High-Speed Crash Leads To 3 Deaths, Alcohol May Be Factor: Police

PASADENA, MD — Police said three Prince George's County residents died Saturday after a high-speed, single-vehicle crash in Pasadena. Officers think alcohol may have been involved, but they noted that the toxicology test results are still pending.

The accident happened around 10:34 p.m. on westbound Maryland Route 100 just before the Maryland Route 10 interchange, authorities added. Officials alleged that a 2017 BMW X5 SUV was traveling at "excessive speeds and in a reckless manner" before it left the roadway.

Police mentioned that the car ended up in a grassy ditch. Officers explained that the BMW rotated, overturned and struck a large tree that fell onto the SUV.

An incident report informed that an off-duty officer witnessed the crash, called for help and gave aid to the occupants until the Anne Arundel County Fire Department arrived. Medics pronounced the trio dead on the scene, the write-up indicated.

The Anne Arundel County Police Department identified the victims as:

• 44-year-old Brian Alexander Simmons of Accokeek (Car owner and driver)
• 39-year-old Diona Trechele Baber of Fort Washington (Front-seat passenger)
• 41-year-old Willette Luann S. Marshall of Upper Marlboro (Back-seat passenger)

The Maryland Office of the Chief Medical Examiner will conduct an autopsy on their bodies in Baltimore, authorities shared. Officials wrote that the cause of the crash appears to be the BMW's high speed and failure to stay in a single lane.

The case number is 2021-724361.

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