Crash

Greg Cantori plans to downsize when he retires. Really, really downsize. His retirement home is 238 square feet — one-tenth the size of the average new American house — and sits in his Anne Arundel County yard. He and wife Renee can hitch it to a truck and take it with them wherever they go. "It's so cheap — that's what's so cool about this," said Cantori, 52, who envisions a surf-and-turf future, alternating between the house and a sailboat. "We bought the house for $19,000.

The long white van veered out of control before buckling, shattering its windows, flipping four times and ejecting nine of its 11 passengers along a grass-lined interstate in Illinois on Monday morning — leaving five Baltimore men dead and several others badly injured. The men in the vehicle were traveling toward the East Coast from California, having been in Ontario, Canada, before that for a church convention, said Bruce Bowen, the Fayette County coroner, who pronounced the five Baltimore men dead at the scene along Interstate 70 in Vandalia, Ill. The Baltimore men who were killed in the crash, which garnered national media attention, were identified as Emerson Baldwin, 54; Andrew Canada, 53; Antonie Mitchell, 42; Mark William, 52; and Thomas Coleman, 29. The crash occurred just before 9:45 a.m. Monday.

If you're a big fan, you already knew what was coming in the season finale. But it didn't make it any easier -- or less heartbreaking -- to watch. The majority of the Season 3 "Downton" finale, or the "Christmas special" as its called in the U.K., took place in Scotland, where the whole family (minus Branson) visits the Highlands home of the Dowager's niece, Susan, and her husband, Shrimpy. Most of the trip included bagpipes, hunting, more bagpipes and Scottish reel dancing. But more on that later (and more on O'Brien meeting her Scottish lady's maid doppelganger)

U.S. Army Capt. Sara M. Knutson-Cullen, a former Eldersburg resident who died in a helicopter crash in Kandahar, Afghanistan, on March 11, will be among the honorees at the May 27 Memorial Day service at Dulaney Valley Memorial Gardens in Timonium. Knutson-Cullen, 27, was a 2003 graduate of Liberty High School and a 2007 graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. She was assigned to Headquarters Company, 3rd Combat Aviation Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division, Hunter Army Airfield, Georgia, and had previously served at Fort Wainwright in Alaska.

Maryland could become one of a handful of states that grant special driver's licenses to illegal immigrants under legislation garnering strong support in Annapolis. The bill, passed by the Senate on Monday, would expand and make permanent an existing two-tiered driver's license system to include more than 100,000 people whose immigration status currently prevents them from applying for a license. Gov. Martin O'Malley backs the plan, which now moves to the House of Delegates. "It's a safety issue," said Del. Jolene Ivey, a Prince George's County Democrat who introduced the House version.

Megan Childs and her four sisters came away safely from a private plane crash in Chesapeake Bay yesterday, thanks to what one official called a perfect emergency landing by her father.Megan, 12, and one of her sisters opened the doors to the plane as it settled into the water just south of the eastern end of the Bay Bridge, and she passed out life jackets while boats from a marina sped to their aid."We're all really good swimmers," said the Magothy River Middle School student, who is on a swim team.

CLARIFICATION An article in yesterday's editions of The Sun about a vehicular manslaughter case may have left the impression that defense attorney Jack B. Rubin paid for a pre-sentence investigation of his client, Martha Jean Ladenson. In fact, Rubin requested the investigation, but it was paid for by the state, as is typical in court cases.

Two highway workers under contract to the state were killed Wednesday morning along Pulaski Highway in Northeast when a car plowed into a marked construction zone, state police said. Investigators reported that around 9 a.m., a 2006 Ford Focus westbound on Pulaski Highway near Belvidere Road crossed into the work zone and struck the two workers. Both men were pronounced dead at the scene by Cecil County emergency medical staff. Police identified the victims as Luis E. Tadeo, 42, of the 1500-block of Palai Turn of Bowie, and Victor D. Jackson, 41, of the 5500-block of Hunt Place, NE in Washington.

HOPEWELL TOWNSHIP, Pa. -- A high school student named Chris Ciccone saw a lone Reebok sneaker and the charred body of a child.Episcopal Bishop Alden Hathaway discovered a perfectly manicured fingernail lying in the mud.But for Beaver County Sheriff Frank Policaro, the most haunting image was this:There was hardly anything left of the fuselage of USAir Flight 427."You go up there and look for an airplane, and you won't find one," he said. "This is my first airplane crash. I hate to tell you, but they're different from auto crashes, suicides, train wrecks and tornadoes.

A motorcylist was killed in a crash near the York Road exit on I-83 in Parkton late Saturday afternoon after attempting to pass two cars by driving between them, according to the Maryland State Police. Troopers investigating the incident about 4:00 p.m. determined that the driver, 19-year-old Kareem Morsi of Woodbine, had been heading north on a white 2008 Suzuki GSX-R600 motorcycle when he tried to pass the two vehicles. Just north of Exit 33, the motorcycle struck the rear of one of the vehicles, police said, spun out of control, crossed the right shoulder and struck a guardrail.

