Brunswick Police Department
28 Federal Street
Brunswick, Maine 04011
(207)725-5521 Emergency 9-1-1

The Brunswick Police Department established a collision reconstruction unit in 1999. The purpose of the team is to assist Patrol Officers with crashes involving extensive property damage, death, or those which may involve criminal prosecution. The unit is comprised of three officers, Sergeant Thomas Garrepy, Sergeant William Potter, and Detective Russ Wrede.

 Officers who are assigned to the reconstruction unit have demonstrated a strong background in crash investigation. Officers are selected based by a specific process, and then attend a total of 240 hours of initial training, broken down into three phases. The scope of the training focuses on many different aspects of crash reconstruction.

 The first phase includes discussion of physical evidence, human elements, skid mark analysis, crash scene photography and scale diagramming. The second phase continues with kinetic energy, conservation of momentum, time/distance/motion equations, lamp analysis, tire damage evaluation, and vector sum analysis. The final phase focuses on the derivation and application of common formulas, based on Newton’s Laws of Motion. Topics include the determination of speed using conservation of linear momentum, commercial motor vehicle and motorcycle dynamics, as well as numerous practical applications in controlled vehicle experiments.

 Once the Officer has completed the above listed training, a resume and application is submitted to the Maine Criminal Justice Academy for acceptance into the program. Once accepted, an Officer must complete a minimum of four crash reconstructions within a year’s time frame, under the supervision of an experienced Collision Reconstruction Specialist, and take a certification exam. Once certified by the academy, an Officer  must continue to be active in the field, reconstructing at least four crashes a year, and then recertifying with a written test.

 Additional training includes the investigation of motorcycle, commercial motor vehicle, bicycle/pedestrian, and railroad grade crossing crash investigations. All of our Officers are familiarized with Forensic Mapping of the crash scenes.

 All Officers assigned to the Collision Reconstruction Unit have successfully passed the certification process for the Accreditation Commission for Traffic Accident Reconstruction (A.C.T.A.R). The organization, formed in 1985, establishes minimum standards for Traffic Reconstruction Specialists from around the world, including those in law enforcement, engineers, and those in the private consulting business.

 The Collision Reconstruction Unit is responsible for the reconstruction phase of all fatal crashes, those with extensive property damage, and prosecution cases, where culpability or fault must be determined. In addition, the unit is often tasked with traffic safety assignments as assigned by the Command Staff. The Officers also are actively involved with instruction of new Officers at the Maine Criminal Justice Academy, as well as the Brunswick Police Department Field Training program.

 For more information on the Brunswick Police Department’s Collision Reconstruction Unit, please contact: Sergeant Thomas Garrepy at tgarrepy@brunswickpd.org; Sergeant Bill Potter at wpotter@brunswickpd.org; or Detective Russ Wrede at rwrede@brunswickpd.org.