MURDER USA: Suspected DWI killer of buggy driver Henry Stauffer fled the crash scene, sought for manslaughter; Ryan Cherrico nabbed by police as funeral was taking place in Loveville for farmer; sentenced to only seven years in prison by Judge Joseph Stanalonis

DWI HIT PARADE Copyright 2020

MURDER USA: Suspected DWI killer of buggy driver Henry Stauffer fled crash scene, sought for manslaughter; Ryan Cherrico nabbed by police as funeral was taking place in Loveville for farmer

Plea Deals Have Kept Cherrico Out of Jail

UPDATE: Only seven years in prison from Judge Joseph Stanalonis for hit and run DUI fatal crash that killed farmer Henry Stauffer

St.-Marys-Circuit-Court-Judge-Joseph-Stanalonis

As of August 12, 2023, Ryan Cherrico is still in the St. Mary’s Jail in Leonardtown and not yet in the Maryland Prison system.

Ryan-Cherrico-June-1-2023-Hit-and-Run-fatal-crash-that-killed-farmer-driving-a-buggy-in-Loveville-sentenced-to-total-of-seven-years-in-prison

Cherrico finds an assault conviction while in jail lands him more time in the slammer.

Ryan-Nicholas-Cherrico-still-in-St.-Marys-Jail-following-assault-conviction-and-not-yet-in-prison-for-DUI-fatal-crash-that-killed-Henry-Stauffer
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LOVEVILLE, MD.  – Warrants for the arrest of Ryan Nicholas Cherrico, 31, of 28665 Hancock Drive in Mechanicsville, Md, have been issued for allegedly causing the death of Henry Brubacher Stauffer in a hit and run crash on Rt. 5 in Loveville on October 27, 2021.

St. Mary’s Sheriff Tim Cameron reports that his detectives have determined the operator of the striking vehicle involved in the fatality to be Ryan Cherrico.

Cherrico is a white male, 5’11” and weighs 175 pounds with green eyes and brown hair. A warrant has been issued for Cherrico’s arrest for the following charges:

  • Negligent Homicide by Vehicle Under the Influence
  • Negligent Manslaughter by Vehicle
  • Motor Vehicle Unlawful Taking
  • Driving Vehicle While Under the Influence of Alcohol
  • Driving Vehicle While Impaired by Alcohol
  • Driving Motor Vehicle on Highway on Suspended License and Privilege
  • Failure to Immediately Return and Remain at the Scene of the Accident Involving Death
  • Failure of Driver Involved in Accident to Render Reasonable Assistance to Injured Person

Sheriff Cameron says that the crash took place at 7:30 am on Wednesday, October 27th, at the intersection of Rt. 5 and Loveville Road when Cherrico was operating a 2000 Chevy Silverado pickup southbound on Rt. 5 and struck the buggy, killing Stauffer.   Cameron alleges that Cherrico immediately fled the crash scene on foot.

Stauffer was the sole occupant of the buggy and was ejected.

Expect Heavy Horse-and-Buggy Traffic in Loveville Monday and Tuesday

Sheriff Cameron reported on November 1, 2021, that motorists should expect delays and heavy horse-and-buggy volume Nov. 1, 2021, and Tuesday, Nov. 2, 2021, in the Loveville area along Point Lookout Road (Route 5) as the community pays its respects to Henry Stauffer, who was killed by Cherrico on October 27, 2021.

Private viewing services for Mr. Stauffer are being held on Nov. 1, 2021, from 11 am to 9 pm, and motorists can expect numerous buggies along Point Lookout Road between Sunnyside Road and Pin Cushion Road.

Viewing services continue on Tuesday, Nov. 2, from 7 am to noon, and afterward, the funeral procession will move along Point Lookout Road from Terrika Lane to Pin Cushion Road in Loveville. Motorists can expect Point Lookout Road in this area to be closed at times during the afternoon.

