By Heather Morrison
masslive.com
WORCESTER, Mass. — “Let me get out,” a Worcester police officer begged as the motive force accelerated by means of Main Street site visitors. The passenger was grabbing for the officer’s gun and pepper spray, making a chaotic and harmful wrestle contained in the shifting automotive, physique digicam footage reveals.
“That was a very, very life-threatening situation the officer was put in,” Worcester Police Chief Paul Saucier stated of the Jan. 16, 2026, incident. Court paperwork echo his sentiments, stating, “if successful, these actions could have caused death to Officer Maracallo.”
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The scenario began as a result of John Slater, a person well-known to police and one of many people later concerned within the wrestle contained in the automotive, stood in the course of Main Street, “yelling, screaming and causing motorists to slow down,” courtroom paperwork state.
When Officer Alexander Maracallo arrived, physique digicam footage reveals him asking the motive force, later recognized as Sarah McMahon in courtroom paperwork, what they have been doing. She advised him she was ready for Slater, a pal, however denied doing any medication.
“Do you think I was born yesterday?” the officer requested, declaring the tin foil and open luggage.
Slater then got here to the automotive however gave the officer a false identify. He acquired within the automotive, telling police he was getting his ID. Maracallo responded by saying they didn’t want his ID.
“What are you doing?” the officer requested.
As the officer moved to cease him, the scenario shortly changed into a frantic wrestle within the entrance seat.
“Go, go, go,” a person may be heard yelling, and the motive force started shifting the automotive, hitting a distinct police officer outdoors the automotive, police stated.
“Stop the (expletive) car,” Maracallo yelled.
The battle continued with a person yelling “go,” whereas Maracallo pleaded for them to cease the dashing automotive, additionally yelling “you’re going to get shot.”
The driver and passenger pleaded for the officer to get off of Slater.
“Don’t hurt him,” McMahon yelled.
Eventually, Maracallo acquired the automotive to cease and yelled at everybody to get out as he continued preventing with Slater. Maracallo may be seen punching Slater, inflicting him to bleed, and choking him.
At about the identical time, one other officer handcuffed McMahon, who was mendacity on the bottom outdoors the automotive.
“Get off of me,” Slater, who was nonetheless contained in the automotive, stated — his phrases popping out quick and breathy.
Another police officer pulled Slater out of the automotive, inflicting his pants to fall off, and handcuffed him on the bottom.
“Get off of him,” McMahon continued to yell.
Once the 2 have been handcuffed, Maracallo walked away, respiratory closely.
“I lost my shoe,” he stated.
The scenario comes practically two years after a Worcester decide and Slater’s mother made a plan to get Slater assist. His historical past of costs goes again 10 years and a number of Massachusetts cities, together with costs in reference to beforehand hitting a police officer’s leg with a automotive and capturing individuals with a paintball gun.
Prosecutors have been warning for years that Slater’s sample of driving off after interactions with police confirmed a “continued theme.”
“He’s (expletive) back out again,” Maracallo stated after discovering out Slater’s actual identify.
A failed likelihood at rehabilitation
Courts have repeatedly discovered Slater harmful. His mom hoped these selections can be the turning level that introduced him the assistance he’s lengthy wanted.
“This could all end,” Anna Coll stated in 2024.
Coll advised MassDwell that 12 months that her son was not the legal painted by police and prosecutors.
Slater’s “not a fighter, he’s not violent, but he is aggressive,” she stated. Before his 2024 listening to, she stated her son was lovable and “like a hippy.”
She hoped protecting Slater in custody would imply he can be away from anybody enabling him to take medication or trigger hurt — ending his path as a legal.
On April 4, 2024, Slater was driving on a suspended license whereas working for DoorDash, police stated. A police officer reached his arm inside Slater’s automotive to unlock the door and arrest him. Slater deeply inhaled his vape system and drove off with the again of his automotive hanging the officer’s leg and inflicting him to lose his stability, the police report stated.
Police officers “circled the area and we were unable to locate the vehicle,” based on the police report.
Then, on April 17, 2024, detectives noticed Slater’s Chevy Cruze whereas patrolling within the space of Green Hill Park. The detectives tried to get him to tug over, however he continued to drive off “in a manner that showed complete disregard for the safety of pedestrians,” police wrote. The detectives didn’t pursue him.
Two days later, when he once more did not cease for Worcester police, they notified the Massachusetts State Police.
Slater led State Police on a chase alongside the Massachusetts Turnpike heading east towards Millbury earlier than he made a U-turn and drove the improper approach right into a police cruiser, which police imagine was on objective. The driver’s facet and again finish of the Chevy have been broken because of this.
Police stated the then-21-year-old continued driving the improper approach on Interstate 90. State Police models and an Air Wing have been deployed to observe Slater and the Chevy, however misplaced him.
Police lastly arrested Slater on April 24, 2024.
After recognizing Slater, Officer Anthony Lombardozzi ran out of his cruiser towards Slater and tried to seize him. Slater closed his automotive door, however Lombardozzi opened it “and began to attempt to take a violently resisting Mr. Slater into custody,” Lombardozzi wrote within the police report.
Three cops pulled Slater from the automotive, however he continued to withstand arrest, and it “took numerous attempts and an unknown amount of time” to get Slater to the bottom, based on courtroom paperwork.
