Vincent Ricardo Troy
Prince Frederick, MD – A Prince George’s County man whose reckless driving sparked a fire that resulted in heavy damage to a Calvert County strip mall back in January remains behind bars and is awaiting trial.
Vincent Ricardo Troy, 32 of Upper Marlboro, appeared before District Court Judge Michelle R. Saunders Feb. 10. A trial date in District Court regarding the 14 charges related to the Jan. 6 incident has been tentatively set for April 6 at 10:30 a.m., court documents stated. Troy reportedly drove his vehicle off Route 4, smashing into a storefront, setting both the building and the vehicle on fire.
Calvert County Assistant State’s Attorney Ashley Sowls told Saunders that restitution for the damage was in the process of being worked out. After the crash at Bright Center West in Owings occurred, the Maryland State Fire Marshal’s Office estimated the damage done to the strip mall and its contents at $750,000. The fire resulted in the immediately closure of three businesses—Floral Expressions, Owings Cleaners and Andy’s Nails.
According to a report from the Calvert County Sheriff’s Office, shortly after midnight Jan. 6 deputies responded to Bright Center West where they found Troy’s vehicle and the building on fire. Troy “was already out of the vehicle and being assisted by citizens. During further investigation it was determined Troy was suspected to be under the influence of an intoxicant and subsequently arrested for driving under the influence/driving while impaired by Dfc. Durner,” the report stated.
According to court documents, formal charges against Troy included driving while impaired by controlled dangerous substance, driving a vehicle while so far impaired by drug cannot drive safely, reckless driving, negligent driving, driving while suspended, driving without required license and authorization, failure to control vehicle speed to avoid a collision and driving a vehicle on a suspended license.
Court records show Troy is facing charges in Calvert related to two previous incidents that occurred last year. In June Troy was stopped at northbound Route 4 and Mount Harmony Road and cited for driving without a license. Last November Troy was charged with driving on a revoked license, driving without a required license and authorization, driving on a suspended license and willfully disobeying an order of police. That incident occurred in the St. Leonard area.
“He does pose a danger,” said Sowls. “He caused severe damage.”
At the time of the crash Troy was on unsupervised probation stemming from a June 2013 incident, court documents stated. He pled guilty to driving on a suspended license and was sentence to one year in jail with all but 12 days suspended plus three years’ probation. Troy has a violation of probation hearing in Calvert County Circuit Court tentatively scheduled for April 1 at 9 a.m.
The company that owns and manages Bright Center West—Brandywine Investment Properties LLC—announced shortly after the fire that it intended to rebuild the structure.
Contact Marty Madden at marty.madden@thebaynet.com
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