Obituary of Henry Stauffer

Henry Brubacher Stauffer,65, of Loveville, MD, passed away on October 27, 2021, in Loveville, MD. Born on February 25, 1956, in Loveville, MD, he was the son of Annie Gehman Brubacher Stauffer and David Martin Stauffer. Henry was the husband of Alma Martin Sensenig Stauffer. His children survive him Arlene Stauffer of Loveville, MD, Verna M. Stauffer Martin (Sylvan) of Ephrata, PA, Henry Stauffer (Julie S.) of Homer City, PA, Daniel Stauffer (Jenna S.) of Loveville, MD, Nancy Stauffer (Andrew S.) of Indiana, PA, Ivan Stauffer (Verina) of Loveville, MD, Rachel Stauffer of Loveville, MD, Elsie Stauffer (Philip S) of Armagh, PA, Elvin Stauffer (Janice) of Loveville, MD, Marcus Stauffer (Brenda) of Loveville, MD, Marion Stauffer (Daniel) of Mechanicsville, MD, and Evelyn Stauffer of Loveville, MD, along with forty-seven grandchildren. Henry is also survived by his siblings David Stauffer (Edna) of Loveville, MD, Samuel Stauffer (Edith) of Elkhorn, KY, Mahlon Stauffer (Alice) of Loveville, MD, Susannah Sensenig of Ephrata, PA, Luke Stauffer (Ruth) of Indiana, PA, Nathaniel Stauffer (Miriam) of Loveville, MD, Michael Stauffer (Connie) of Loveville, MD, Christian Stauffer (Dawn) of Hillsboro, OH, Joseph Stauffer (Karen) of Loveville, MD and Elam Stauffer (Helen) of Loveville, MD. He was preceded in death by his son Jonas Stauffer.

Henry worked on the family farm in Loveville, MD.

The family received friends on Monday, November 1, 2021, from 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM; a second visitation was held from 5:00 to 7:00 PM in the Stauffer family home. A funeral service was held on November 2, 2021, at 8:45 AM in the Stauffer Mennonite Church, Loveville, MD. Interment followed in the Stauffer Mennonite Cemetery, Loveville, MD.

Amish-buggy-wreck-Mechanicsville. Such crashes are often caused by motorists who are speeding, failing to yield, and driving while impaired. Sometimes, horses are spooked. THE CHESAPEAKE TODAY file photo

Sheriff Cameron says that motorists should avoid the Loveville area if at all possible due to the heavy and slow traffic in the area which has a large Mennonite population. Drivers should exercise extreme caution among the horse-drawn buggies and the legal necessity of sharing the road with both farm equipment and horse-drawn buggies.

DRIVER SOUGHT IN DEATH OF FARMER HAS LONG RECORD OF DRIVING WHILE SUSPENDED AND ELUDING RESPONSIBILITY

Cherrico was cited on January 24, 2018, by Maryland State Police Trooper Manning for driving while his driver’s permit was suspended and failing to attend driver improvement program classes.  In St. Mary’s District Court on March 20, 2019, in a plea deal with St. Mary’s States Attorney Richard Fritz, the charge was put on the Stet Docket.  Court records show that on September 6, 2018, the charge was taken off the Stet Docket for failure to complete conditions of community service.

Court records reveal that Cherrico entered a guilty plea on May 9, 2018, to driving an uninsured vehicle and in a plea deal with Fritz, was sentenced to 30 days in jail with all of the jail time suspended.  A fine of $257.50 was deferred and as of June 11, 2018, was still not paid.

Court records show that the pending charge from 2018 for driving while suspended has been winding through the court process and set before Judge Robert Riddle, brought back before Judge Christy Chesser, and then postponed on October 26, 2018, postponed again before Judge Chesser on December 28, 2018, postponed on January 25, 2019, when set before Judge John Slade, and finally concluded on March 20, 2019, before Judge Chesser when new Stet Conditions were set in court. In each instance where Stet Conditions were agreed to by Fritz, the conditions were not revealed in online court records.

COURT NEWS: St. Mary’s States Attorney Fritz Permitted 4-Time DUI Offender To Only Be Jailed For Sixty Days

Family seriously injured when struck by car operated by driver with record of speeding and DUI; charges dropped by Fritz in 2017

Amish-buggy-wreck-with-James-Windell-Price-on-July-9-2016.-Charges-against-Price-were-dropped-in-2017-by-Fritz.

