Federal data shows that driving under the influence in Massachusetts is a growing problem.

The number of drivers under the influence of alcohol, drugs or medication at the time of a fatal crash “increased steadily” from 2020 to 2023 in the Bay State, according to AAA Northeast, citing the latest available data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Over the four years, the Commonwealth recorded 141 total such incidents, increasing from 17 in 2020 to 55 in 2023, according to data in the Fatality Analysis Reporting System.

Mary Kate DePamphilis, program director for the Massachusetts chapter of Mothers Against Drunk Driving, says that one death is too many because of impaired driving, and fatality numbers “don’t consider the many others who have been injured; some severely.”

Dozens of community members gathered in Franklin on Thursday for a vigil in memory of the state’s most recent victims of impaired driving: 5-year-old girl Krisha Patel and her 38-year-old mother, Minaben Patel.

Suspect James Blanchard, 21, of Franklin, is accused of drinking Tito’s Vodka straight out of a 1.75-liter bottle behind the wheel when he plowed a pickup truck head-on into a sedan driven by Atulkumar Patel, Krisha’s father and Minaben’s husband, the evening of May 24.

“MADD is heartbroken over the Memorial Day crash that happened in Franklin,” DePamphilis told the Herald. “An innocent child and her mother are no longer with us because of someone’s careless decision to drink and drive.

“Impaired driving crashes are 100% preventable,” she added, “which makes this even more tragic.”

Locally, DePamphilis said her organization is working “every day to prevent these senseless deaths” in partnership with law enforcement, by providing education in schools for children and parents, while “working on strengthening impaired driving legislation.”

Mothers Against Drunk Driving is also “working diligently” to advocate for the federal HALT Act, legislation that would mandate impaired driving prevention technology in all new cars, DePamphilis said.

Reducing the number of impaired driving incidents in the Bay State is also the mission of traffic safety grants awarded through the state Office of Grants and Research. This fiscal year, the program issued more than $12 million in federal funding to nonprofits, municipal police and state agencies to bolster safety for all users of the road.

Data provided to the Herald shows that the Massachusetts State Police conducted 26 sobriety checkpoints and 40 saturation patrols between December 2023 and September 2024, totaling 7,187 hours of enforcement activity and issuing over 11,000 citations and written warnings to drivers.

“Every day, we serve victims of impaired driving, free of charge,” DePamphilis said of Mothers Against Drunk Driving. “We are there for families in their darkest days to help navigate through grief and the criminal justice system, eventually getting to a place in their healing journey where they can cope. I urge anyone who has been a victim of impaired driving to reach out to 1-800-MADD-HELP.”

The discovery of Adriana Suazo’s body in a wooded area in Milton, Massachusetts has intensified growing concerns across New England about the number of unexplained deaths in the region in recent months. 

Suazo, a 21-year-old Boston resident, was found by a passerby around 11:45 a.m. on Sunday, June 1, in Milton, Mass, which is approximately 8 miles south from the capitol city, according to a press release from the Norfolk District Attorney’s Office.

The department said that there were no obvious signs of trauma, and the cause of death is under investigation by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner.

Suazo’s death is the latest in a troubling sequence of cases. Since March 2025, at least 13 bodies have been found across Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Maine, many of them in remote or wooded areas. 

NEW ENGLAND SERIAL KILLER STOKED BY 12TH BODY FOUND IN 3 MONTHS, 2 IN SAME TOWN

The discovery of Adriana Suazo’s body in a wooded area in Milton, Massachusetts has stoked growing concerns across New England. (Town of Milton via Facebook)

The circumstances vary, from dismemberments to unattended deaths of the now 13 bodies found throughout the tight-knit region.

While local police departments and district attorneys continue to investigate each case individually, the sheer volume and proximity in time have led to mounting public speculation about the possibility of a serial offender.

Law enforcement agencies have pushed back against the notion of a single perpetrator, citing the absence of forensic links from each case.

A map showing the locations of where bodies in the New England area have been found. (Fox News)

Victims in New England Region

On March 6, 35-year-old Paige Fannon was found dead in the Norwalk River in Connecticut, the same day a human skull was discovered in a wooded area near Route 3 in Plymouth, Massachusetts. Later that month, on March 19, the dismembered remains of 58-year-old Suzanne Wormser were found in a suitcase in Groton, Connecticut; her roommate was arrested but died shortly afterward in custody. 

