MTA light rail operator sentenced for deadly crash killing Baltimore high school football star
BALTIMORE -- An MTA light rail operator was sentenced to 18 months in jail for a deadly crash that killed Baltimore high school football star Lamar Patterson.
Patterson, a highly-recruited football player at St. Frances Academy, was killed as he drove to school in February 2022 when a light rail train crashed into his car at the intersection of Maple Road West and Camp Meade Road in Linthicum.
Tavon Smith, the MTA light rail operator who was driving the train, will serve the first two months of his sentence at the Anne Arundel County Detention Center, and the remaining time on house arrest.
Smith accepted a plea deal offered by the State, pleading guilty to one count of reckless endangerment.
The Anne Arundel County State's Attorney's Office showed the video of the crash in court, which revealed that Smith stopped at the Linthicum Station for three seconds, not the 30 seconds mandated by MTA.
Moments later, the light rail train crashed into Patterson's car.
The State's Attorney's Office also showed evidence that Smith ignored crossing warnings that indicated that gate arms were not down at the intersection.
"There's nothing that's going to bring him back," said Paul Patterson, Lamar's Patterson's father. "No matter what happened, it's not going to bring him back, but it's just the peace of mind to know I see what's going on, I heard what's going on."
Maxine Lloyd, Lamar Patterson's mother delivered a tearful statement to the judge, with family and friends in the courtroom.
"The loss of Lamar, it's noticeable," Lloyd said. "His smile is missed. His actions are missed. He is missed on TV. He is missed on Instagram. He is missed all over. He is missed in my heart."
Smith elected not to speak in court.
His lawyer said this is a tragedy in every way.
MTA released this statement following the court case: "Ensuring the safety of our riders and employees is the Maryland Transit Administration's top priority. This was a tragic incident, and the agency expresses our heartfelt condolences to the family of Lamar Anthony Patterson."
