Woman Arraigned On Criminal Charges For Crashing Car Into Historic Union Street Home
David Creed •
The driver who crashed their vehicle into an historic house dating back to 1875 on Union Street and fled the scene in September has been identified, charged, and was arraigned in Nantucket District Court Monday morning on six charges.
Andrina Marzullo, 20, of Nantucket was arraigned on Sept. 6th charges of leaving the scene of property damage, negligent operation of a motor vehicle, marked lanes violation, speeding, possessing a Class D drug, and unsafe operation of a motor vehicle. She had not-guilty pleas entered on her behalf and was ordered to return to court Nov. 17th for a pretrial hearing.
According to the police report, officers were dispatched to 82 Union Street on September 6th after receiving a report of a car striking the residence. When they arrived, they observed significant damage to the front of the house, two front windows on the right side of the home caved in and removed from their frame, the front door caved in and splintered, and two iron railings on the front entranceway ran over and bent into the ground.
Police said they observed significant interior damage to the home, and the building inspector deemed the residence uninhabitable in the aftermath of the crash.
Police found silver vehicle parts strewn about on the sidewalk and said they matched those of a silver Jeep. An anonymous passerby stopped and told police they witnessed a silver Jeep Grand Cherokee operate towards downtown with significant damage.
The Jeep was located by police across the street of 45 Union Street and had significant right-side damage. It was tucked close to a bush, and the entire right side of the Jeep was crumpled. The front right wheel well was bent back, and police observed the engine area to be exposed, the front bumper hanging down and the front right tire flat. Police said they were able to track the Jeep as being registered to Marzullo, who had an Arrowhead Drive address.
When police arrived at Marzullo’s registered home address, they spoke to her father, who was able to get in contact with Marzullo’s co-worker who stated that Marzullo called them when the accident had occurred. The co-worker confirmed that Marzullo was operating the Jeep.
Marzullo told police she was operating the Jeep and that she knew she hit something “large” but did not know what it was. She confirmed she didn’t step on her brakes and kept driving. Police estimate she was driving approximately 40 miles per hour in a 25 mile per hour speed zone.
Police said after Marzullo traveled completely off the roadway and hit the home, she proceeded to continue driving down the sidewalk, down the length of the house, ran over the two iron railings, and ran over the front landscaping before getting back on the road and driving down Union Street. Police said she did not leave any information on or near the house to identify herself. Marzullo told police there were two passengers in the vehicle who were unharmed, and none of the occupants attempted to notify the owner of the house or emergency personnel.
When police inventoried the vehicle prior to towing, they located a bag of marijuana under the driver’s seat as well as marijuana paraphernalia. Marzullo admitted she did not possess a medical marijuana card and was not of age to possess the marijuana.
Ashley Lavallee, who was renting the home and was inside of the residence with her brother Anthony and her three-year-old daughter when the incident happened, told the Current last month that the moment was "terrifying" and "so loud and the whole thing moved."
“No screeching, no tire skids. Just a loud bang and crash, and the house shook and moved," Lavallee said. "We woke up and immediately ran downstairs after a headcount that everyone was ok. And the car was gone while I stood there and dialed 911. I’ll never stay that close to the road. Been here every summer for 40 years and was so excited to stay at the duck house and visit them every morning with my daughter. Looks like we’ll be sticking to Sconset or something off the road next year.”
You can view photos of the damage in the initial report here.
The Nantucket Police Department has released the following redacted reports on this incident to the Nantucket Current following a Freedom of Information Act request. Read them all by clicking here.