A Harford County District Court judge has denied four peace order petitions filed against a Fallston father who placed a memorial cross near the spot where his 20-year-old son died in a motorcycle crash, ruling that key allegations either lacked evidence or fell outside the legal window to be considered. Judge Donald Walter Jr. found insufficient evidence that two private-property signs removed by Brad Hopkins were actually on the petitioners' land, and he said he could not weigh a separate confrontation because it happened too late to qualify under Maryland law.
The case traces back to March 21, when Gavin Reis Hopkins was traveling north on Fallston Road, also known as Route 152, at a high rate of speed shortly after 3:30 p.m., according to The Baltimore Banner. He lost control of his motorcycle, struck a mailbox and then a guardrail, and skidded across one private property before striking a tree on the adjacent property, per Maryland State Police crash report details. Hopkins died at the scene, and because he was cremated, his family has no burial site to visit — which is part of why his father put up a cross where his son died.
Brad Hopkins has said a highway maintenance engineer initially permitted him to erect the cross, and he later admitted removing two private-property signs from the memorial site, a fact the judge weighed in evaluating the neighbors' claims. The Zou family — petitioners Zong Ming Zou and Xiu Zhen Zhu — said they felt intimidated by the cross and by visitors who came to pay their respects, and filed four peace orders against Hopkins as a result.
A Confrontation Outside the Legal Window
Attorney T. Wray McCurdy, who represented the Zou family, alleged that Hopkins terrified the couple's 13-year-old daughter by screaming obscenities at her parents during an argument near the highway guardrail. The teen, who speaks English while her parents speak only Mandarin, testified that she witnessed the confrontation and had acted as a translator during prior interactions with Hopkins. Nowhere in grief, McCurdy said, does a 13-year-old get assaulted, adding that his clients were being bullied by Hopkins.
But that argument occurred the day after the family filed their peace order petition, placing it outside Maryland's mandatory 30-day filing window under state law. Judge Walter said he could not consider the incident for that reason, telling the courtroom, according to the Banner's reporting, it's just not clear that the earlier allegations met the legal standard required. Under Maryland Courts and Judicial Proceedings Code § 3-1503, petitioners must file within 30 days of an alleged abusive or harassing act and must prove their case by clear and convincing evidence.
Tension Escalated Before the Cross Came Down
Before the Maryland State Highway Administration removed the cross on July 31, police were called repeatedly whenever the Hopkins family visited the Route 152 site, and neighbors allegedly threw away floral tributes left there, according to CBS News. State regulations bar unpermitted private objects on highway shoulders, medians and grassy buffers between roads and private property, which state highway officials say applies regardless of any dispute over where the memorial actually sat. Removed items are typically held at local district offices for a two-week retrieval window before being discarded, per the agency's guidelines.
McCurdy did not indicate whether the Zou family plans to appeal the ruling. If they do, the case would be heard de novo in Harford County Circuit Court, with the District Court's judgment remaining in effect until any new ruling supersedes it. Judge Walter, who denied all four petitions, was appointed to the bench by Governor Wes Moore in August 2025 after a career as counsel to the National Security Agency and as a prosecutor in Harford County and Baltimore City.
Father Vows to Keep Fighting for a Permanent Memorial
Brad Hopkins said he believes the neighbors never understood why his family put up the cross in the first place, and he plans to renew his fight to place a permanent memorial at the site. His son, he has said, did not choose where to die. Laurie Gent and Brad Hopkins raised Gavin alongside two siblings, and a public visitation was held for him on March 28 in Bel Air. His sister, Laela Hopkins, has said the site will always hold a special place for her family.
Nonprofit organizations have contacted Brad Hopkins about petitioning legislators in Annapolis to amend state law and allow roadside memorials, he has said. Community members have also pointed to the memorial garden behind Annie's Playground in Fallston as an existing local space for honoring deceased loved ones, an alternative raised during public discussions over the cross this summer.
The dispute unfolds against a backdrop of broader safety concerns along the corridor. Route 152 in Fallston saw another fatal crash in May, when a 16-year-old was killed in an electric dirt bike collision at Pleasantville Road, prompting the Maryland State Highway Administration to launch a formal intersection safety assessment, according to The Aegis.
