CLARKSBURG, Md. — A man charged for driving under the influence and crashing into an ambulance crew was sentenced to 18 months in prison and five years probation.
Maximilian Curcho, 35, was sentenced last week for the 2015 crash that seriously injured EMTs Thomas Schryver and Sydney Marshall. Curcho was driving 76 mph in a 55 mph zone before he lost control of the vehicle and attempted to brake.
Schryver was thrown onto the truck’s hood, suffered an open skull fracture. Marshall sustained serious leg injuries and lost six teeth. The two were part of a crew that was responding to a previous accident on the shoulder of the road, reported Bethseda Magazine.
Curcho read a letter of apology to the two Glen Echo Fire Department volunteers on Thursday in court.
“I keep thinking back to when our paths crossed, and I want you to know that if I could, I would do everything in my power to change it,” Curcho said. “Every day and every night, I keep thinking about you all since that unfortunate moment and it’s very difficult to live like this.”
Curcho pled guilty in February to DUI, negligent driving and failure to reduce speed in dangerous weather. It was his third DUI conviction in Montgomery County.
Police said Curcho’s blood alcohol level was found to be .08 percent; a state trooper at the scene of the collision had “no idea” how Curcho was able to drive so fast in such snowy conditions.
“Part of my job at the firehouse is to ensure that our citizens in our service area receive the best possible fire service and emergency care,” John Witherspoon Jr., department president, said. “For the past 15 months, my colleagues and I have been unable to do that as well as we would have liked because of the distraction caused by the defendant’s criminal behavior.”