MWCC president, prosecutors reach deal in hit-and-run
By Damien Fisher
FITCHBURG -- The hit-and-run case against Daniel M. Asquino, Mount Wachusett Community College's president, ended Tuesday with Asquino entering into an agreement with prosecutors.
Asquino, 66, of Cranston, R.I., admitted to sufficient facts in the case, in which he was charged with leaving the scene of an accident with property damage.
Fitchburg District Court Judge Robert Harbour continued the case without a finding for six months.
Asquino's attorney, George Tobia of Gardner, said after the hearing the case will end at that point.
"It will be dismissed completely in six months," Tobia said.
Asquino backed out of an agreement with prosecutors two months ago when he refused to admit to being involved in the accident, according to court records.
But on Tuesday, Asquino stated in court, "I admit there was contact between the cars."
Asquino did not answer questions after the hearing. Instead, Tobia spoke for the college president.
Assistant District Attorney Terry McLaughlin agreed not to pursue an anger management class for Asquino as part of the deal. Tobia said in court the class is not necessary.
"There are no grounds for any anger-management program," Tobia told Harbour. "He is a 66-year-old man with no criminal record."
Asquino faced up to two years in jail on the charge for allegedly hitting another car on his way to the college and then allegedly continuing to drive without stopping on Aug. 14, 2006.
"There has been a lot of undeserved bad publicity surrounding this case," Tobia said after the hearing.
Harbour ordered Asquino to pay $200 in court costs and $50 for a victim witness assessment.
Christine Rice, the driver of the other car, said she wanted to take her daughter, Jessica LeBlanc, 13, out for breakfast for her birthday on the morning of the accident.
"Instead we went for X-rays," Rice said after the hearing.
Asquino appeared in court wearing a gray suit. Rice wore a blue, short sleeve shirt and jeans.
Rice paid more than $800 to repair her car after the accident, not including the money she lost for taking time off work for every court appearance, she said.
"I understand he has all these degrees and everything, but he left me with my 12-year-old daughter after he hit me," Rice told Harbour. "Every time he changes his mind, I miss a day of work."
McLaughlin said in court the accident happened at about 5:30 a.m. on Matthews Street in Gardner.
Rice slowed her Ford Escape to make a left turn into her driveway when Asquino, driving a Toyota Sequoia behind Rice, went over the double yellow lines to pass Rice on the left, McLaughlin said.
McLaughlin said the cars collided, leaving damage to Rice's front bumper. Rice followed Asquino to the college and called police to report the accident, according to court records.
Officer Roger Robert wrote in his report about the incident that Asquino displayed a "poor attitude" and took an "uncooperative stance" when he was questioned by police.
Robert also wrote in his report that Asquino parked his SUV in a "No Parking - Fire Zone," at the college after the accident.
After initial questioning, Asquino left Robert to go to the college's fitness center to work out and instructed the officer to get any additional information from campus police, according to court records.
Asquino told Robert he had no idea he hit Rice's car, according to court records. Asquino told Robert he was following Rice from Route 140 onto Matthews Street when she slowed to about 10 miles per hour, according to court records.
Rice started to turn right and Asquino started to pass her on the left when she turned left to go into her driveway, he told Robert, according to court records.
Asquino drove over the double yellow lines to avoid a collision, he told Robert, according to court records.
Asquino maintained Tuesday that he did not realize there was an accident when he passed Rice. Tobia said after the hearing Asquino would have stopped if he knew there was an accident.
"At the time of the investigation (Asquino) told police he did not feel there was an impact," Tobia said.
Tobia said after the hearing the damage to Rice's car was slight, the repair bill totaled less than $300. Rice said her insurance company did not cover the $500 deductible because Asquino claimed there was no collision.
"I'm still out $500 until the insurance company pays," she said.
Rice is considering pursuing a lawsuit against Asquino to recoup the money she lost for the court appearances.
"It's not fair, I really think he should pay for it," she said.
Both Rice and her daughter required physical therapy for neck injuries after the accident, she said. Asquino's insurance paid for the therapy, she said.
The deal reached Tuesday is nearly identical to a deal considered by Judge David Cunis on June 21. Cunis rejected that deal when Asquino refused to admit to the collision, according to court documents.
September 6, 2007
Asquino makes deal in court, assails ‘arrogance’ and ‘greed’
By Danielle M. Williamson
TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF
dawilliamson@telegram.com
GARDNER— Calling his recent experiences in court “an eye-opener,” Mount Wachusett Community College President Daniel M. Asquino spoke yesterday about why he admitted to sufficient facts on one count of leaving the scene of a property-damage accident
The longtime college president maintained his innocence yesterday, saying he entered a plea Tuesday in Fitchburg District Court simply to bring a conclusion to the case, which has been in court for more than a year.
