A Massachusetts probation officer charged with raping a woman he was assigned to supervise has died in a car crash the day before he was scheduled to be arraigned.
Police say 50-year-old William Averill was killed shortly before 4 p.m. Tuesday on Route 28 in Randolph. Police say his car left the road and hit a bridge abutment. He was pronounced dead at a hospital.
Averill, who was assigned to Dorchester Municipal Court and lived in Boston's West Roxbury neighborhood, was scheduled to be arraigned Wednesday on charges including rape and indecent assault and battery.
Prosecutors say Averill assaulted a woman Jan. 5 when she reported to his office.
Averill's lawyer notified prosecutors of the death. The attorney says Averill's family is "completely devastated" by his death, which remains under investigation.