Denise Leary, 59, was found dead in New Haven on March 25, followed a day later by 56-year-old Michele Romano, whose remains were located in the woods in Foster, Rhode Island.

NEW ENGLAND SERIAL KILLER FEARS: 10 BODIES NOW FOUND IN LESS THAN 2 MONTHS

The trend continued into April. On April 9, unidentified remains were found in Killingly, Connecticut. 

On April 20, a body was pulled from the Seekonk River in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, followed by another body found in the Connecticut River near Rocky Hill on April 27. 

That same day, another body was discovered in Taunton, Massachusetts. On April 22, the body of 45-year-old Meggan Meredith was found near a bike path in Springfield, Massachusetts.

More recently, on May 30, 34-year-old Jasmine Wilkes was found deceased in Edgewood Park in New Haven.

The Milton, Massachusetts town center. (Google Maps)

Suazo’s sister, Melanie Pizarro, initiated a GoFundMe campaign to assist with funeral expenses, describing Adriana as “rambunctious, bold, and had a personality that could light up any room.” 

“Adriana wasn’t just my sister—she was a firecracker, full of life, laughter, and fierce love,” she said. “She loved hard, laughed loud, and made sure the people around her felt it.”

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A vigil was held near the site where Suazo’s body was found, with family and friends gathering to honor her memory.

A family from Chelsea, Massachusetts, has filed a federal complaint over their treatment by U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement agents during an arrest on Mother’s Day.

In the May 11 incident, the family was leaving church when several federal agency vehicles intercepted them at the border between Everett and Chelsea, according to video of the incident shared with Telemundo Nueva Inglaterra. After several minutes of arguing, and refusing to obey their request to roll down their window, agents broke the window to remove the man from the car.

After removing the man from the car, agents threw him to the ground and handcuffed him. Inside the vehicle were the rest of his family, including his wife and children. With the agents above him, the man could be heard asking why they were arresting him, saying he wasn’t resisting.

Laywers for Civil Rights, which has filed a complaint under the Federal Tort Claims Act on behalf of the family, said the man arrested was Daniel Flores-Martinez. His wife Kenia Guerrero, who is a U.S. citizen, was also held by police during the incident.

Flores-Martinez was taken to an immigration detention center where he remains in custody, having been denied a request for a stay of removal.

“My children watched as their father was physically attacked, treated like an animal, and ripped away from us,” Guerro said in a media release.. “They have so many questions, but I don’t have the answers. Why would the government tear our family apart like this? No mother should have to explain this kind of cruelty to her children.”

Layers for Civil Rights says this reflects a larger pattern of behavior by ICE.

Law enforcement officials cannot open the car door without justification. A car’s interior as a whole is subject to Fourth Amendment protection from unreasonable intrusions. No family should experience this level of fear, intimidation, and violence, especially not in front of young children on Mother’s Day and the Sabbath,” said Iván Espinoza-Madrigal, executive director of Lawyers for Civil Rights.

We reached out to ICE after the initial incident for comment, but did not hear back at the time.

This is one of many apparent ICE operations that have caused controversy across the Greater Boston area in recent weeks, many of which have been captured on video. Agents were seen breaking a car window in New Bedford, Massachusetts, in April before taking a man inside into custody. That man was eventually released on bond when the government failed to provide charging documents.

There was a chaotic scene in Worcester when community members tried to prevent ICE agents from arresting a local mother. Video recorded by Telemundo Nueva Inglaterra on May 8 showed Worcester police, who were called in as the situation escalated,  holding a 16-year-old girl’s face to the ground. The 16-year-old and another woman, Ashley Spring, were arrested by Worcester police. A Worcester city councilor is also facing charges.

Turkish Tufts University student Rumeysa Ozturk was detained by federal agents on the streets of Somerville and sent to a detention center in Louisiana. She was released after weeks of legal back-and-forth, has returned to Massachusetts and continues to fight her immigration case.

In a press conference earlier this week, ICE acting director Todd Lyons defended the work of his agency and said these operations are in the interest of public safety. U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts Leah Foley further warned that anyone who interferes or obstructs operations is subject to prosecution.