BEL AIR, Md. — A man faces multiple charges, including criminally negligent vehicular manslaughter, in connection with the crash that killed 16-year-old Blake Elliott last September.
“I couldn’t believe it,” Kylie Hildebrandt, one of Elliott’s friends said in the aftermath of the crash, “I was like, ‘No way. Not Blake. ’I was like, ‘Blake can’t go. She’s too good to this world. The world needs her. She’s too good.”
While Elliott’s boyfriend, Zach Griffin, would survive his injuries, the loss of the popular athlete and classmate impacted the entire community.
“There’s a lot of hurt people in that she was a very loved girl,” said Brendan Anderson who lives near the crash site, “The neighbor here was really good friends with her and they were meeting in the basement mourning over her and all her friends and family, they put candles up over here at the corner.”
Man indicted on negligent vehicular manslaughter for crash that led to teen's death
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Classmates, friends gather to mourn 16-year-old Blake Elliott killed in crash near Bel Air
John Anthony Gaeta Jr. was served with an arrest warrant Friday morning and is being held at the Harford County Detention Center.
The Harford County State’s Attorney’s Office handed down the indictment on Tuesday and three days later, here on Friday morning, the arrest warrant has actually been served.
The charges range from negligent vehicular manslaughter and criminally negligent vehicular manslaughter to a pair of counts of second-degree assault.
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Both teens were students at C. Milton Wright High School.
“I go to a barber shop in the Town of Bel Air. My sons go there to a barber, and he knew the guy it happened with and it’s sad,” Anderson told us, “I don’t know the complete story. I heard there was texting, but he asked me to pray for him for when he went to court for grace and mercy.”
It’s another critical step in pursuit of closure for Elliott’s family though the loss is certain to remain with them for a lifetime.
No court date appears in electronic court records for Gaeta.
