An Anne Arundel County jury found a 68-year-old Hagerstown woman guilty of neglect of a minor in connection with the 2024 death of her 7-year-old grandson, who fell from a moving vehicle on Interstate 97 and was struck by another vehicle.
Lorraine Marie O’Neill was convicted Aug. 12 following a four-day trial in Anne Arundel County Circuit Court. Circuit Court Judge Ginina Jackson-Stevenson scheduled sentencing for Oct. 2.
Neglect of a minor is a misdemeanor in Maryland. O’Neill faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison, a fine of up to $5,000, or both. Maryland Criminal Law §3-602.1 establishes those maximum penalties for a conviction of child neglect.
The case stems from the evening of Nov. 24, 2024, when O’Neill was driving north on I-97 in Millersville in a 2011 Mazda 3. Her grandson was riding in a car seat on the rear passenger side of the vehicle, according to prosecutors.
As the vehicle traveled near Benfield Boulevard, the boy fell through the rear passenger window and landed in the roadway. He was then struck by an oncoming vehicle.
Maryland State Police troopers were dispatched at about 7 p.m. for a report of a pedestrian lying in the roadway near I-97 and Benfield Boulevard. Anne Arundel County Fire and EMS personnel pronounced the child dead at the scene.
Prosecutors said O’Neill continued north after the child fell from the vehicle and did not realize he was missing until she reached the area of I-695 and Route 2. She then stopped at a nearby gas station.
Authorities said the distance between the location where the child fell from the vehicle and the location where O’Neill stopped was about 11 miles.
According to the State’s Attorney’s Office, O’Neill told investigators she had allowed her grandson to play with the vehicle’s rear power window and that the window child lock was not engaged on the night of the incident.
Following the verdict, Anne Arundel County State’s Attorney Anne Colt Leitess said:
“This case is a tragic reminder that adults must remain vigilant when children are in their care. While this was undoubtedly a traumatic loss for this grandmother, it was likewise traumatic for the witnesses at the scene that night, including the first responders and the two men who pulled the child from the roadway. This defendant travelled eleven miles north on I-97 after the child fell from the vehicle before she realized her grandson was not inside the car. I believe that Ms. O’Neill has failed to accept responsibility for her actions, from the night of the crash to her testimony at trial which was markedly different from her original statements to investigators. This case has always been about accountability for the death of a child.”
The State’s Attorney’s Office said O’Neill’s testimony during the trial differed from statements she initially gave investigators. The office did not provide a detailed account in its public announcement of the defense’s arguments at trial or specify which portions of her testimony prosecutors considered inconsistent.
Independent reporting following the verdict also confirmed the conviction, four-day trial and Oct. 2 sentencing date. The Baltimore Banner reported that O’Neill’s attorney, Andrew Jezic, did not immediately respond to its request for comment following the conviction.
The investigation was led by Maryland State Police Senior Trooper Gregory Bunger and the agency’s CRASH Team. Assistant State’s Attorney Matthew Rabb prosecuted the case.
O’Neill has been convicted but has not yet been sentenced. The five-year prison term and $5,000 fine are the statutory maximum penalties and do not indicate what sentence Jackson-Stevenson will impose at the October hearing.
The child’s name was not included in the State’s Attorney’s Office announcement.
