Grammy-nominated bassist Roderick MacLeod lost his life in a shocking roadside tragedy this weekend, and the woman behind the wheel has a rap sheet that barely fits on paper. The 70-year-old musician was out for an early morning stroll with his beloved pups along Route 128 in Hopkinton—mere steps from the Connecticut state line—when disaster struck just after 7 a.m. on Saturday. Police say 41-year-old Shannon Godbout, behind the wheel of her SUV, veered into a path of destruction, smashing through two telephone poles before fatally hitting MacLeod as he walked on the shoulder.
Locally famous in Richmond for his skills on the bass and praised for his Grammy nod back in the ’80s as a member of the Roomful of Blues, MacLeod was rushed to Rhode Island Hospital. Sadly, doctors couldn’t save him, and the music world is mourning heavy losses. Friends painted MacLeod as a beacon of positivity and a musical jack-of-all-trades—famed sax player Doug James recalling his infectious spirit and legendary talent.
But Godbout’s record reads like a hardened criminal’s greatest hits. Cops at the scene found her not just behind the wheel, but apparently in the middle of a drug operation—authorities recovered an assortment of illicit substances and packaging that screamed ‘dealer.’ Godbout left the scene in handcuffs, transferred directly to a hospital under guard, still in custody Monday night.
The charges? Driving to endanger resulting in death, plus possession of drugs with intent to distribute—and the list could get longer. Godbout is anything but a stranger to law enforcement: She’s been busted more than 100 times across a dozen Rhode Island communities. The Hopkinton Police alone have hauled her in eight separate times, and she’s racked up 40 traffic tickets—seven just in Hopkinton.
Shockingly, most of her criminal cases ended in suspended sentences, meaning jail time was almost always avoided. Her longest stint behind bars amounted to just over two years, and she’s been ordered into substance abuse treatment seven times, with the latest referral as recent as April. Now, the Hopkinton Police are coordinating with the Rhode Island Attorney General, aiming to bring her to court as a probation violator—a move that could lead to even more serious consequences.
The local music scene is reeling after the loss of MacLeod, who was enshrined in the Rhode Island Music Hall of Fame back in 2012. Friends say his upbeat nature and musical brilliance will never be forgotten, even as they demand answers about how a tragedy like this could happen at the hands of a driver with such a notorious past.
