Headlines
January 12, 2012
Bill would make it easier for Va. police to stop distracted drivers
WASHINGTON -- A startling statistic on traffic deaths in Virginia has reinvigorated calls for stricter texting-while-driving laws in that commonwealth. The Old Dominion recorded 250 more traffic deaths than Maryland in 2011, which the Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety blame on what it says is the state's lax enforcement of distracted drivers.
January 2, 2012
Nicholas Scott Clayton, Kaitlin Marie Gallagher killed in Bethesda crash
Dozens of grieving friends and family of 18-year-old Kaitlin Gallagher, known to many as Kiki, gathered Monday where she and 20-year-old Nicholas Clayton lost their lives.They were among the five young people in an SUV when it careened off Jones Bridge Road early Sunday morning, slamming into a tree. “The last memory I remember of Kiki is her telling me it’s not time to die yet, so how come a person who is trying to take their life lives and she wakes up dead the next day,” says Elena Young.
December 13, 2011
NTSB recommends full ban on use of cell phones while driving
Washington (CNN) -- Federal accident investigators Tuesday called for a nationwide ban on the use of cell phones and text messaging devices while driving. The recommendation is the most far-reaching yet by the National Transportation Safety Board, which in the past 10 years has increasingly sought to limit the use of portable electronic devices. It has recommended such bans for novice drivers, school bus drivers and commercial truckers.
November 28, 2011
Elkridge Community Remembers Teen Crash Victims
Two vigils held over the weekend mourned the loss of two teens killed in a crash Friday night in Elkridge. Police said speed may have been one of the factors in the crash in the 6200 block of Lawyers Hill Road that killed Jeffrey Ryan Giles, 19, of Linthicum, and Jonathon Lloyd Deckman, 18, of Severn.
November 26, 2011
Two Teens Dead in Howard Co. Crash
Two Maryland teenagers were killed and three others hospitalized after a 2008 Pontiac GT struck a tree in Howard County Friday night. Howard County Police confirmed that 18-year-old Jonathan Lloyd Deckman and 19-year-old Jeffrey Giles of Linthicum were pronounced dead at the site of the accident, which happened shortly after 8 p.m. Friday.
November 17, 2011
Dump truck driver charged in Tuesday's fatal accident on Lee Hwy.
The 65-year-old Alexandria man behind the wheel of the dump truck involved in Tuesday's fatal crash on Lee Hwy. has been charged with reckless driving. Prince William police spokesman Jonathan Perok said that James Edward Dibble, of 7858 Eagle Ave., turned himself in Wednesday after police obtained a warrant. According to police, Dibble was driving a dump truck south on U.S. 29 near Sudley Road when he crossed into the northbound lane at 2:36 p.m., striking the rear quarterpanel of a Ford F-350 truck. Dibble tried to get back onto the southbound lanes of U.S. 29, overcorrected, and went back into the northbound lanes, hitting head-on a Honda CR-V, police said.
November 14, 2011
Safe-driving campaign for teens goes national
Project Yellow Light, a safe-driving campaign in honor of a Spotsylvania teen who died in a car crash, is going national. Beginning Dec. 1, high school seniors nationwide may submit videos on the importance of safe driving and the dangers of text-messaging while driving. The videos have to be 60 seconds or less and will be judged by Project Yellow Light and its partners. The winner is scheduled to receive a $2,000 Hunter Garner Scholarship. For more information about this safe teen driving contest visit: http://fredericksburg.com/News/FLS/2011/112011/11142011/664515
November 1, 2011
Two city accidents minutes apart - Halloween brings two bizarre car accidents to downtown Fredericksburg
Fredericksburg didn't make it through Halloween without a couple of bizarre accidents. Just blocks and minutes from each other, a Jeep rolled on its side in a yard on William Street, and soon after, a city truck drove through the living room of a home on Maury Street.
October 31, 2011
Martinelly guilty of felony murder in nun's death
Much has changed for Sister Charlotte Lange since Aug. 1, 2010, the day the car she was driving collided head-on with one driven by Carlos Martinelly Montano on Bristow Road. The crash killed one Benedictine sister, 66-year-old Sister Denise Mosier, who had been riding in the back seat of Lange’s car, and severely injured Lange, 75, and Sister Connie Ruth Lupton, 70, her front seat passenger.
October 10, 2011
Former ‘Idol’ contestant sings for bigger payoff in video on distracted driving
Six years ago, Travis Tucker appeared on televisions across the country, belting Lionel Richie songs in his quest to become the next “American Idol.” Since then, his audience has shrunk in size, he says, but grown in importance: He’s a high school math teacher in Prince William County. This week, his two careers will intersect, as Tucker’s new music video, “It Can Wait,” is unveiled at a county School Board meeting, aimed at changing the behavior of students in Prince William and beyond.
October 3, 2011
American Idol-Finalist Travis Tucker Performs in “It Can Wait” Music Video Released Highlighting the Dangers of Texting and Driving
Almost 5,500 people are killed each year due to distracted driving, and the problem is getting worse. Young, inexperienced drivers have the highest proportion of distraction-related fatal crashes. Their lack of driving experience can contribute to critical misjudgments if they become distracted. Not surprisingly, teens text more than any other age group and the numbers of young drivers who text is only increasing. In response to this crisis, Partners for Safe Teen Driving (PFSTD) is conducting a statewide campaign to address this problem and will release a music video, send campaign posters to all Virginia high schools, and erect highway billboards in 40 locations. All of this will happen in conjunction with National Teen Driver Safety Week from October 16 to 22.
September 25, 2011
Woodbridge woman dies in Maryland car crash
A 29-year-old Woodbridge woman died early Sunday in a car crash in Silver Spring, Md. Montgomery County police said that Marisol Angela Gutierrez, of the 3400 Vale Court in Woodbridge, died when the 2009 Hyundai Elantra she was riding in crashed into a BMW 325i at the intersection of U.S. 29 and Tech Road at 4:36 a.m.
September 5, 2011
One killed, one injured in Prince William crash
One person was killed and a second person was injured after a one-car accident in Triangle Monday morning, police said.
Prince William County police said they received several 911 calls about an overturned car off of Joplin Road between mile marker 20 and 21.
September 5, 2011
Elderly Falls Church couple dies in Fairfax car crash
An elderly Falls Church couple has died in a car crash near the Seven Corners area in Fairfax County. Police say 83-year-old Harry Emlet of Falls Church was turning left from Arlington Boulevard near Patrick Henry Drive on Sunday afternoon when his car was struck by a pick-up truck. Both Emlet and his wife, 85-year-old Elinor Emlet, were taken to a hospital and pronounced dead.