   UPDATE ON NOVEMBER 1, 2021 – Status of charges on James Windell Price Jr. and driving record:

  • Feb. 21, 2019 charged by Maryland State Trooper E. Ruggles with speeding on Rt. 235; paid fine.
  • Oct. 23, 2018 charged by Maryland Trooper Rachel Kaszubski with failing to yield the right of way to a vehicle approaching from the opposite direction; paid fine.
  • 2017: DUI charges placed against Price for the crash involving the Hertzler family on Rt. 6 on July 9, 2016, were dropped by St. Mary’s States Attorney Richard Fritz when Price hired Leonardtown attorney Daniel Slade and requested a jury trial.
THE CHESAPEAKE TODAY – ALL CRIME ALL THE TIME – Copyright 2020

  MECHANICSVILLE, MD. — A Mechanicsville man with a history of collecting speeding tickets and who pleaded guilty to a DUI struck an Amish family in their buggy on Maryland Rt. 6 just after midnight on July 9, 2016.

The crash took place on the same stretch of road where James Windell Price Jr. was arrested for DUI by Maryland State Trooper Anthony Malaspina on Aug. 7, 2011, at 1:58 am.

Maryland State Trooper Anthony Malaspina at the arrest of a DUI driver in Leonardtown, Md. THE CHESAPEAKE TODAY photo

Price was operating a 2000 Nissan Ultima westbound on Rt. 6 when struck an Amish buggy operated by Aaron Hertzler, 33, of Mechanicsville, Md., and sent the family of seven flying to trauma centers. Maryland State Police report that Hertzler, with his wife and five children as passengers, were in their buggy operating on the wide shoulder of the highway, also westbound, when Hertzler attempted to make a left turn into Culver Lane at about 12:26 am.

Police report that Price’s vehicle struck the horse-drawn buggy with the force of the crash ejected all occupants of the buggy and injured the horse. The family was flown to trauma centers in Washington, D.C. by two Maryland State Police helicopters and the United States Park Police helicopter Eagle One.

Trooper Medic on the Maryland State Police helicopter closes the door on Trooper Seven after loading a patient. THE CHESAPEAKE TODAY photo

 The Maryland State Police Crash Team was called upon to investigate and the St. Mary’s County States Attorney’s Office sent a staff member to the scene as well, a typical practice where the lives of those injured hang in the balance.

Price’s history of speeding tickets as well as his prior DUI conviction which ended on August 22, 2012, in District Court in a Probation Before Judgement verdict, no jail time and a fine of $185, in a plea deal approved by St. Mary’s States Attorney Richard Fritz, will be weighed along with the results of the investigation. 

When Price, of 38321 Henrietta Lane, in Mechanicsville, Md., was arrested for DUI on the same stretch of road five years earlier he was also operating the 2000 Nissan, the same vehicle as involved in this serious personal injury crash.

On May 9, 2016, Price entered a guilty plea to speeding on Md. 231 at Hallowing Point Park in Calvert County. He was fined $80 in Calvert District Court and was operating the same Nissan.

Richard Fritz

The Amish buggies are generally lighted front and back and some also have turn signals. The crash took place adjacent to where the Hertzler family has operated a small general store and produce stand for decades with much of the family living along Culver Lane.

Drivers/passengers as listed by the Maryland State Police:

     Driver Vehicle # 1- James Windell Price Jr, 25 of Mechanicsville,

     Passenger Vehicle # 1- Anthony Eugene Swiderski, 21 of Aquasco, Md.

  • Amish Buggy: Aaron Hertzler, 33 of Mechanicsville
    • Katie Hertzler, 30 of Mechanicsville
    • Juvenile Female, 15 months old, of Mechanicsville
    • Juvenile Female, 3 of Mechanicsville
    • Juvenile Female, 5 of Mechanicsville
    • Juvenile Female, 7 of Mechanicsville
    • Juvenile Male, 8 of Mechanicsville
There are many horse and buggies operated on roadways in Charles and St. Mary’s County as large Amish and Mennonite communities operate farms and operate stores and trades. THE CHESAPEAKE TODAY photo
  • MECHANICS WANTED
  • Kerry Joseph Woods Jr., age 23 of Lexington Park- Driving Vehicle While Under the Influence of Alcohol and Driving Vehicle While Impaired by Alcohol by Cpl. Pesante
  • Thomas-Lee-Campbell-33-of-Pennsylvania-arrested-for-DUI-on-Feb.-1-2020-by-Dep.-Lawrence

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