Driver who hit, killed boy suspected of overdose

Anne Arundel County police say the driver of a van who is facing manslaughter and other charges after he struck and killed a 12-year-old on an Arnold sidewalk was revived by paramedics after suffering a suspected drug overdose. Police said Michael Blair Gauthier, 37, of Arnold, struck Matthew Murphy, a seventh-grade student at Magothy River Middle School in Arnold, Sunday afternoon when his vehicle drove onto the sidewalk before crashing into a tree. They said Gauthier was driving a 2004 Chevrolet Express 1500 Van west on Bay Green Drive when he drove off the road at the intersection with Andrew Hill Road and hit Murphy, who was walking on the sidewalk with his mother and brother. Gauthier continued driving and struck a tree off the roadway, police said. Murphy’s mother and brother, who have not been identified, were unharmed. The boy was flown to Johns Hopkins Children’s Center in Baltimore, where police said he died of his injuries. Gauthier was found unconscious and without a pulse inside the vehicle, police said in charging documents. They said officers found a small glass tube used to take drugs with burn residue inside. Officers administered two doses of naloxone, which combats the symptoms of opioid overdoses, and administered CPR, charging documents state. Gauthier revived, was taken to Anne Arundel Medical Center in Annapolis for treatment and released to police to be charged in Murphy’s death. Bob Mosier, a spokesman for Anne Arundel County Public Schools, said his school offered grief counselors and additional school psychologists Monday for students and staff members. Police charged Gauthier with manslaughter as well as several drugrelated counts, including vehicular homicide while under the influence of drugs. He was ordered held without bond Monday, online court records show. No attorney is listed for him in online court records. 1700 block of Gwynns Falls Parkway, police said. Four passengers in the Sebring were taken to hospitals for treatment, police said. Family members of the Browns and Woolard could not be reached Monday for comment. The cause of each crash is under investigation, and anyone with additional information is asked to call CRASH Team detectives, at 410-396-2606. Those who wish to remain anonymous can use the Metro Crime Stoppers tip line, at 1-866-7LOCKUP.