Deputies Didn't Break Law In Fatal Chase That Ended In Anne Arundel County: Investigator

HARWOOD, MD — Sheriff's deputies involved in a May 2024 car crash where a child died in southern Anne Arundel County won't be charged with any crimes, officials announced Tuesday.

Investigators determined that the Calvert County Sheriff's deputies, identified as Wyatt McDowell and Michael Lewis, didn't break any laws when they chased a suspect from Huntingtown to Harwood.

McDowell has worked for the Calvert County Sheriff's Office since December 2016. Lewis has worked for the office since June 2017.

Investigators aren't identifying the deceased, a juvenile girl. They are withholding the late minor's name "in accordance with juvenile privacy laws. "

Calvert County Sheriff's deputies received multiple reports of car break-ins on May 13, 2024, around the Huntingtown area. Deputies were alerted to a car believed to be associated with the break-ins, a press release said.

Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown said deputies tried to stop the car in Huntingtown near Plum Point Road and Ridge Road around 5:35 a.m., but the car didn't stop.

Brown said deputies chased the car for 25 miles into Anne Arundel County, where it collided with a pick-up truck at the intersection of Birdsville Road and Solomons Island Road in Harwood.

The pick-up driver was hospitalized and released after treatment, the attorney general said.

Brown said the three occupants of the fleeing car were also hospitalized.

The release said the front-seat passenger, the juvenile girl, died soon after at the hospital.

The attorney general said the driver and the rear passenger were treated and released.

Brown's Independent Investigations Division handled the case, as it does with all police-related deaths.

The full investigative report is posted here.

Related:

• Fatal Police Chase: Video Released After Pursuit Ends In Anne Arundel County
• Deputies IDed After Fatal Chase Ends In Anne Arundel County: Officials

This map shows the area where Brown said the crash happened.