Man dies of car crash injuries
Resident remembered for altruism, church activities
A 74-year-old Clinton man died Sunday from injuries from an Oct. 7 car crash in Anne Arundel County.
Robert Francis Burdette, of 8810 Marquis Lane, was pronounced dead at Prince George's Hospital Center.
Police are conferring with the Anne Arundel County state's attorney's office about possible charges against the other driver, Sean Kevin Fitzgibbon, 27, of Friendship, according to Justin Mulcahy, a spokesman for the Anne Arundel County Police Department. Investigators believe speed and alcohol may have factored into the crash.
Kristin Fleckenstein, a spokeswoman for the state's attorney's office, confirmed her office is in communication with police, but she said they will not make a decision for several weeks because the investigation is ongoing.
Burdette's niece by marriage, Karen Burdette of Piney Point, said her uncle was driving to Dunkirk to the home of a physically disabled man whom Burdette helped get to work.
She said her uncle, a lifelong Clinton resident, was also very involved at Clinton United Methodist Church.
"He would help anybody," she said. "You could call him in the middle of the night and he would be there."
The accident took place around 2:30 a.m., as both cars were traveling south on Route 4 in Lothian.
The vehicle Fitzgibbon was driving struck Burdette's from behind just south of the intersection at Plummer Lane, sending both cars off of the road.
Burdette's pickup truck hit a tree head-on, while Fitzgibbon's vehicle came to a rest on the grassy median.
According to a release from the police department, Fitzgibbon was treated on the scene for minor injuries. Burdette was transported to Prince George's Hospital Center in Cheverly with life-threatening injuries.
Karen Burdette said that after the accident her uncle remained unconscious in the hospital's intensive care unit until his death. Hospital officials declined to comment on the extent of his injuries or nature of his stay.
Burdette's funeral will be held Monday at Clinton United Methodist Church.