SNOW HILL, MD - The trial for Tiffany Knupp, mother of Gavin Knupp, is slated for Tuesday, September 24th. Ahead of the trial, here’s what viewers need to know.
Hit-and-Run Death of Gavin Knupp
14-year-old Gavin Knupp, of Ocean Pines, was fatally struck on Grays Corner Road in July of 2022 just before 10:45 p.m. Knupp was crossing the road to return to a parked car when he was hit, according to authorities. The driver of the car, which was described as a dark-colored Mercedes at the time, fled the scene and did not return, according to police.
Knupp’s death sent ripples of grief through the local community which can still be felt today, more than two years later.
Gavin Knupp Foundation
Following her son’s death, Tiffany Knupp launched the Gavin Knupp Foundation, a non-profit organization aimed at providing scholarship opportunities and community support for local youth. The Foundation announced a scholarship in January 2023 to send two children to attend a skateboard and action sports camp in Pennsylvania.
Suspect Charged
It would be nearly a year before a suspect in the hit-and-run death of Knupp was officially named. In April of 2023, Worcester County prosecutors formally filed charges in Worcester County Circuit Court against Tyler Mailloux, of Berlin, in connection to Knupp’s death. Mailloux faced 17 charges including failure to stop a vehicle at the scene of an accident involving death and failure to return or remain at the scene of an accident involving bodily injury.
On August 18th, 2023, a Worcester County Circuit Court judge dismissed the case against Mailloux, arguing that the charges should have been filed in district court. That decision was ultimately overturned, though Mailloux’s legal team made several attempts to have it sustained.
A jury trial for Mailloux is now scheduled to begin March 3rd, 2025.
Embezzlement Charges
On June 24th, 2024, Tiffany Knupp was issued a criminal summons on 9 charges including theft and embezzlement. Prosecutors allege Knupp stole over $12,000 from the Gavin Knupp Foundation and a local business that had held a fundraiser for donations to the Foundation.
Knupp has denied the allegations, with her lawyer calling them “completely bogus.”
"Tiffany is a person who has stood up in her life for others," Thomas Maronick Jr., Knupp's attorney, said on her behalf in June. "She has faced overwhelming pain and then more than a year of media attention following her son’s death while she’s worked to be the best mother she can be, a strong advocate for the community, a business owner and friend to many. Under Tiffany’s leadership the Foundation has donated thousands of dollars to families in need and continues to support local families of those who have lost children."
Knupp’s trial is scheduled to begin on September 24th at 9 a.m. in Snow Hill’s Worcester County District Court. WBOC will be present at the trial and will continue to provide all updates as they occur.
