5-6-26
Despite the rumor mill and character assassinations by political operatives in Methuen, City Councilor Yanilda Santos pleaded guilty in Salem, N.H. District Court this morning to reckless driving after skidding on ice, and knocking over a mailbox while making a U-Turn on a dead-end street back in February.
Because Santos exercised her constitutional rights to refuse a breathalyzer test, and had volunteered that she had just left a restaurant where she had dinner with a friend, she was initially charged by the responding officer with DUI.
But, Rockingham County prosecutors said that there was not enough evidence to convict Santos of the DUI charge, and agreed that because she had a clean criminal record, was otherwise cooperative and forthcoming with police, and agreed to replace the mailbox, a simple motor vehicle violation of reckless driving was sufficient – which is not a criminal offense.
8 MONTH SUSPENSION
NO CRIMINAL CHARGE
Santos received an automatic suspension of her license for six months in New Hampshire for refusing the breathalyzer, which went into effect back in February when the incident occurred. Another two months suspension was tacked on for the reckless driving charge.
This means she cannot drive in NH for five more months.
Santos will also pay a $500 fine, and if she keeps her driving record clean over the next five years, the motor vehicle infraction will be expunged from her record. Because it was a motor vehicle offense, she has to take an on-line class on responsible driving before she can get her license back in New Hampshire.
VINDICATED DESPITE BEING DEFAMED
“I feel so relieved that this is behind me,” Santos told the Valley Patriot in an exclusive interview after today’s court hearing.
“I really am blessed. God is good! This was a very stressful thing to go through, especially because I have kids and they had to read all the nasty made up stories people were posting on social media calling me a drunk, and painting me like I’m guilty of a charge when I was never guilty of that. ”
Santos’ Attorney Nicholas Howie of the Nicholas Howie Law Office in Salem, N.H. told The Valley Patriot that because Santos is an elected official she was treated more harshly than others in the same situation or worse, “and I think that the prosecutors understood that.”
Howie, who has been practicing law since 2008 and deals exclusively with DUI cases, said:
“In my view, it seems Ms. Santos was treated much more harshly that others in similarly situated circumstances and we were able to relate that to the prosecutors. Her name has been unjustly dragged through the mud and that is really unfortunate. I have seen people who have done far worse than she has been accused of doing, who were treated much better that she was.”
“Obviously there were strong mitigating factors here such as; her education and background, lack of evidence, and lack of criminal record. They were willing to look at this case for what it really was and replace the DUI charge with a simple reckless driving of a motor vehicle violation, which will not go on her criminal record.’
“She took responsibility for her actions in court today, and for all that has been said about her on social media and such, her actions certainly didn’t rise to the level of a criminal charge of DWI.”
SOUR GRAPES
FAILED CANDIDATE
JUMPED THE GUN
From the moment Santos was “accused” of DUI, political gadflies in Methuen tried to make more of the situation that it actually was, painting her as a drunk on social media, portraying her as guilty, and a threat to the community, despite having no actual evidence but the responding officers’ assumptions at the scene.
Disgraced former School Committee member and failed candidate for city council, Dan Shibilia – who is an out of work attorney – gleefully celebrated Santos’ arrest and – pretending to be a journalist – wrote to the prosecutor’s office demanding copies of police reports and body cam footage to further try and destroy Santos’ reputation.
“He even wrote to my attorney demanding answers like this had anything to do with him,” Santos revealed.
Shibilia was denied access to those files since he was not an attorney connected to the case, and was not a party to the case.
Salem, N.H. State Representative Dennis Mannion who wrote most of the body cam usage laws and policies for N.H. told the Valley Patriot back in February that the specific policies surrounding body cam footage dictate that only parties to the case can have access.
Sources in the Rockingham County Prosecutors Office admitted that Shibilia wrote an angry letter demanding evidence against Santos which would surely be used to try and further humiliate her publicly.
Shibilia’s demands were denied.
Shibilia and his sparse social media followers have been consistently attacking Santos because she was part of the political coalition that helped Councilor Patricia Valley defeat him in the last election for city council.
“There is no question his defaming me like he did was political retribution for helping Patricia defeat him last November, and that’s just not right. It’s sour grapes. My kids had to see that on the Facebook and they had to hear about it from their friends. I am just glad my name has been cleared and as an attorney I would hope Mr. Shibilia will respect the decision of the court and issue an apology for all the things he said and for calling for my resignation.”
Santos also said she hopes Shibilia and his small but very loud following would be just as loud in declaring her innocence as they were in condemning her when she was only accused.
“I hope he does because he is supposed to be an attorney and it’s the right thing to do.”
Santos said that she is eager to go back to focusing on serving the people of Methuen and her family.
“I am so happy to have this over with. Someone once said, the past is the past, the present is a gift, and the future is always uncertain. So, now my goal is to focus on what I got elected to do and that is to represent the people of Methuen and taking care of my kids.”
Santos also said she is planning to go back to school to get her master’s degree in business and finance. She is currently a loan officer with Citizens Bank.
Attorney Nicholas Howie is located at 1 Stiles Rd, Salem, NH 03079· If you are accused of a DUI charge and would like to contact him his number is (603) 893-8008