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Authorities say ticket to be issued for crash that killed Ballston Spa woman

A retired state police sergeant who operated a motorcycle that crashed and killed his girlfriend one night last month will face a traffic ticket for driving outside the restrictions of a conditional driver’s license that he was issued because of a prior DWI arrest, officials said this week.

State police said Wayne J. Flores, 63, of Warrensburg, is not expected to face criminal charges for the June 30 crash on Route 22 in Westport that resulted in the death of his partner, 52-year-old Amy C. Raimo of Ballston Spa.

Both were thrown from a 2013 Harley-Davidson that was being driven by Flores after the motorcycle apparently hit a deer, according to state police records obtained by the Post-Star.

Raimo was pronounced dead at Elizabethtown Community Hospital from severe head injuries, while Flores suffered a “possible fracture to his left shoulder and other significant injuries,” according to state police documents.

Flores had a conditional driver’s license because of a misdemeanor driving while intoxicated arrest in Saratoga Springs on Feb. 22, which occurred after he was stopped for failing to signal a turn on Henry Street around 1 a.m., then refused to take a breath test when officers suspected he was intoxicated.

He pleaded guilty to a reduced count of driving while ability impaired, and his license was suspended for 90 days. Refusal to take a breath test also triggers separate action by the Department of Motor Vehicles.

State police said there was no indication Flores was driving under the influence of alcohol when last month’s fatal crash occurred.

A conditional license allows drivers to drive to and from work, medical appointments and other necessities but generally not for pleasure-related outings.

Flores worked for the state police on Long Island and at Troop G headquarters before retiring and going to work at SUNY Polytechnic Institute in 2014 as a “staff associate.” SUNY Polytechnic Institute has hired numerous state police retirees to work in its security force in recent years.

State Police would not release Flores’ name when the Post-Star made the first media inquiries about the motorcycle crash the day after it occurred, though the agency released his name later that week to other members of the news media.

Flores could not be reached for comment this week. Listed phone numbers for him have been disconnected, and a family member said Tuesday that he was not talking to the media about the situation.

His attorney in the DWI case, Matthew Chauvin, said he was not aware of the motorcycle crash.

Raimo, a former Moreau resident, had worked in public relations for a number of local companies and organizations, including Saratoga Hospital and Six Flags Great Escape.

Most recently, she had worked as vice president of community engagement for Saratoga Hospital’s Foundation.

“Her efforts have touched every program and service we offer, every patient and every family we have taken care of since she joined us just a few years ago — we are a better hospital because of her,” the foundation posted on its Facebook page after her death.

Mark Mulholland of WNYT-TV NewsChannel 13 contributed to this report.

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