A Garrett County jury has convicted 60-year-old Ricky A. Wise of Mount Pleasant, Pennsylvania on multiple charges stemming from a fatal UTV crash at Deep Creek Lake, where his friend and passenger drowned after their vehicle broke through the ice. Wise was found guilty of homicide by motor vehicle while under the influence, homicide by motor vehicle while impaired by alcohol, and criminally negligent manslaughter.
State's Attorney Christian Mash said the jury convicted Wise of multiple charges in a release issued Wednesday, as reported by The Cumberland Times-News. The crash happened on the evening of February 22, 2025, when the 2014 Polaris RZR XP 1000 utility task vehicle Wise was driving broke through the ice near the Glendale Bridge at Deep Creek Lake, according to WPXI. Deep Creek Lake, Maryland's largest freshwater lake, sits in Oakland in Garrett County.
The passenger trapped inside the submerged UTV was 58-year-old David T. Linsenbigler of Greensburg, Pennsylvania, a retired owner of Biscotti Brothers Italian bakery and a father of three. Linsenbigler died at a West Virginia hospital the day after the crash, after being rescued by emergency divers and transported to J.W. Ruby Memorial Hospital in Morgantown, according to TribLIVE.
Alcohol, a Charity Dunk, and a Banned Vehicle on the Ice
Maryland Department of Natural Resources investigators determined Wise had been drinking alcohol throughout the day at the annual Deep Creek Dunk fundraising event before driving onto the frozen lake, and his blood alcohol concentration came back above Maryland's 0.08% legal limit, per CBS News. The Deep Creek Dunk is an annual polar plunge organized by Special Olympics Maryland and law enforcement agencies that has drawn thousands of winter visitors to Garrett County for more than 25 years to raise funds for athletes.
Wise managed to escape the submerged vehicle on his own. The same CBS News report notes he was treated for hypothermia and near-drowning at Garrett Regional Medical Center in Oakland before being released the following morning.
Under Maryland Department of Natural Resources rules, off-road vehicle travel on Deep Creek Lake's frozen surface is limited strictly to registered snowmobiles, meaning utility task vehicles like the Polaris RZR are completely prohibited on the ice, according to Outdoor News. Maryland Natural Resources Police also noted that while Wise and Linsenbigler were both secured by safety harnesses inside the UTV, neither was wearing a protective helmet as required under Maryland off-road vehicle statutes, per WPXI's reporting.
Sentencing Exposure Under Maryland Law
Defense attorney statements released after Wise was charged in August 2025 indicated he faced a potential maximum sentence of up to 12 years and two months in prison, along with $16,700 in fines, prior to his conviction, according to the Law Office of Thomas J. Maronick Jr. Defense counsel described the drowning as a tragic accident between longtime friends.
Maryland Criminal Law Code Section 2-503 classifies homicide by motor vehicle or vessel while under the influence of alcohol per se as a felony, carrying a maximum of five years in prison and a fine of up to $5,000 for a first offense, according to the Maryland General Assembly. Wise's conviction on multiple counts means his ultimate sentence will be shaped by how those charges are combined at sentencing.
Deep Creek Lake spans 3,900 acres with nearly 69 miles of shoreline and depths reaching up to 75 feet, having been created in 1925 by the Youghiogheny Hydroelectric Company, according to the Maryland Department of Natural Resources. The lake remains a major draw for both summer recreation and winter events like the Dunk, a backdrop that made the frozen-ice crash all the more jarring for a community accustomed to using the lake safely.
