Man charged after accusing ex of restraining order violation
Aug. 14—SALEM — City-owned surveillance cameras saved a Salem woman from being charged with violating a restraining order last summer, and now her former boyfriend is facing a charge of filing a false report of a crime.
Randall Saunders, 59, of 117 Lafayette St., Salem, pleaded not guilty to the charge on Friday in Salem District Court, where he appeared in response to a summons.
The episode unfolded late on the evening of July 3, 2020, when police got a call from Saunders, who reported that his former girlfriend had approached him on Lafayette Street, called him a "loser" and a "scumbag," and spit at him.
When police caught up with the woman, however, she had a different story — she said she had been walking home and heard Saunders yelling from the window of his rooming house apartment, but that she ignored him. She also told police Saunders had in the past repeatedly followed her and tried to engage her in conversation, in an apparent attempt to get her to violate the order he had obtained against her.
Police arrested her and took her to the station. Once there, however, the officer, Edgar Green, decided to take a look at images from the city's street cameras. Green watched footage of the woman walking from Dodge Street and up Lafayette Street as she talked on her phone. At no point did she appear to encounter Saunders, according to the officer's report. She was released from custody with no charges.
The following night, Green went to speak to Saunders, who, after first trying to claim he'd seen the woman at a different location, eventually admitted "he was drunk when he made the statement, so it was probably not accurate." Saunders asked if he could take back his report.
Police instead filed charges.
Saunders remains free on personal recognizance and is due back in court on Oct. 15.
Courts reporter Julie Manganis can be reached at 978-338-2521, by email at jmanganis@salemnews.com or on Twitter at @SNJulieManganis.
