Two Md. Responders Hit by Suspected Drunken Driver

Two state troopers were injured on the side of Interstate 95 in Laurel early Friday morning when their patrol car was struck by another vehicle being driven by a drunken driver, Maryland State Police said.

Shortly after midnight, troopers Manuel Moreno, 42, and John Cabrera, 34, had just activated flares warning oncoming traffic of an unrelated accident on the highway near Sandy Springs Road when they returned to their patrol car -- which had its lights flashing -- to complete paperwork.

At that point, a 2001 Pontiac Sunbird being driven by Arcenia D. Macklin, 48, drove through the flares and crashed into the rear of the trooper's vehicle, police said.

Moreno, a four-year veteran of the force, and Cabrera, a three-year veteran of the force, were both transported to Prince George's Hospital Center with non-life-threatening injuries, police said. Both officers are stationed at the College Park Barrack.

Macklin, of the 9000 block of Cherry Lane in Laurel, refused treatment at the scene, police said.

She has since been charged with driving under the influence of alcohol and failing to move out of the way of the existing roadside accident investigation.

Copyright 2013 - The Baltimore Sun

McClatchy-Tribune News Service