Alcohol Suspected In Fatal Laurel Crash, Driver Arrested

LAUREL, MD — Anne Arundel County Police have charged a Glen Burnie man with manslaughter for his role in a crash that killed a Bowie driver. The fatal crash happened about 2 a.m. Saturday on MD 32 East, just east of MD 198, when a Ford F-150 pick-up truck was traveling the wrong direction in the eastbound lanes of MD 32.

The pick-up — driven by Christopher Thomas, 39, of the 100 block of Greenway Village Place in Glen Burnie — struck an eastbound Toyota Camry nearly head-on, according to a police report. The Camry's driver — Raymond McCarter Jr., 33, of the 15000 block of Peartree Drive in Bowie — was pronounced dead at the scene.

McCarter's body was taken to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Baltimore for an autopsy to determine the cause of death. Thomas was not injured.

Police say the preliminary cause of the crash appears to be Thomas' truck traveling the wrong direction on a controlled access highway. His use of alcohol appears to have contributed to the wreck, police said in a news release.

Thomas has been charged with manslaughter by vehicle or vessel - gross negligence, manslaughter by vehicle or vessel - criminal negligence, driving under the influence of alcohol, driving under the influence of alcohol per se, and driving while impaired.

Photo of Christopher Thomas, courtesy of Anne Arundel County Police