Man convicted in Harford County crash that killed teenage student

A man was convicted Friday in connection with a crash that killed a teenager in Harford County last year.Following a bench trial, a judge convicted John Anthony Gaeta of criminally negligent manslaughter in connection with a crash on Sept. 18, 2025, on North Fountain Green Road near Crescent Knoll Drive that involved two C. Milton Wright High School students, 16-year-old soccer standout Blake Elliott and 17-year-old Zach Griffin.According to the Harford County State's Attorney's Office, evidence at trial proved that Gaeta rear-ended a car driven by Zach, who was lawfully stopped on northbound Maryland Route 543 to turn left onto Crescent Knoll Drive. The impact pushed Zach's car into a school bus, trapping him and Blake, who was a passenger in the car.Zach was flown to Shock Trauma with serious injuries, and Blake was taken to a hospital, where she died.Prosecutors said investigators determined Gaeta didn't apply the brakes before the crash and that data from his car confirmed that in the five seconds before the collision, he did not use his brakes or steer his vehicle to avoid the collision. Time distance calculations showed that he drove 371 feet during those five seconds and only decreased from 53 mph to 47 mph during that time, prosecutors said.Data logs from his cell phone proved that Gaeta immediately began using his phone after leaving work that afternoon at the Arena Club, using three apps for the entire drive until 38 seconds before the collision when the last app closed, prosecutors said. His phone was determined to be unlocked and with the screen illuminated at the time of collision, prosecutors said.Sentencing is scheduled for Aug. 17, at which time Gaeta could face a maximum penalty of three years in prison and/or a $5,000 fine.Harford County State's Attorney Alison Healey released a statement, saying, in part: "Nothing can ever bring Blake Elliott back to her family, friends or our community. The injuries that she and Zachary Griffin sustained as a result of this defendant's choices on Sept. 18, 2025, were shocking and horrific. The defendant's criminal conduct took Blake's life and forever changed Zach's life, so we are proud that some justice was received for them today, despite the challenges that this case presented."These cases can be extremely challenging to prosecute, and the current laws simply do not provide sufficient sanctions and are frankly not enough. In addition, the standards are entirely too lenient for what defines a felony versus a misdemeanor. It is my hope that at some point in the future, Blake's story will assist in changing our laws for the better to hold offenders more accountable when a life is taken in this way."