Bail Revoked For Suspect in Homicide Case

By Jordan Cuddemi

Valley News Staff Writer

Published: 10-18-2016 12:09 AM

Newport — A judge on Monday revoked the bail of a 24-year-old Unity man charged with hitting and killing a Claremont woman while driving under the influence of drugs in September 2015.

Sullivan Superior Court Judge Brian Tucker deemed Aaron Moeller a danger to the public and ordered him held until trial after prosecutors presented evidence at a hearing on Monday that Moeller violated his probation conditions twice last month.

Frederick Boggess, Moeller’s probation officer, and Rob Greenly III, an employee at the Sullivan County Department of Corrections, testified Moeller gave urine samples on Sept. 14 and Sept. 24 that both tested positive for opiates, specifically heroin.

In July, Moeller was placed on probation after being convicted of driving under the influence, possessing a controlled drug and carrying a gun without a licence.

Those violations occurred after the crash that killed Christa Osgood and injured Kenneth Lavigne, but before Moeller was indicted by a grand jury.

When he was arraigned on homicide and manslaughter charges in September, Tucker released him on $20,000 personal recognizance bail with the understanding that he comply with his existing probation conditions.

“His use of opiates creates a danger to himself … and … if he has access to a car, there is a risk of danger to others,” Tucker said from the bench in the Newport courthouse. “I order his bail be revoked.”

Before Tucker ruled, Moeller’s attorney Jennifer Cohen said her client was ready to seek treatment and had a bed waiting for him at the Brattleboro Retreat.

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Prosecutor Jack Bell, a Grafton County attorney, said he “appreciates the burdens of addiction,” but also “appreciates public safety.”

Tucker said he understands Moeller has a drug addiction, but said there were no combination of conditions of release that he could put in place to ensure the safety of the public.

Tucker scheduled Moeller’s case for trial in February. A plea offer is on the table, Bell said, but Cohen said she needed more time to review it.

Moeller faces four felony charges in connection with the September 2015 incident on Charlestown Road, also known as Route 12, that left Osgood, 44, of Claremont, dead and Lavigne, 45, of Newport, injured. Charges against Moeller include negligent homicide — DUI, reckless manslaughter, reckless conduct and aggravated DUI; he pleaded not guilty to all of the offenses at his arraignment last month.

Some of Osgood’s family members, including her sister, Julie, and her father, David, attended Moeller’s bail hearing on Monday.

Since the incident happened, the family has said little publicly.

“It has been a very, very difficult time,” Julie Osgood said after the hearing. “We feel the judge made the right decision. It would be devastating if another family had to go through this.”

Christa Osgood left behind twin boys who attend Stevens High School. The boys now are in the guardianship of their grandparents.

A tearful David Osgood said “this has been a horrendous time” for the boys. The incident happened one week into their freshman year.

He said his daughter was the only parent the boys knew.

“They will never experience their mother’s love or her praise when they do things well,” he said. “Now they are living with their grandparents, who are unable to take the place of a natural parent.

“So many lives have been devastated by this,” he said.

Moeller’s mother, Gail, also was in the gallery on Monday.

Following court proceedings, she reflected on the past year and the toll it has taken on her son.

The fatal crash “destroyed him” and led him down a road to commit other crimes, she said. His behavior, however, started to improve this summer.

But then he found out he was being indicted and arraigned on serious charges in connection with the crash — roughly a year after it took place.

“He was doing good until the arraignment came,” she said. “I hope he is done with his destructive self.”

Gail Moeller also expressed extreme remorse for Osgood’s family.

“This is a horrible, horrible tragedy, and I would do anything to help them,” she said.

She maintained her son’s innocence and said he will be vindicated at the conclusion of a trial.

“The evidence will show he didn’t do anything wrong,” she said. “There are a lot of criminals out there, but he is not one of them.”

Jordan Cuddemi can be reached at jcuddemi@vnews.com or 603-727-3248.]]>