Vincent Ricardo Troy

Prince Frederick, MD – The case against a Prince George’s County man whose reckless driving resulted in a fire that heavily damaged a Calvert County strip mall earlier this year will be decided by a circuit court jury, judicial officials announced March 30.

Prior to a scheduled appearance before District Court Judge Robert Riddle, the defendant, Vincent Ricardo Troy, 32 of Upper Marlboro, requested the jury trial on the 14 traffic charges he is facing in connection with the Jan. 6 incident. In Maryland, defendants whose cases are to be decided by a district court judge may request a jury trial in an appropriate circuit court if he or she is facing 90 days or more in jail.

According to the Calvert County Sheriff’s Office, shortly after midnight Jan. 6 deputies responded to Bright Center West on Route 4 in Owings where they found Troy’s vehicle and the building on fire. Troy was out of the vehicle when deputies arrived and was being assisted by passersby. “During further investigation it was determined Tory was suspected to be under the influence of an intoxicant and [was] subsequently arrested for driving under the influence/driving while impaired,” a sheriff’s office report stated.

Charges against Troy include driving while impaired by controlled dangerous substance, driving a vehicle while so impaired by drugs (the driver) cannot drive safely, reckless driving, negligent driving, failure to control vehicle speed to avoid a collision and driving while suspended.

According to a report by the Maryland State Fire Marshal’s Office, their estimated damage to the strip mall and its contents is $750,000. The fire resulted in the immediate closure of three businesses—Floral Expressions, Owings Cleaners, and Andy’s Nails. Brandywine Investment Properties LLC—the company that owns and manages Bright Center West—has announced it will rebuild the strip mall.

Troy, who has been incarcerated since the incident, was represented at the March 30 proceeding by Del Lynch of the Calvert County Public Defenders’ Office.

The case is in the process of being transferred to circuit court, and a hearing date has not been determined at this time.

Court records show Troy is also facing charges in Calvert related to two traffic incidents that occurred last year. At the time of the Jan. 6 crash, Troy was on unsupervised probation stemming from a June 2013 incident.

Contact Marty Madden at marty.madden@thebaynet.com