An argument among several men in Old Town this week escalated into pushing and ended with one of the men getting into a car and hitting one of his adversaries with it before driving off, according to police.

Ricky Scott Emery, 23, was summoned on charges of aggravated assault and driving to endanger in connection with the incident Tuesday evening on Front Street.

Two men told Old Town police Officer Seth Burnes that Emery honked his horn as he drove past them as they were on the porch of the home and that they shouted back at him. This prompted Emery to stop and get out of the car, where the three argued. Words turned to pushing and one of the men punched Emery in the stomach.

Emery got back into his car and what happened next was disputed by the parties. The two men said Emery backed up and moved forward twice, squealing his tires as he went. On the second trip forward, the men said, Emery drove toward one of them as he was standing in the driveway, hitting him and causing him to fall on the hood and then onto the ground.

Emery and his passenger, however, claimed that in a hurry to leave after being punched, he accidentally put the car in reverse. And they said the man jumped onto the hood intentionally to lay the blame on him, according to the police report.

With conflicting statements, Burnes, at the advice of a prosecutor, went with the more convincing of the two sides. The officer noted that there were inconsistencies in what Emery and his passenger said.

Emery said, for example, that in leaving he didn’t need to drive around anyone, although his passenger said that they had driven around someone as they left. And contrary to what the passenger said, Emery initially denied honking the horn as he passed them, saying they had shouted first. Emery later admitted to Burnes that he had honked the horn in order to intimidate the other men.

The report also stated that earlier that day, Emery had tried to get into a fight with the family members of one of the men.

An Orono man’s problems were only starting when his car stalled as it turned onto Crosby Street in Orono early Friday morning.

Orono police Officer Casey Miller saw the white 1984 Honda Accord pass her on Park Street with only one headlight on. It was 1:30 a.m. and Miller decided to investigate. But as she followed the car, it turned onto Crosby Street, then stalled.

She spoke to the driver, John T. Forester, 23, and could smell alcohol coming from him, even though he claimed he had only had two wines 45 minutes earlier. His eyes were glassy, his speech slurred and he was unsteady on his feet, according to the police. He subsequently failed field-sobriety tests and was arrested and charged with operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of intoxicants. His blood-alcohol content registered 0.15 percent, or nearly twice the legal limit of 0.08 percent.

– Compiled by NEWS

reporter Doug Kesseli