Police Charge Driver Of Car That Struck, Killed Howard Co. Offi...

It is unlawful to be in the travelway of a highway and what he was doing was just plain stupid and dangerous.

Is he going to be charged for failure to obey the responsibilities of a pedestrian and creating a hazard?

The police show there true colors with the vindictive charges after a jury fails to find merits in the case. Anyone else who got hit while being in the middle of a highway and it would have been their fault not the motorist.

This last post by Traffic Engineer is a prime example of someone who has no compassion or empathy. I am very disgusted that you would even consider saying such ridiculous things. You are probably one of those people that is upset because you got a ticket for something you did wrong. You are a not a traffic engineer because if you were then you would know what you are talking about.

Yes I agree. The traffic engineer from Hagerstown is a coward. He is probably the type of guy that hides behind his computer and writes this type of stuff but if you talked to him in person he would say something different. People like him are prime examples of why we have so many selfish cowardly people in today's society.

I am confused by the post by Traffic Engineer. I always thought they were knowledgeable about the rules of the road. Why would someone in that position say such ridiculous things in a post ? You might want to do some research traffic engineer. The police officer was doing his job which is to enforce the law. How is he a hazard when he is wearing a reflective vest? Vindictive charges ? What are you talking about ? So if that police officer was your son or a family member or even a close friend of yours would you be saying things like that ? What is wrong with you ?

It sounds like the traffic engineer from Hagerstown is a coward that sits behind his computer and makes comments about things he has no clue about.....

Mr. Hagerstown Traffic Engineer. You talk about being vindictive and your post is full of it. If you don't like the police then fine but don't post horrible things about someone that died in the line of duty. Your lack of empathy is very prevalent in your post and I am disappointed that you would even write such things.

It is dangerous and plain stupid to dart into the travel lane of a highway. Anyone who stands in the travel lanes of a highway is risking their safety and others safety.
Giving out speeding tickets for revenue generation can be done in a safe and professional manner.
The LEOs have posted one side of the story - they are the true cowards - trying this case in the media with false information including unverifiable reports of speed, indications he was wearing a reflective vest when he probable was not.
They vicitimize both the public and innocent motorists by being above the law.
§21–502.
"A pedestrian may not suddenly leave a curb or other place of safety and walk or run into the path of a vehicle which is so close that it is impossible for the driver to yield."
This officer was a criminal and the powers that be in law enforcement having him do this are worthless criminals as well with no regard to public safety or the laws of the land of MD.

Speeding maybe, negligent, nope. Jumping out in front of a speeding car? yeap thats negligent. I guess we'll have to wait to see the results. Doesn't matter if he was wearing a vest or not, nobody, law enforcement or citizen, should jump out in a traffic lane with vehicles speeding towards you, thats just not common sense. Who knows, that vehicle operator could have their eyes on their rear view mirror for a few seconds as their vehicle is speeding towards you. Yes I'm retired from law enforcement and my heart bleeds for Scott and his family, but lets face it, HE made a fatal error.

Let's get a couple of things straight. First of all Cpl. Wheeler did not "dart" into the travel lane of the highway. He was attempting to stop a vehicle that was exceeding the posted speed limit. There is a difference so get your facts straight.
Giving out tickets for revenue generation ? What are you talking about? Do you have any facts to support your ludicrous claim ?
You have no idea what you are talking about because you were not there. Do some research and maybe then you can make comments about this tragedy. It's obvious to me that you lack empathy and compassion. Instead you focus on such ridiculous things like calling the officer a criminal. Oh and thanks for the quote from the traffic law but that doesn't apply in this situation. Nice try though....

Mr. Top Cop. You have your facts mixed up. Cpl. Wheeler did not "jump out in front of a speeding car". He was attempting to flag down a speeding motorist. There is a difference. The driver of that vehicle was using her cellphone and was not paying attention before she hit the officer. If you are a true retired officer then you would do some research and then formulate your opinion. The only fatal error is what you posted on this forum.

It sounds like the poster from Hagerstown has alot of deep rooted hatred for the police. His selfishness is definitely reflected in his post about the LEO apologists because he has no facts to back up his claim. The funny thing is he makes an attempt to sound like he knows what he's talking about by quoting a traffic law that doesn't even apply to this situation. Unfortunately there will always be people like him in society but the good thing is he will never be a hero and his only contribution to society is his cynical and immature behavior.