By admitting to sufficient facts for a guilty finding, Mr. Asquino did not plead guilty to Gardner police’s allegation he drove off after hitting a woman’s car last summer, causing a few hundred dollars in damage to her vehicle.
Judge Robert Harbour continued the case without a finding for six months to March 3, when it will be dismissed if Mr. Asquino stays out of further trouble with the law. Mr. Asquino’s plea prevents the case from going to trial, but in effect it means he agreed that if it were to go to trial, there were grounds for finding him guilty.
Mr. Asquino paid $200 in court costs and a $50 victim witness fee.
“I’m 66 years old,” said Mr. Asquino, the college’s president since 1987. “I’ve never been in court. I have seen more arrogance, greed and discrimination than I’ve ever seen. If this is justice, I think we have a way to go.”
Gardner police said Mr. Asquino was driving his 2006 Toyota Sequoia the morning of Aug. 14, 2006, when it struck a 2003 Ford Escape driven by Christine G. Rice, 42, who was turning into her driveway at 261 Matthews St.
Police sought a criminal complaint against Mr. Asquino for leaving the scene of a property-damage accident.
Mr. Asquino said he remembered slowly going around Ms. Rice as she turned into her driveway, which is roughly 100 yards from the college’s entrance. He said he drove to the college and went to exercise at the fitness center. He said he learned later that Ms. Rice had followed him to the college. A campus police officer found him in the gym, he said. Meanwhile, Ms. Rice had called Gardner police, according to Mr. Asquino.
“I couldn’t have possibly been evasive,” he said. “The college was right there.”
Lance D. May, a college trustee, said Mr. Asquino kept his board posted on the case.
“The public will look at this and say, ‘No one’s above the law,’ ” Mr. May said. “I think he’s taken the responsible approach and faced this head-on.”
Mr. Asquino said his lawyer, George N. Tobia, tried to settle the case out of court, but Ms. Rice refused.
“There was absolutely no damage to my car,” Mr. Asquino said. “I didn’t feel any contact, but I guess she had a minor scrape.”
Mr. Asquino said Ms. Rice has indicated she might want to “pursue other avenues” now that the case is closed.
Ms. Rice, a postal worker in Gardner, could not be reached for comment yesterday. In a previous interview, she said she was “disgusted that he won’t admit what he did.”
“He hit us, then sped away,” Ms. Rice said after a court hearing in June. Her 13-year-old daughter was also in the car at the time of the collision.
Telegram & Gazette reporter Matthew Bruun contributed to this story.
June 22, 2007
Asquino refuses to admit fault in alleged hit-and-run
By Jonathan Graham
FITCHBURG -- Mount Wachusett
Community College's president refused to admit he knowingly struck another car
and drove away in an August 2006 incident, sinking his attempt at a plea deal in
Fitchburg District Court Thursday.
"I cannot, in all candor, admit to something that did not happen," Daniel M. Asquino, 65, told the judge. "I'll admit to it to get it over with."
District Court Judge David Cunis told Asquino that he could not accept a plea deal if Asquino would not confess to the crime.
"There's an element of knowingly causing damage here," Cunis said. "He's denying knowledge."
Asquino faces a charge of leaving the scene of a property damage accident, which police allege occurred early in the morning of Aug. 14, 2006.
Asquino, of Cranston, R.I., is now scheduled to go to trial on Sept. 4 in Fitchburg District Court.
Both Asquino and his attorney, George N. Tobia, declined to comment as they left the hearing Thursday.
Cunis was ready to allow Asquino to admit to sufficient facts for a guilty finding, and continue the charge without a finding for six months. The charge would have been dropped if he was not charged with any new crimes in that six-month period.
Asquino also would have had to pay $250 in fines and court costs.
"I had no idea that there was any kind of contact between the vehicles," Asquino said when asked if he admitted to the prosecution's allegations. "There was no damage to my vehicle."
Prosecutors allege Asquino was involved in a minor two-car accident just blocks away from MWCC's Gardner campus at about 5:30 a.m. on Aug. 14, 2006.
The other driver, Christine Rice, told police she was turning left off of Matthews Street into her house when Asquino's 2006 Toyota Sequoia allegedly struck her car as he passed her on her left.
Rice, who attended Thursday's hearing with her family, said she is "very disappointed" by Asquino's actions.
"Be a man, get it over with," Rice said.
Prosecutors had requested that Asquino's case be continued without a finding for one year, and that Asquino be made to take an anger management course.
Asquino allegedly did not cooperate with police officers when they arrived at MWCC's campus soon after the alleged accident.
Cunis said that because Asquino is 65-years-old with no prior criminal record, he did not feel anger management classes were necessary.
