A veteran Baltimore and Annapolis police officer has been charged with the DUI death of a Glen Burnie teenager. If convicted of vehicular manslaughter charges, failure to stop and other traffic violations, the officer could be imprisoned up to a decade.
The motor vehicle accident occurred last year near the Anne Arundel County line in Brooklyn at the intersection of Potee Street and West Patapsco Avenue. Police reports say the officer’s Cadillac smashed into the side of an SUV.
A 19-year-old passenger, who was sitting behind the SUV driver in the back seat, was ejected through the vehicle’s window. The Glen Burnie teen was pronounced dead at Maryland Shock Trauma Center in Baltimore.
Accident investigators discovered that the off-duty officer had been traveling more than 70 mph in a 40 mph zone, just before the crash happened. The officer’s blood alcohol content registered 0.19, more than twice the legal limit of 0.08. A case of beer was found in the Cadillac.
Police reports say the officer involved in the accident attempted to leave the accident scene and refused to discuss the accident details with investigators, except to claim that he entered the intersection on a green light.
The driver of the SUV, a 19-year-old Pasadena man, confessed that he had smoked marijuana. A urine test also revealed trace levels of an opiate in the teenager’s system.
The officer charged with the motor vehicle homicide continued to work for the Annapolis PD following the crash. After working 29 years in law enforcement, the officer quit his job and turned himself in to officials the day after a grand jury indicted him.
The accused man was released and is scheduled for arraignment in September in Baltimore Circuit Court.