Berlin Man Sentenced to 10 Years in Drunk Driving Death

Worcester County, MD - A 70-year-old Berlin man has been sentenced to prison after striking and killing a pedestrian while driving drunk and then leaving the scene.

Christopher Miller was sentenced on May 22, 2026, to 10 years in the Division of Correction. The conviction included one count of driving under the influence of alcohol and one count of failing to stop at an accident involving death.

The Honorable Mickey J. Norman, a retired Associate Judge of the Baltimore County Circuit Court, imposed the sentence. Judge Norman suspended five years of the sentence and ordered Miller to complete three years of supervised probation after his release. The five-year sentence for failing to stop runs at the same time as the DUI sentence.

The case began on the night of November 2, 2024. Maryland State Police troopers responded to a collision involving a pedestrian along Route 611 near Landings Boulevard in Berlin.

When troopers arrived, they found the victim, later identified as Carolyn Long, dead at the scene. She had been walking northbound along the shoulder of Route 611 at around 10:15 p.m. when a vehicle struck and killed her.

That vehicle was driven by Christopher Miller. He did not stop or offer aid after the crash. He later contacted police on his own and returned to the area on foot.

Troopers who made contact with Miller at the scene detected the smell of alcohol on his breath and person. He told them he had been drinking earlier that night. A blood test later confirmed his blood alcohol content was .15 at the time of the crash. The legal limit in Maryland is .08.

Worcester County State's Attorney Kris Heiser praised the Maryland State Police crash team investigators and Trooper First Class Bradley of the Berlin Barrack for their work on the case. Heiser also thanked Assistant State's Attorney Brittani Stewart, who prosecuted the case in court.

Heiser addressed the outcome directly. "Deaths like that of Ms. Long are tragic because they are preventable, and while no sentence will ever make up for a loss of life, I hope it brings some comfort to Ms. Long's family and friends. I also hope that this case serves as a reminder to our entire community and its visitors that Worcester County prosecutes drunk driving aggressively and unapologetically and that we will continue to do so."

Drunk driving remains a serious public safety concern across Maryland's Eastern Shore. Cases like this one are a reminder of the real consequences that come with getting behind the wheel after drinking.