As extra officers got here to their support, Lombardozzi wrote that they nonetheless couldn’t get Slater’s arm behind his again as he “was continually putting his hands under his body … in what I believed was an attempt for him to retrieve a weapon to harm either myself or other officers on scene.”
Police lastly positioned him in handcuffs, however Slater “continued his tirade and continually resisted and moved” in a approach that appeared like he would escape, Lombardozzi wrote.
On Aug. 22, 2024, Slater pleaded responsible and was sentenced to 18 months within the Worcester County House of Correction.
Many of the fees he confronted in district courtroom previous to pleading responsible in 2024 have been dismissed. He has additionally been indicted in Worcester Superior Court twice, as soon as in 2021 and once more in 2022. He pleaded responsible in reference to the 2021 incident in Superior Court and costs have been dismissed within the 2022 Superior Court case.
Before his mom left the courtroom in May 2024 following a dangerousness listening to, Coll and the decide agreed that, as soon as the 2024 case was over, Slater’s subsequent step was to hunt rehabilitation with the assistance of an expert.
“He’ll have outside help,” she stated. “This is just the start. (This is) opening up a door to (give him) proper help.”
However, that must wait. During the May 2024 listening to, he was deemed harmful and remained within the Worcester County House of Correction.
Despite the sooner dedication to hunt assist for Slater, it’s unclear what, if something, was completed as soon as he completed his 18-month sentence. To Saucier, although, the priority is unchanged: he believes Slater stays a menace.
“He’s a threat to the public, he’s a threat to the police. That person should be in prison. And I don’t know why he’s out there,” he stated.
Health points
Coll stated her son has been scuffling with well being points, together with seizures, because of a violent automotive crash in Worcester.
Seated within the passenger seat, Slater hit his head towards the window of a automotive whereas his pal within the driver’s seat reached over and held him again.
“I think (that crash) plays a big role when he’s high,” Coll stated about why her son makes use of fentanyl.
But Coll stated the dying of Slater’s paternal grandmother has performed a job in his drug abuse. She died in his room.
“John doesn’t care if he dies,” she continued. “He just wants to be with her. It’s like a connection (between him and his grandmother) in that house.”
On Christmas Eve 2023, a number of months after felony costs in reference to intimidation have been dismissed, Slater overdosed on fentanyl, Coll stated. The household was extra scared for his security than ever, she stated.
Still, his reckless habits continued.
Use of power
Immediately after the Jan. 16, 2026 , incident, Maracallo may be heard informing fellow officers and a sergeant that he punched McMahon and Slater. He may also be seen along with his hand round Slater’s neck through the wrestle contained in the automotive.
Maracallo may be heard saying he damage his hand from the punches and foot because of the automotive door closing on it whereas he was trapped. He, together with McMahon, Slater and a police officer who was hit by the automotive, have been taken to the hospital to be evaluated.
The Worcester Police Department has been sharply criticized for its use of extreme and unjustified power in a 2024 Justice Department report following a two-year investigation. The report mentions harmful and unreasonable head strikes.
But this, Saucier stated, was an officer preventing for his life.
“People think that the police are superhuman. We get hurt, too. There’s cops getting killed every single day,” he stated.
Only by the grace of God, Saucier stated, is that this officer nonetheless working.
“If that car took a different turn, instead of going straight on Main Street and took a left turn, (and) that door flew open, he was getting thrown from the vehicle,” Saucier stated. “And then again, you never know if that guy’s gonna have a weapon. I mean, if that guy had a gun or a knife, it’s over.”
Still, Maracallo’s actions are underneath evaluate by the Bureau of Professional Standards to find out whether or not the power used was objectively affordable in gentle of the totality of the circumstances.
“Again, just to make sure everything was in policy or if there are any training deficiencies that we need to address,” Saucier stated. “So it’s a whole line of things that happens whenever officers use force.”
These kinds of incidents may also maintain individuals from becoming a member of the police division sooner or later, a regarding difficulty as the town’s police division is at the moment down 58 officers.
“At one point, you were brought up to respect the law, respect police; nowadays, that doesn’t happen,” Saucier stated. He pointed to an enormous post-blizzard snowball battle in New York that ended with cops being pelted and injured.
“And it does deter some people from wanting this job,” he stated.
January 2026
On Feb. 2 , Slater was as soon as once more deemed harmful by Worcester courts.
He was charged with assault to homicide, kidnapping, try to disarm a police officer, assault and battery on a police officer and resisting arrest. He was additionally in possession of three glass pipes containing crack cocaine, police stated.
McMahon additionally faces a number of costs, together with assault to homicide, kidnapping and drug costs.
Slater’s return to crime in Worcester isn’t utterly stunning to Saucier.
“Most of the people causing the problems in society are the same people,” he stated. “It’s a very small percentage of people that actually commit the violence, and that’s why we target those individuals.”
But it may be disheartening to officers who spend months engaged on an investigation, take a harmful individual off the streets, solely to come across them once more, the police chief defined.
“And then when they get back out, after we spent all that time putting them in, that’s very disheartening to the officers, all the work they do,” he stated. “And look at (Slater). This cop could have been killed very easily.”
Saucier strongly helps diversion applications, particularly for individuals underneath 18. Still, he worries that repeated leniency towards some people might result in a tragic final result for an officer.
The Worcester District Attorney’s workplace is unable to touch upon ongoing instances.
Slater is being held in Worcester County House of Correction till at the very least May 15, when he’s anticipated to return to courtroom.
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