Lydia Hanson, 32, of Baltimore, was sentenced April 1 in Carroll County Circuit Court after a head-on crash on Maryland Route 97 that killed a 78-year-old Westminster man last year. Hanson was found guilty of automobile manslaughter in the March 16, 2025, collision that took the life of Richard Snyder. The sentence followed a prosecution that laid out a prior DUI stop and what authorities described as an extraordinarily high blood-alcohol level.
According to the Maryland State Police, troopers were called around 2:07 p.m. on March 16, 2025, to Route 97 (Old Washington Road) north of Route 26 for a two-vehicle wreck. Investigators say a Volkswagen driven by Hanson crossed the center line and hit a Chevrolet truck driven by Snyder head-on. Snyder was taken to Carroll Hospital and later pronounced dead, while Hanson was flown to the R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center. The Maryland State Police Crash Team handled the investigation and turned its findings over to the Carroll County State’s Attorney’s Office.
Judge Calls Driving “Extreme and Dangerous”
In a news release, Circuit Court Judge Brian L. DeLeonardo told Hanson, “You didn’t intend to kill the victim, but you did intend the behavior that led up to it,” calling her driving “extreme and dangerous,” according to the Carroll County State’s Attorney’s Office. Prosecutors said Hanson registered a blood-alcohol content of 0.34 and was driving about 99 mph in a 55 mph zone when her car crossed the center line. Court documents also show she had been stopped for suspected DUI the day before, WBAL reported. Hanson pleaded guilty to automobile manslaughter in the March 16 crash and was sentenced to nine years, with six years suspended and five years of supervised probation, the outlet added.
Where This Fits Under Maryland Law
Under Maryland law, deaths caused by grossly negligent driving are prosecuted as felony manslaughter by vehicle, with potential sentences that can stretch into the low double digits depending on the facts and any enhancements. Courts and appellate decisions provide the framework for how those cases are charged and punished. Recent reporting and case outcomes show judges tend to focus heavily on speed, intoxication level, and prior incidents when deciding how much active prison time to impose in fatal DUI cases, with multi-year terms handed down in several high-profile prosecutions over the last year, according to The Daily Record and legal rulings. Hanson’s sentence falls within that range and reflects prosecutors’ focus on repeat impaired-driving behavior.
Prosecutors said Snyder leaves behind a wife of 52 years, a detail included in the release and echoed in reporting by WBAL. Carroll County officials say the case, involving a DUI stop followed by a deadly crash the next day, highlights the very risks they point to when warning about the consequences of letting repeat impaired-driving contacts slide.