Rice said she is very pleased by how District Attorney Joe Early Jr.'s office is handling the case, "because sometimes when people have high positions, they let it slide."
Asquino pleads not guilty in car accident case
By Aaron Wasserman
GARDNER -- Daniel M. Asquino, president of Mount Wachusett Community College, pleaded not guilty Friday to allegedly leaving the scene of a minor two-car accident earlier this year.
Asquino's attorney had filed a motion seeking to dismiss the charge prior to his arraignment at Gardner District Court, but the judge didn't issue a ruling on Friday.
Missing paperwork could have led to the charge's dismissal Friday, because city police had not submitted a citation to the courthouse since the accident occurred in August.
Asquino's attorney, George N. Tobia of Gardner, argued that the miscue was enough grounds to dismiss the case because state law requires a citation to be handed in within six business days of almost any alleged violation.
"This language gives the Commonwealth a map of what they are to follow," Tobia said. "It's a defense unless they comply."
Assistant District Attorney Robert Pellegrini acknowledged the error, calling it a "technical violation."
But he countered that it should not affect the rest of the case.
"I don't see how any substantive due process was denied to the defendant," he said. "We have some sort of administrative issue."
Judge David S. Ross spent nearly a half hour questioning Tobia about the motion.
"You're asking the court to take language from one paragraph and cut and paste it into the paragraph we're dealing with," Ross told Tobia.
Expressing frustration with both attorneys' arguments, Ross ordered them to file separate memos outlining their cases by Dec. 20.
Ross said he will rule on the motion within 30 days after that date.
Asquino, hardcover book in hand and dressed in a professorial-looking sportscoat with elbow patches, did not speak during Friday's hearing.
The accident occurred at about 5:30 a.m. on Aug. 14 along Matthews Street, a few blocks away from Mount Wachusett Community College's central campus.
Asquino's college-issued 2006 Toyota Sequoia allegedly bumped the car in front of him as he passed it on the left, and he then continued to the campus without stopping, according to police.
The other driver, Christine G. Rice, a 40-year-old city resident, followed him to the college and then called police.
When questioned about the incident outside the college gym where he was exercising at the time, Asquino "appeared to be very agitated," according to a police report from Officer Roger Robert Jr., who also testified at Friday's hearing.
"I continued my conversation with Mrs. Rice and a very short time later Mr. Asquino appeared on my right and started trying to dispute what Mrs. Rice was saying," Robert wrote.
"Mr. Asquino then stated to me that I need to remember that I'm on campus property, as he stormed off in the direction of the health and wellness center," the report continues.
Robert also wrote he eventually called Sgt. Eric McAvene Jr. for help "due to Mr. Asquino's poor attitude and the uncooperative stance he was taking with me."
Asquino claims he did not stop because he never felt any contact between the two cars.
August 19, 2006
Complaint sought against Asquino
REGIONAL DIGEST, Worcester
Telegram & Gazette (MA)
GARDNER - Police have sought a criminal complaint against Mount Wachusett
Community College President Daniel M. Asquino after an accident Monday on
Matthews Street.
Police submitted a complaint on one count of leaving the scene of a property
damage accident in connection with a two-car accident at 5:18 a.m. Monday.
According to police, the charge was sought against Mr. Asquino, 64, for failing
to stop after his 2006 Toyota Sequoia allegedly struck a 2003 Ford Escape driven
by Christine G. Rice, 40, as she was turning into her driveway at 261 Matthews
St. Both vehicles sustained minor damage.
No date has been set for a hearing on the charge.
August 10, 2006
Asquino has proved his
staying power
George Barnes, Worcester Telegram & Gazette (MA)
GARDNER - Often the first to arrive, around 5 a.m., and often the
last to leave, Daniel M. Asquino has found plenty of reasons to stay at Mount
Wachusett Community College.
The longest currently serving public college president in the state, Mr. Asquino
is beginning his 20th year as president of Mount Wachusett, one of only two
people to hold that post since the school was founded in 1963.
The first president of the
community college was Arthur F. Haley. College dean John Hogan also served as
interim president for a short time between Mr. Haley and Mr. Asquino.
When he took the job, Mr. Asquino said, he had no plans to stay for two decades.
"I said I would stay for six or seven years and move on," he said.
But days became weeks, weeks turned to months and months to years. He said that
every time he thought about leaving, there was a fiscal crisis to deal with, the
school was preparing for accreditation or something else important was
happening.
"It was never a good time," he said.
Mr. Asquino came to Mount Wachusett from Cape Cod Community College, where he
was serving as a dean. When he was hired he was also a finalist for president of
Cape Cod Community College, but the Gardner college offered him a job first.
