That Killed Beloved AACC Lacrosse Player
An Anne Arundel County judge on Wednesday sentenced 21-year-old Shayne Kenneth Smith to 18 months in jail for his role in a West River boat crash that claimed the life of beloved Anne Arundel Community College student and lacrosse player Nick Barton last summer, State’s Attorney Anne Colt Leitess announced.
On Wednesday afternoon, Smith entered a guilty plea to Negligent Manslaughter by Boat. He was sentenced to 10 years with all but 18 months suspended. In addition, Smith was sentenced to five years of supervised probation. He will not be allowed to operate a boat while on probation.
“The defendant made the deadly choice of operating a boat on a busy summer afternoon while not only intoxicated, but as the captain of the boat, with disregard for the lives of six other young people on board,” Leitess said. “This poor decision took the life of an exemplary college student and lacrosse player who was just beginning his adult life and had a bright future ahead.
“This case reminds us that operating a vessel while impaired can be just as deadly as operating a motor vehicle on the road. The defendant needed to be the one person on the boat who abstained from substances. Instead, he risked everyone’s life by drinking and using marijuana before the crash.”
On June 4, 2022, Smith, while under the influence of drugs and alcohol, was speeding before he crashed a white center console boat into a channel piling on West River near Parish Creek.
The force of the collision ejected six boaters from the vessel into the water. Five of the boaters resurfaced. Nick Barton was later located deceased.
Assistant State’s Attorney Carolynn Grammas prosecuted the case on behalf of the citizens of Anne Arundel County, with the Honorable Stacy W. McCormack presiding.