Crime & Safety

Six Fatalities, 284 Crashes in Maryland Over Thanksgiving Weekend

State police said they will continue special enforcement efforts through the New Year.

Maryland state troopers responded to 284 traffic crashes statewide over Thanksgiving weekend and are investigating five fatal crashes in which six people were killed.

Two of the fatal crashes occurred in Frederick County and the others occurred in Washington, Harford and Queen Anne’s counties, according to a press release.

The crashes came as traffic was at a high

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About 871,000 Maryland residents, a 3.5 percent increase from 2010, were expected to travel at least 50 miles round-trip from Wednesday, Nov. 23, to Sunday, Nov. 27, according to AAA-Mid-Atlantic.

Local police departments also investigated traffic collisions over the holiday.

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In Elkridge, two teens were killed Friday night when the car they and three others were traveling in hit a tree on Lawyers Hill Road, said police.

Jeffrey Ryan Giles, 19, of Linthicum, and Jonathon Lloyd Deckman, 18, of Severn, were pronounced dead at the scene, according to a statement from Howard County police.

Overall, Maryland State Police issued more than 10,000 traffic citations and warnings as part of a variety of increased enforcement efforts that ranged from DUI patrols to cargo theft prevention during the Thanksgiving holiday period, according to a press release.

Those included the arrest of 113 suspected drunk drivers.

Maryland State Police traffic safety efforts will continue through the New Year, officials said. State police officials said they will be working with with local law enforcement, the Maryland Highway Safety Office, and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.


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