A Hooksett officer who flipped his car while off duty and said he chugged four beers afterward has been fired, despite a verdict of not guilty on driving drunk.

There is no word on whether Benjamin Beauchemin will fight to keep the job he was fired from last week. Both the dismissed cop and his attorney refused comment Jan. 22 after the Hooksett Police Commission publicly announced his employment with the department had been terminated.

Neither responded when asked if they anticipated this outcome or if they are making plans to appeal the commission’s decision.

Commission Chairman David Gagnon said the termination was effective immediately but refused to shed light on how the group arrived at the decision to fire Beauchemin.

“(Beauchemin) is the one who wanted it nonpublic so that’s where it’s staying,” Gagnon said.

According to the department’s personnel procedures, any employee under disciplinary scrutiny has the option of opening police commission hearings to the public. Beauchemin and his counsel chose to keep the meetings closed.

Beauchemin has been placed on administrative leave without pay since last May, after he was arrested and charged with driving while intoxicated.

According to police records, Beauchemin flipped his Jeep Liberty off Cedar Crest Lane in Auburn at about 1:15 a.m. May 11 into a private yard after returning home from Manchester.

Court testimony revealed Beauchemin left the scene of the accident while police were summoned to the scene by eyewitnesses.

He said he drank four beers at his girlfriend’s house nearby in the time it took emergency responders to arrive in Auburn.

Records also indicate he refused an on-site sobriety test.

On Sept. 11, he was found not guilty by a District Court judge, who cited insufficient evidence to convict. Judge David LeFrancois said that although Beauchemin’s off-duty conduct was not appropriate for a police officer, he said state prosecutors had not proven beyond reasonable doubt that he had been drinking in excess before operating the vehicle.

After the court decision, Hooksett Police Chief Stephen Agrafiotis ordered an internal investigation that considered evidence not permissible in court including 911 recordings.

If Beauchemin chooses to appeal the commission’s sentence, a outside arbitrator will review the case and recommend a non-binding decision to the police commission, which the commission may choose to follow or reject.