BERLIN – While the family awaits September’s jury trial, the community is looking to remember Gavin Knupp with a memorial paddle out on the one-year remembrance of his death next week.
Knupp was 14 years old when he was struck and killed on July 11, 2022, in a hit-and-run collision on Grays Corner Road as a pedestrian by a vehicle driven by Tyler Allen Mailloux, 22, of Berlin. Knupp was a pedestrian along the road after taking a cell phone picture of a stuffed deer head attached to a telephone pole. He was returning to a vehicle drive by his older sister, Summer, who tended to her brother awaiting paramedics. Knupp died from injuries sustained in the collision. Mailloux allegedly fled the scene and did not return, according to charges filed. Six days after the incident, at 1:30 a.m., the Mercedes identified as the vehicle in the collision was seized from a home in the Ocean Reef community.
Next week’s one-year anniversary of Knupp’s passing will be observed with a public recognition, as the family is hosting a memorial paddle out on 36th Street at 5 p.m. in Knupp’s remembrance.
After months of investigation, felony charges were filed in late April in the hit-and-run tragedy that claimed the life of a local teen last summer. The 17 charges filed by State’s Attorney Kris Heiser’s office in Worcester County Circuit Court on April 28 were failure to immediately stop vehicle at scene of accident involving bodily injury, two counts of violation of 20-102 knew, reasonably knew accident might result in serious bodily injury and injury occurred, failure to immediately return and remain at scene of accident involving bodily injury, failure to immediately stop vehicle at scene of accident involving death, two counts of violation of 20-102 knew, reasonably knew accident might result in death & death occurred, failure to immediately return and remain at scene of accident involving death, two counts of failure of driver involved in accident to render reasonable assistance to injured person, two counts of failure of vehicle driver in accident to report bodily injury, death, attending vehicle damage, property damage to nearest police, failure of vehicle driver involved in accident to give insurance policy information and four counts of failure vehicle driver within 15 days after accident result in body injury, death to furnish required report to administration.
Under Maryland’s Transportation code, leaving the scene of an accident in resulting in bodily injury is a felony punishable by up to five years in prison and a fine of $5,000. The maximum penalty jumps to 10 years in prison and $10,000 when the accident results in death.
Several people need to be charged with conspiracy to hide and conceal evidence in a deadly vehicular incident, namely the ones owning the garage where the involved car was being stored, and the accused parents.
From the start, this was covered up faster than an ugly stripper.
While I agree that others involved need to be charged, the SA didn’t file those charges that I am aware of. I believe that they will get a change of venue and eventually 10 years and 10k fine will be handed down. Of that sentence, I’d bet TM doesn’t do the full time and before you know it he’ll be working for mom’s boyfriend elsewhere.
A change of venue will be a big factor in letting this crime just dissolve away without us locals being aware.