The St. Mary’s County Sheriff’s Office, the Maryland State Police, and the St. Mary’s County State’s Attorney’s Office are implementing a multi-agency initiative: Slow Down St. Mary’s, a comprehensive response to combat the rise in traffic-related fatalities. Eight deaths have stemmed from fatal motor vehicle collisions in St. Mary’s County this year, compared to ten deaths in all of 2022. This number does not include the numerous collisions resulting in serious non-fatal injuries to citizens. Speeding, distracted driving, and aggressive driving have been identified as contributing factors in many of this year’s crashes. St. Mary’s County Sheriff Steve Hall and Maryland State Police Leonardtown Barrack Commander Lieutenant Krystle Rossignol have agreed to dedicate and combine resources for a joint initiative focused on changing driver behavior with the issuance of citations. St. Mary’s County State’s Attorney Jaymi Sterling and her staff will hold the line in seeking fines and point assessment penalties for those infractions, including, but not limited to: • Aggressive driving • Reckless driving • Negligent driving • Speeding • Driving a vehicle or participating in a race or speed contest • Driving while using a handheld phone/earbuds • Failure to stop/remain stopped for a stopped school bus • Exceeding the speed limit in a posted school zone • Traffic infractions that contribute to an accident Slow Down St. Mary’s not only stresses the importance of obeying the speed limit, it also re-enforces the need to focus on the safe operation of your vehicle and respect other motorists who share our roadways. This cooperative effort seeks to save lives and address the dangerous trends affecting our community.
