UPDATE: Bahneman was found not guilty of all charges.
On November 25, 2019, Thomas Edward Bahneman entered a plea of not guilty to all charges and was rendered a verdict of acquittal; his attorney was Hammad Matin, of LaPlata.
DWI HIT PARADE: Men on ATV found curve to be a challenge on Williams Wharf Road; charges for DUI and illegal operation pending for Thomas Bahneman while his pal is in trauma unit with serious head injuries
ST. LEONARD, MD. – Taking his pals for a booze cruise on an ATV must have seemed to be a good idea to Thomas Bahneman, and using a public roadway for the double dose of dumb driving, as driving while intoxicated and operating an ATV on a roadway are both serious traffic offenses; however, he just didn’t plan on a curve on the country lane. Now a young man lays in a trauma unit in critical condition with head injuries.
According to the Calvert Sheriff’s Department spokeswoman Kristen Leitch, on Saturday, July 27, 2019 at approximately 5:34 p.m., members of the Calvert County Sheriff’s Office Patrol Bureau and Crash Reconstruction Team responded to Ben Creek Road in the area of Williams Wharf Road in St. Leonard, MD, for a report of a motor vehicle collision involving an all-terrain vehicle (ATV / four-wheeler).
Preliminary investigation revealed that three males were riding on a Yamaha Bruin 350 four-wheeler traveling on Ben Creek Road when the operator Thomas Edward Bahneman, 24, of 16509 Nottingham Road, Upper Marlboro, Md., failed to negotiate a left-hand curve in the roadway and the vehicle left the roadway and struck an embankment.
Police say that James Scott Mathesius, 22, of Prince Frederick, Md., was riding on the rear cargo area of the ATV and was ejected as a result of the vehicle leaving the roadway. Mathesius sustained minor injuries and refused medical treatment on the scene.
Bahneman was placed under arrest and charged with Driving Under the Influence and other drunk driving-related offenses.
Bryan James Holland, 20, of Port Republic, Md., was riding on the front cargo area (in front of the handlebars) of the ATV and was ejected when the vehicle struck the embankment. Holland sustained serious injuries, including head trauma and was unconscious.
Maryland State Police Trooper 7 transported Holland to Baltimore Shock Trauma where he is listed in critical condition.
Maryland State Police Trooper 7 transported Holland to Baltimore Shock Trauma where he is listed in critical condition.
Additionally, it was determined that Bahneman was under the influence of alcohol at the time he was operating the ATV. Bahneman was placed under arrest and charged with Driving Under the Influence and other drunk driving-related offenses.
According to police, at this time alcohol, speed and improper use of the ATV appear to be major factors that contributed to this collision.
The collision is under investigation by Cpl. V. Bortchevsky, of Crash Reconstruction Team. Anyone with additional information is asked to contact Cpl. V. Bortchevsky, via e-mail vlad.bortchevsky@calvertcountymd.gov or by calling the Calvert County Sheriff’s Office at (410) 535-2800.
MECHANICS WANTED
