Chelmsford Man's License Yanked as an ' Immediate Threat'

LOWELL - Prosecutors say a 20-year-old Chelmsford man's driver's license was suspended as an "immediate threat'' after a head-on collision last August that left the other driver with life-threatening injuries.

In Lowell District Court on Wednesday, Michael Totten, of 29 Abbott Lane, was released on personal recognizance after pleading not guilty to charges of negligent operation of a motor vehicle, marked lanes violation and speeding in the Aug. 19, 2016 crash on Boston Road.

In court, Totten, through his attorney, asked for the return of his cell phone, which police confiscated to determine if Totten had been texting at the time of the crash, prosecutors said. The phone is no longer needed for the investigation and will be returned to Totten, prosecutors said.

Chelmsford police allege in court documents that officers responded at about 5:30 a.m. to a two-car, head-on crash on Boston Road at Concord Road. When officers arrived they found the crash involved two trucks. Robert Gentle, 58, of Baldwinville, the owner of 2003 Dodge Ram truck, suffered a serious head injury when his head hit the windshield, according to police.

Gentle was transported to a local hospital and then flown by medical helicopter to Tufts Medical Center in Boston for further treatment.

Totten, who was driving 2011 Ford pickup truck, was uninjured and allegedly told police the accident was his fault.

Totten allegedly told police he had been on Route 4 (Boston Road) , driving too fast around a corner and lost control of his truck, slamming into the other truck. He estimated he was travelling between 45 mph and 50 mph.

Police say Totten was not driving drunk, however, he allegedly told police he was suffering from sleep deprivation. He allegedly told police he had been awake since 8:30 p.m. the night before and only had four hours sleep the day before, according to police.

Totten's next court date is May 11 for a pretrial conference.

Photo by Lisa Redmond/lisa.redmond@patch.com.