Boozing Driver Killed in Wrong Way Head-On Crash

MECHANICSVILLE ---  A Mechanicsville man driving his 1986 Chevy pickup the wrong way on Rt. 5 at Old Lockes Hill Road in Mechanicsville was killed early on Sunday morning when he struck another truck head-on, according to St. Mary's Sheriff's Deputy Douglas Mills.
When deputies arrived on the scene at about 1:45 am, Sunday, Aug. 22, 2004,  they found Dale Jerome Moore Sr. dead in the wrecked wrong way truck and two people who were in the southbound truck to be alive.  Reports that Moore also had his lights off will likely have to be confirmed by the victims in the southbound truck once they recover from their injuries.
Police say that Mechanicsville and Hughesville Volunteer Fire Department teams went to work cutting apart the wreckage to extricate the occupants, identified as Alvin LeRoy Tippett, Jr. and Sean Andrew Caywood, both of Mechanicsville.Both men were flown to PG Shock Trauma and were expected to recover from their injuries, reports Deputy Mills.
As of Sunday morning, reports from the hospital were that Tippett was in surgery and in stable condition.
Alvin Tippett is the operator of Alvin's Barber Shop in Mechanicsville.
While police report that while alcohol was a contributing factor for Moore's operation of his truck, that there are no known contributing factors for Tippett.
Tippett was operating his 2004 GMC pickup in the proper direction on the divided highway, unlike Moore who caused the wreck and his own death, according to police.  Just south of the crash scene is the Hills Club where an intoxicated patron walked out onto Rt. 5 into the path of a state police car two years ago. Hills Club is just one of area bars which fail to prevent intoxicated patrons from driving home but it is not known at this time if Moore was in Hills Club prior to crashing into Tippett's truck. There have been several other alcohol related crashes within a short distance of this latest crash, with many of them occurring near the time the bars close at 2:00 am.
Maryland State Police troopers assisted the Sheriff's Department in the investigation which remains open pending further evidence being reviewed.