81-Year-Old Faces Motor Vehicle Homicide Charge in Gloucester Wrong-Way Crash Killing Teen

Laurence Hayes, an 81-year-old man from Reading, Massachusetts, has been charged with motor vehicle homicide by reckless operation and two civil driving offenses following a wrong-way crash on Route 128 that killed 18-year-old Christopher Dailey and injured four other teenagers. Hayes was driving northbound in a southbound lane on the A. Piatt Andrew Bridge when his Honda CRV collided head-on with a Toyota Corolla carrying Dailey and three other Gloucester teens. Dailey, a recent Gloucester High School graduate and hockey team co-captain, died from his injuries days after the crash, while the other teens sustained injuries requiring hospitalization. Hayes pleaded not guilty in Gloucester District Court and was released on personal recognizance with conditions including home confinement, GPS monitoring, and a driving ban. The crash remains under investigation by multiple state police units and the Essex County District Attorney’s Office. Hayes is scheduled to appear for a pretrial hearing in September.