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Maryland Natural Resource Police Blotter
Allegany County – On Wednesday, July 4, at 2:35 p.m., a Maryland Natural Resources Police (NRP) officer eastbound on Pleasant Valley Road in Rocky Gap State Park observed a pickup truck with a camper trailer in tow stopped in the park office parking lot. Two children were sitting in the back seat of the truck eating their lunch and a sedan was parked next to the truck. Monty L. Leatherman, of Keyser, occupied the sedan with his wife. The family had pulled into the park because their truck was overheating.
As the officer approached he noticed a large amount of smoke coming from the hood area of the truck. The officer told the children to exit the truck and then called for backup with fire equipment to the scene. Officers responding attempted to battle the blaze with hand-held fire extinguishers but were unable to control the fire. The truck was totally engulfed in flames.
Flintstone Volunteer Fire Company arrived on the scene and extinguished the blaze. The trailer received moderate damage, however no one was injured.
Garrett County – On Wednesday, July 4, at 6:10 p.m., the Maryland Natural Resources Police charged John Dean Orr, III, 55, of Rockville, with operating a motor vessel while under the influence of alcohol and operating a motor vessel while impaired by alcohol on Deep Creek Lake.
Orr was stopped after NRP observed his vessel violating the 100-foot from shore no wake zone distance requirement on Deep Creek Lake. After taking field sobriety tests, Orr was placed under arrest and transported to the Maryland State Police McHenry Barrack. Orr took a breath test, which showed a result of a blood alcohol concentration of .11 percent.
Garrett County – On Thursday afternoon, July 5, Maryland Natural Resources Police charged a West Virginia man for driving while intoxicated in Savage River State Forest.
NRP observed Richard Lee Cain III, 27, of Morgantown, W.Va., sitting in his vehicle with another individual. The vehicle had empty beer cans scattered on the ground around it.
After taking field sobriety tests Cain was placed under arrest and transported to the Garrett County Sheriff’s Office. Cain took a breath test, which showed a blood alcohol concentration of .12 percent. He was charged with driving a vehicle while under the influence of alcohol, driving a vehicle under the influence of alcohol per se, driving a vehicle while impaired by alcohol, and littering. He was released on his signature.
Worcester County – On Monday, July 2, Maryland Natural Resources Police charged Charles "Smitty" Richard Smith, 24, of Eden, and Joseph Wayne Pruitt II, 24, of Snow Hill, with littering. NRP received a report of illegal dumping of refuge on Old Beech Road and Honeywell Road from the Maryland Forest Service. Through their investigation, NRP identified and located Smith and Pruitt as the individuals responsible for the litter. Both men were issued two citations each for littering.
Worcester County – The Maryland Natural Resources Police charged two Delaware men with operating their vessels while intoxicated on the St. Martin River near Ocean Pines.
On July 4 at 11:15 p.m., NRP observed two vessels traveling together in the area of Club House Canal. The second vessel was not displaying the proper navigational lights. NRP approached both vessels as they headed north, observed both operators and stopped the vessel without proper navigational lights. The first vessel continued in a northerly direction.
The operator of the stopped boat, Thomas M. Bennett, 48, of Bridgeville, Del., was exhibiting signs of intoxication. NRP determined that Bennett would have to be escorted into port for further testing, as heavy sea conditions did not allow for officers to attempt towing the vessel. Sea conditions for that night were 3- to 4-foot waves with winds gusting at 30 knots.
Phone contact was made by NRP with the operator of the first vessel, James Kirk Evans, 41, of Lewes, Del., to ascertain where Bennett needed to take his vessel, as Bennett was unfamiliar with the North Ocean Pines area. Evans allegedly advised NRP that he continued on because he too was intoxicated and shouldn't have been operating his boat. Both individuals were enroute to the public boat ramps at the north end of Ocean Pines.
Bennett was escorted into the boat ramps by NRP. Ocean Pines Police Department was requested by NRP for assistance at the boat ramps prior to their arrival. After taking field sobriety tests, Bennett and Evans were placed under arrest and transported to the Ocean City Police Department for a breath test.
Bennett took a breath test, which showed a blood alcohol concentration of .16 percent. He was charged with operating a vessel while under the influence of alcohol; operating a vessel while impaired by alcohol; operating a vessel while impaired by drugs, or a combination of drugs and alcohol; and operating a vessel between the hours of sunset and sunrise without proper navigation lights.
Evans took a breath test, which showed a blood alcohol concentration of .09 percent. He was charged with operating a vessel while under the influence of alcohol; operating a vessel while impaired by alcohol; and operating a vessel while impaired by drugs, or a combination of drugs and alcohol.
A court date of September 14 has been scheduled for both men in Worcester County District Court.
July 9, 20077The Maryland Natural Resources Police is the enforcement arm of the Department of Natural Resources (DNR). With an authorized strength of 280 officers and a dedicated staff of civilian and volunteer personnel, the NRP provide a variety of services in addition to conservation and boating law enforcement duties throughout the State of Maryland. These services include homeland security, search and rescue, emergency medical services, education, information and communications services on a round the clock basis. NRP is the only police force aside from the Maryland State Police that has statewide jurisdiction.
Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is the state agency responsible for providing natural and living resource-related services to citizens and visitors. DNR manages more than 449,000 acres of public lands and 17,000 miles of waterways, along with Maryland's forests, fisheries and wildlife for maximum environmental, economic and quality of life benefits. A national leader in land conservation, DNR-managed parks and natural, historic and cultural resources attract 12 million visitors annually. DNR is the lead agency in Maryland's effort to restore the Chesapeake Bay, the state's number one environmental priority. Learn more at www.dnr.maryland.gov.