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Body-Cam Video Shows Easton Officer Pulling 78-Year-Old From Burning Pickup

Police attribute the pre-dawn three-vehicle crash to a pickup striking a disabled dump truck on Turnpike Street.

Overview

  • Patrol Officer Dean Soucie broke the driver’s window and, with two bystanders, freed Francis Leverone from a pickup trapped under a dump truck as flames spread.
  • The crash occurred around 2:15 a.m. near 537 Turnpike St. when a Ford F-350 hit a disabled 1993 Mack dump truck, and a 2024 Toyota Camry then struck the pickup and ignited.
  • Two witnesses used a fire extinguisher and removed a gasoline tank from the pickup before it could ignite, actions the officer publicly praised.
  • Leverone, 78, was hospitalized with serious but non-life-threatening injuries, transferred to Boston Medical Center, and treated for a dislocated hip, according to his wife.
  • The Camry’s driver was uninjured, the roadway was closed for several hours, and Easton Police Chief Keith Boone commended Soucie as the investigation continues.