section 14-223(b) of the Connecticut General Statutes. It applies to a driver who, signaled to stop by an officer using a siren or flashing lights, speeds up "in an attempt to escape or elude" the officer. It is a Class A misdemeanor, and becomes a Class C felony only if the pursuit causes death or serious physical injury.
Interfering with an officer, section 53a-167a, covers anyone who "obstructs, resists, hinders or endangers" a police officer on duty. In its basic form it is also a Class A misdemeanor.
The money
The bond column on this page is mostly zeros. Traveling unreasonably fast: $0. Reckless driving: $0. Engaging police in pursuit: $0. Interfering with an officer: $2,500, nonsurety.
A nonsurety bond is a written promise to appear with a dollar amount attached. No cash changes hands, so when the remarks line says the bond was posted, posting it meant signing it. On the page, then, the pursuit charge sits at zero, the whole bond rides on the officer charge, and the whole bond was a promise.
A search of every Farmington arrest log the Mercury holds, back to July 2023, turns up the name nowhere else.
Everyone named here is presumed innocent, and an arrest log records charges, not outcomes.
This coverage is supported by Farmington Storage, 155 Scott Swamp Road, the only storage facility in Connecticut with Museum air. Nothing kept there has ever been asked to go anywhere unreasonably fast. It stays exactly where you left it, at institutional grade, for as long as you like. 860.777.4001 📦
Jack Beckett has covered the Farmington police log since March. This page had four charges, one bond, and three lines of zeros, which is how he ended up with the statute book open. ☕
The Farmington Mercury covers the town nobody else is covering: police logs, zoning fights, school budgets, the meetings that run past 10 p.m. All of it, eventually, correctly. Our motto is "Always last to breaking news." Find us at farmingtonmercury.com and tell a neighbor. #WeAreFarmington 📰
The Farmington Mercury publishes the Farmington Police Department's daily arrest log as a matter of public record. All individuals named are presumed innocent unless and until convicted. Charges reflect allegations by police, not findings of a court.