He already knew about Gardner, having met Frank Hirons, a Gardner resident and
one-time Mount Wachusett vice president for media relations, while he was
serving on the state Board of Community Colleges. The two men became friends,
and the friendship continued when Mr. Asquino came to work in Gardner.
Over the years there were other job opportunities for Mr. Asquino, but he said
he does not regret staying in Gardner. He takes pride in the changes at the
college since he took charge.
His predecessor stayed 23 years, but Mr. Asquino said he is unsure how many more
years he will occupy his office in the southwest corner of the Green Street
campus. He said he still enjoys the job and intends to keep working as long as
he enjoys it.
"There hasn't been a day when I said I don't want to get up and work today," he
said.
He would be forgiven if he just rolled over some mornings and went back to
sleep.
The school is 76 miles from his home in Cranston, R.I., a long drive even in the
summer. The school has gone through financial challenges over the years.
Reductions in state support have forced the school to find other sources of
money.
But the long drive and the challenges of keeping the school financially sound
and current in its outlook have not persuaded him to move on. He said he
withdrew from two four-year school presidential searches, choosing to remain a
community college president.
"I decided it just wasn't the time to leave," he said.
He was a finalist this spring for president of Rhode Island Community College,
but didn't get the job. He said at the time that he applied mainly out of
curiosity, and didn't expect to be hired.
Mr. Asquino does teach public administration classes at Roger Williams
University in Providence, but his main focus is on Mount Wachusett College and
the greater Gardner community. He has been chairman of the local United Way
campaign and served as chairman of the Greater Gardner Chamber of Commerce. He
is also a trustee of Heywood Hospital in Gardner and on the executive board of
the North Central Chamber of Commerce.
The changes at the college have been many since he took office, and he is
looking to the near future to one of the biggest.
He said he plans to keep the college growing, and part of that plan will be to
create residence halls on the Green Street campus. It is a change he said was
not even being considered when he took over as president. He said a feasibility
study has been completed, and the school is looking at building dormitories to
house 300 to 400 students as soon as financing is arranged.
The key to building the dormitories is finding a way that they will pay for
themselves. The state is emphasizing programs that will not cost the taxpayers
money unless they use the service. How things are paid for is also one of the
biggest changes at the college in the past 20 years.
"We were 90 percent state funded when I came here," Mr. Asquino said.
It cost $5.8 million to run the school that year to serve 4,000 students. Today,
$40 million is spent to educate the more than 8,000 students taking classes at
the main campus and satellite campuses in Devens, Leominster and Orange.
Of the $40 million, $7 million is from federal grants. The state now only pays
about 29 percent of the budget. The rest is from tuition, fees and grants.
The demographics of the school have changed as well.
The average age of students when he took office was 30. Today it is 23.
When he started, the student body had only a small percentage of minority
students, and most of those were black.
Now, 16 percent of the student body is of black, Latino and Asian heritage,
reflecting the changing demographics of the communities in the school's core
area.
The school has also seen a dramatic growth in its nursing, dental hygiene,
graphic arts and early childhood programs.
May 23, 2006
Asquino doesn't get R.I. job
REGIONAL DIGEST, Worcester Telegram & Gazette (MA)
Mount Wachusett Community
College President Daniel Asquino was passed over yesterday for a job as
president of the Community College of Rhode Island.
Mr. Asquino was one of three finalists for the position, but the state's Board
of Governors for Higher Education yesterday chose Ray M. DiPasquale instead,
according to the Providence Journal.
Mr. DiPasquale has been serving as the Rhode Island college's interim president
since December.
Mr. Asquino had played down his position as a finalist, saying he applied out of
curiosity and had a slim chance of getting the job. He has been president of
MWCC since 1987.
May 13, 2006
MWCC chief finalist for R.I. post
REGIONAL DIGEST, Worcester Telegram & Gazette (MA)
GARDNER - Mount Wachusett Community College President Daniel M.
Asquino is one of three finalists for the president's post at Community College
of Rhode Island.
"It's not something I was looking for," Mr. Asquino said yesterday. "It's
curiosity more than anything else."
Mr. Asquino, who has been the MWCC president since 1987, is scheduled to spend
Tuesday at the Rhode Island college.
He said the opening at the school was brought to his attention several months
ago and he submitted his name. The application is not a sign of dissatisfaction
with his current post, he said, calling it an opportunity he would have
regretted not pursuing.
Community College of Rhode Island, with 15,000 students at four campuses, is the
largest community college in New England, said Dennis Moore, assistant to the
president at the school.
The other finalists for the job are Philip R. Day Jr., chancellor of the City
College of San Francisco, and Ray Di Pasquale, who has been serving as Community
College of Rhode Island's interim president since December.
Mr. Asquino said he saw the chances of his being picked for the Rhode Island
post as slim.