One lane and one shoulder of westbound Route 100 in Anne Arundel County are closed at WB&A Road due to a crash that happened at 8:46 a.m., according to the State Highway Administration. A four-car crash on the outer loop of the Baltimore Beltway at Providence Road closed the left shoulder and left lane at 8:13 a.m., according to the State Highway Administration. Route 7B at Maryland Avenue in Cecil County remains closed in both directions due to a utility problem. The Maryland Transit Administration reported that Train 894 (7:10 a.m. Frederick departure)

A single-vehicle crash in Baltimore County on the outer loop of Interstate 695 past the Interstate 70 exit has closed the right traffic lane and the right traffic shoulder at 8:53 a.m., on Monday, according to the state Department of Transportation. Three outer loop traffic lanes and the left outer loop shoulder are moving unimpeded adjacent to the incident, DOT said. The Maryland Transit Administration has reported minor delays on the MARC train at 9 a.m.

Get ready for one wild, drug-induced ride. "The Crash" begins with what the audience will essentially endure the rest of the episode: A hostage-like frenzy with drug-induced maniacs. There's a car crash, a drug crash, a tap dance and a sex scene. And one censored F-bomb. All in all, it was a bizarre, whirling and -- frankly -- exhausting episode. I felt myself crashing after watching it. That doesn't mean it wasn't entertaining or enjoyable. Much like Roger's LSD trip in 'Far Away Places,' the writing and directing showed the altered state of mind without the predictable or heavy-handed cues.

The following is compiled from local police reports. Our policy is to include descriptions when there is enough information to make identification possible. If you have any information about these crimes, call the Wilkens Police Station at 410-887-0872. Old Frederick Road, 5600 block, 4 a.m. May 17. Car radio and TV monitors stolen from unlocked cars at Varsity Auto. Mountain Ridge Road, 6300 block, 1:09 a.m. May 17. Four men entered house through unlocked basement door then attacked residents and demanded money and marijuana and stole an xBox 360. Edmondson Avenue, 5500 block, 4:35 a.m. May 16. Van ran into Family Dollar, two men got out then drove away.

A Whiteford man was killed in a single vehicle accident in northern Harford County early Friday morning, Maryland State Police at the Bel Air Barrack said. The accident occurred in the 2900 block of Dublin Road (Route 440) near Poplar Road at 12:03 a.m., according to the duty officer at the Bel Air Barrack. The vehicle ran off the road and hit a tree. Harford Fire Blog on Facebook reported the victim was in grave condition when paramedics arrived on the scene. The victim, identified as Charles Garland Jr. of Whiteford, was taken by Darlington Volunteer Fire Company ambulance to Upper Chesapeake Medical Center in Bel Air, where he was pronounced dead, the duty officer said.

Wings stood off to one side. The propeller lay in a carton. But the main part of Carl Kesselring's pet project was clearly recognizable as an airplane in progress. "I don't have fear of getting in an airplane," he said, standing in a hangar in Suburban Airport in Laurel surrounded by tools, parts and the remains of a bird's nest that fell through a hole in the roof. "I have confidence in my ability to make it work properly. " Kesselring's daring hobby is increasingly shared by other enthusiasts as the number of amateur-built airplanes grows every year, according to the Experimental Aircraft Association.

Montgomery County police say an officer was killed when his police cruiser struck a tree while he responded to an officer who needed backup. Police have yet to release the officer's name. He was a seven-year veteran of the department and worked the midnight shift. Police say the officer was en route to the scene of a fight early Sunday when his car ran off the road and hit a tree. He was taken to a local hospital, where he died. Detectives are investigating the crash. - Associated Press

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- "Palm 90" probably wouldn't be remembered as one of the most horrifying air disasters if a handful of heroes had not saved a few survivors from the icy Potomac River.But this was real-life drama, a story of tragedy and triumph, captured on camera in the nation's capital.In turn, "Palm 90," the air traffic control code name for Air Florida's Flight 90, is still a vivid memory 10 years later for many across the country. It crashed Jan. 13, 1982, killing 78, including four on the ground.

A grand jury on Thursday indicted the driver state police said was high on drugs when his car sped into downtown, striking and killing a pedestrian before it overturned outside City Hall. Johnny Johnson, 43, faces nine counts, including vehicular homicide and homicide by vehicle while under the influence of a controlled dangerous substance, in the April 9 death of city finance employee Matthew Hersl. The indictment mirrors many of the charges the Maryland State Police filed on the warrant they used to arrest Johnson on April 15. Test results showed drugs were in Johnson's system at the time of the crash, while investigators found cocaine and heroin in his car, police said.

A dozen people were taken to area hospitals after a vehicle crashed into an MTA bus this morning in Essex, according to Maryland Transit Administration officials. A bus was stopped at Doolittle Road and Stemmers Run Road when a vehicle drove into the back of the bus, according to Terry Owens, MTA spokesman. The bus was stopped to let people off, Owens said. County fire department personnel responded to the scene around 10:30 a.m., according to Baltimore County public safety officials.