Man Who Left Vulnerable Adult In Van That Was Stolen Receives Sentence

PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY, MD — A 25-year-old Upper Marlboro man has pleaded guilty and been sentenced in connection to the theft of a company vehicle that contained a vulnerable adult who was in his care at the time.

According to court documents, Kelly Barry worked as a direct support professional for Community Options, Inc., a residential facility for persons with disabilities, located in Rockville. Barry’s job duties included taking individuals on outings in the local community, such as bowling, etc. for approximately three to four hours a day, five times per week. Between June and October 2022, Barry provided care to a vulnerable adult, who is non-verbal, autistic and unable to care for himself. Instead of going to various community outings, Barry used the Community Options van to make food deliveries with the vulnerable adult.

On Oct. 19, 2022, Barry utilized the Community Options van to pick up the vulnerable adult. That day, Barry drove to Washington, D.C., and made a total of five food deliveries. While making the final delivery, Barry exited the vehicle and left the vulnerable adult unattended. After the delivery was completed, Barry saw a masked individual steal the vehicle while the vulnerable adult was still inside the van. During his initial call to 911, Barry failed to mention that the vulnerable adult was in the stolen vehicle and subsequently failed to notify the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department officer who arrived on scene of the same, according to court documents.

Barry informed his employer that he did not notify police that the vulnerable adult was still in the vehicle and the company advised him to provide that information to the authorities. However, Barry did not provide this information. Approximately 3.5 hours after the theft of the van, the vulnerable adult was found by the Prince George’s County Police Department, barefoot and wandering in the middle of traffic on the I-495 Capital Beltway. The Prince George’s County Police Department took the vulnerable adult to a local hospital for treatment, court documents noted.

In accordance with his guilty plea, Barry was ordered to serve 180 days in jail with a portion of that time suspended, 14 months of supervised probation, 90 hours of community service and was ordered that Barry be prohibited from working with anyone who cannot care for themselves.