That top cop poster from Gaithersburg was probably some wanna be who was a school crossing guard in the police department. He thinks he is a top cop but the reality is he is a loser just like the guy from hagerstown. Scott was my friend and he didn't deserve to die. I am not a cop but I can tell you that what he did was not wrong. Do you know what happened? Did you even know what kind of officer Scott was? Did you even go to his funeral and pay respects? Who are you to pass judgement on someone that gave their life as a police officer? I went to Scott's funeral and it was the worst day of my life losing my friend. It's obvious to me that you could care less about anyone but yourself. You aren't a top cop because if you were then you wouldn't have said such horrible things about a police officer that you claim to be.

I was told there some postings on this website that criticized Scott and blamed him for his death. I am also a good friend of Scott's and it was very disappointing to read the two postings from hagerstown and gaithersburg. I am not a police officer either but I went to school with Scott. He was a wonderful person and always made you laugh. He loved police work and dedicated his life to helping others. How could you say such horrible things about him when you never knew him? From reading those posts it looks like you didn't even take the time to look the reasons for the cause of his death. How would you feel if your friend or family member died and someone said such horrible things about them? Maybe you should think about this and stop blaming Scott for something that was out of his control. I know Scott is looking down from heaven and probably shaking his head right now. No worries Scott, you will always have friends and family that will be here for you and defend you.

Walk a day in the shoes of a police officer, then you will have the right to comment. For those of you that comment on the law, you have no right due to the fact that you do not regularly enforce traffic or criminal law...the fact that you engineer roadways does not give you the right to comment or make remarks about someone who gave their life to protect YOU from the drunk driver or speeding motorist...he was also a devoted husband, loyal friend and coworker.

He was just to lazy to get into his vehicle and pull over the motorists so he took short cuts which were reckless to make his ticket quota easier. That behavior by police officers (standing in the traffic lanes on highways has now been corrected.) and it is against the law for a pedestrian to be in the highway. Police are not actually above the law they just think they are. The inflated charges were ridiculous - the driver has been scarred for life and is a good person. Anyone who stands in the road and in unexpected locations is just stupid. I have seen this going on a lot and NONE of the troopers wears any kind of reflective vest - they purposely try to ambush drivers. Sorry for friends of this guy but some of the fault for his situation lies with HIS actions and the SUPERIORS in Law enforcement who were the ROOT CAUSE of this tragedy. Who ever his supervisor is should be the one in court facing criminal charges.

Anyone know who that idiot is....

How can you say he was lazy ? You never even knew Scott. Do you even know what he was doing on the day he died ? Inflated charges? What are you talking about ? You sound like someone that has misinformed and doesn't understand police work. Purposely try to ambush drivers ? YOU are probably one of those drivers that would hit a cop and then drive away like a coward. YOU are the root cause of this tragedy because it's people like YOU that cause someone like Scott to get killed. Who cares if the driver is scarred for life. She never even had the courage to apologize to Scott's family. She is just as much of a coward as YOU are.

Article says "A grand jury decided on Wednesday not to indict Grissom on a charge of manslaughter by automobile."

That is BS. Any speeder who kills someone should be charged with manslaughter if not murder. This is just more criminal coddling.

I agree with your post. What is the purpose of speeding anyways ? As a society we have established speed limit laws for a reason. If the poster from Hagerstown was a true traffic engineer then he would know this as well. People need to understand that driving on the roadways is a privilege not a right. We have laws for a reason and if you can't follow them then you deserve to be punished. Criminal coddling? Yes, you are right. It is good to see that we are now having people with common sense posting responses on this website.

You idiots! Don't you know that people like the guy from Hagerstown says stupid stuff just to get a reaction out of you! Don't give these jerks the pleasure. Just ignore them.

That section of road has an 85% speed of 68 mph, so the vehicle was not going any faster than the flow (if you actually believe the HCPD and think they can accurately operate a Kustom signal laser gun which is highly questionable). The sign is illegal per the MUTCD and MDSHA standards - speed limit was set by politicians to raise money. There wer no fatal accidents of near misses in the section either to warrant aggressive enforcement. This is a case of the cure being worse that the non-existent problem (unitl HCPD caused this problem by being stupid and greedy)