Police ATV chase ends in death

Driver of stolen vehicle killed after head-on accident

Wednesday, Aug. 13, 2008

According to the Maryland State Police the black Honda ATV, which was reported stolen from Fairfax County, Va., was traveling north in the southbound lane of U.S. 301 when it collided with a green 1998 Dodge Neon a little after 1:30 a.m., police reported. The ATV driver, the passenger of the ATV and the driver of the Neon were flown from the scene by police helicopter, authorities reported.

The ATV driver, Aaron D. Williams, 24, of Clinton, was pronounced dead at Prince George’s Hospital Center in Cheverly, according to police.

The passenger of the ATV, Theodora N. Norris, 24, of Clinton, is being treated for injuries that are not life-threatening at the R. Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center and is in stable condition, police said.

The driver of the Neon, Randy C. Barnett, 59, of Waldorf, who has been released from R. Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center, said he is praying for Williams’ family.

‘‘I’m thankful to be alive,” he said. ‘‘I’m very sorry about the young man that died.”

In a statement he read over the phone to the Maryland Independent on Tuesday afternoon, Barnett, a clergyman, said he hoped ‘‘that young men and women who hear about this tragic incident will learn a lesson, that the thrill of stealing a [vehicle] and going on a joyride ... is not worth the consequences. ... It is my prayer that something good will come out of this sad event.” Barnett added that he is feeling ‘‘OK,” though he has two broken vertebrae from the crash. He said he’s resting at home.

A few minutes before the accident, a Charles County sheriff’s officer started chasing two ATVs north on U.S. 301 after seeing them in Waldorf and suspecting they were stolen, according to Kristen Timko, sheriff’s office spokeswoman.

Each vehicle had a driver and a passenger, Timko said.

The drivers of the ATVs wouldn’t stop for police and turned off their headlights, Timko said. During the chase, one of the ATVs started driving north into oncoming traffic on U.S. 301, she said. The ATV later struck the Dodge Neon head-on while traveling north in the southbound lane of 301. The officer kept pursuing the other ATV and lost track of the vehicle involved in the accident, Timko said. After the second ATV crossed into Prince George’s County, a supervisor told the officer to end the chase, Timko said. The officer came upon the scene of the accident on his way back to Charles County and called for assistance, according to Timko.

U.S. 301 was closed for about four hours while state troopers from the Forestville barrack and the Maryland State Police Crash Team investigated the accident. Both Williams and Norris had suspended driver’s licenses, reported state police after a preliminary investigation.