A Parkville man pleaded guilty Thursday in a hit-and-run crash that killed a Towson University student.
Baltimore County Circuit Judge Robert Dugan sentenced Matthew Miller, 25, to 18 months in prison after he admitted his guilt in a Nov. 12 vehicular homicide that killed Kevin Ryan, 19, of Columbia, a freshman.
“Nobody went out to commit a crime,” said David Irwin, Miller?s attorney. “It was just a terrible tragedy. He understood he was going to jail because of a lot of facts, including that he didn?t own up to it right away. We understand the trauma the Ryan family went through.”
Miller initially told police his vehicle didn?t strike Ryan.
With shards of glass on his shirt and pants, Miller told police three black men carjacked his vehicle before it struck and killed Ryan as he walked back to his dorm after playing cards with friends.
Four hours after the crash, Miller?s blood-alcohol content was .13, court records show. The legal driving limit is .08.
His family told The Examiner in a previous interview that every day is a struggle since the Atholton High grad?s death.
“There?s not an hour that goes by that you?re not reminded of this,” said Ryan?s uncle, Jamie Ryan, of Clarksville.
