KEVIN REGAN
YARMOUTH — A Cape Cod man who prosecutors say was behind the wheel of a vehicle that struck and killed a veteran Westfield firefighter has been released on $5,000 bail and a pledge of sobriety.
Paul Dennehy pleaded not guilty yesterday to drunken driving and other charges. The 55-year-old Yarmouth resident declined to talk to reporters as he left Barnstable District Court after his arraignment.
He is due back in court for a pretrial hearing on February 9.
Investigators say Dennehy was driving a van that struck 62-year-old Kevin Regan and Lynda Cavanaugh Saturday night as they crossed Route 28 after dinner at a Yarmouth restaurant.
Cavanaugh was injured and flown to a Boston hospital for treatment.
Regan was a 43-year veteran of the Westfield Fire Department whose sister Mary is the city’s fire chief. He also served as chairman of the city’s Retirement Board.
Regan was remembered by colleagues as a dedicated firefighter and a loyal friend.
According to the Boston Herald, Dennehy is a real estate agent on Nantucket whose blood-alcohol level was .138 at the time of the fatal crash, well over the legal limit of .08, according to court documents and police reports released yesterday.
Dennehy told investigators he and his wife Cathy, his business partner at Harborlight Properties on Nantucket, had dinner at Captain Parker’s Pub in West Yarmouth, where he consumed two beers, then went to the private Sons of Erin club, where she drank wine, but he abstained “because he knew that he had to drive home,” court papers stated.
The Herald reported that police said Regan was wearing dark jeans, a dark gray sweatshirt and a Navy blue sweater, and Cavanaugh, also 62, a black jacket when they were struck shortly after 10:30 p.m. on Route 28 in West Yarmouth near the Parkers River Bridge.
Investigators noted the area “was not well lit” and “it was extremely foggy” at the time. According to the Herald, Dennehy told police Regan and Cavanaugh ran into the street “from out of nowhere” and he “slammed on his brakes,” but could not stop his Ford Econovan in time to avoid a collision.
Police noted “an overwhelming smell of intoxicating liquor coming from Regan” while they were performing chest compressions in a futile attempt to save his life.
Police also stated Cavanaugh was bleeding profusely from her head and suffered significant injuries, but was able to speak.
According to the Herald, Cavanaugh, who Regan had known since childhood, retired this year from her post as a retirement services administrator for the city.
The couple own a condo in West Yarmouth. Regan and Cavanaugh were both lifetime members of the Sons of Erin Cape Cod and Regan was a also founding member of the Sons of Erin in Westfield.
