POUGHKEEPSIE – Common Council Chairperson Sarah Salem’s DWI trial will continue, according to a recent ruling by Poughkeepsie City Court Judge Frank Mora. Pre-trial evidentiary hearings conducted in October of 2020 in which Salem’s defense attorney sought to have Salem’s statements at the scene deemed inadmissible were denied. Mora also ruled that the police had probable cause to arrest Salem on the drunk-driving charge.
The 35-year-old Salem was involved in an incident late in the evening of February 26, 2020, in which police allege that the council chair was traveling on lower Main Street in the city, ran a red light, and struck another vehicle. Police responded and subsequently arrested Salem on the charge of DWI. Salem was previously arrested by State Police in 2017 on a DWI charge in Wappingers Falls.
Salem’s arraignment in Poughkeepsie City Court was originally scheduled for a date in March of 2020 but the COVID pandemic closed courts. Salem was finally arraigned on the charge in July of 2020.
According to the Dutchess County District Attorney’s office, the next virtual court appearance for Salem is scheduled for January 27, 2021. Criminal jury trials are currently on hold in Dutchess County due to the ongoing pandemic.
