MD Bill Would Stiffen Penalties For Drivers Who Hit Cyclists

BETHESDA, MD — A new bill expected to be introduced in the Maryland General Assembly this session in honor of Sarah Langenkamp would stiffen the penalties for drivers who hit a bicyclist in a bike lane.

The bill, called The Sarah Debbink Langenkamp Memorial Act, would increase the penalties for hitting a cyclist in a bike lane to up to two months in jail and a fine of up to $2,000, MoCo360 reported Tuesday.

The truck driver who ran into and killed Langenkamp in August 2022 was fined $2,000 and sentenced to 150 hours of community service.

“The sentence was ridiculously lenient, given the gravity of what he had done, and it was because the law simply doesn’t provide protections for cyclists in bike lanes,” Daniel Langenkamp, Sarah Langenkamp’s husband, told MoCo360.

READ ALSO: Bethesda Woman's Death Puts Spotlight On Leniency Of MD Driving Laws

The new bill will be sponsored by Del. Sara Love, a Democrat who represents Bethesda and chairs the House of Delegates’ Motor Vehicle & Transportation Subcommittee.

Daniel Langenkamp met with Montgomery County State’s Attorney John McCarthy, who proposed the change in law. Love agreed to sponsor the legislation, according to MoCo360.

On Aug. 25, 2022, Langenkamp was riding her bicycle home from Wood Acres Elementary School in Bethesda, where her two sons attend. As she rode along River Road, a flatbed truck struck and killed Langenkamp even though her bicycle was in a clearly marked, yet unprotected, bike lane where commercial traffic competes with cyclists for space.

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