OCEAN PINES, Md.- The parents and sister of Gavin Knupp are now taking legal action against several people and organizations they believe played a role in the events leading up to and following his death.
The 14-year-old was struck and killed in a hit-and-run crash in Worcester County in 2022.
A civil lawsuit was filed Wednesday in Worcester County Circuit Civil Court by Gavin’s parents, Ray and Tiffany Knupp, and his sister, Summer. Among those named in the complaint is Tyler Mailloux, who pleaded guilty earlier this year to leaving the scene of the crash and is currently serving an 18-month suspended sentence.
The suit doesn’t stop with Mailloux. His mother-in-law, Kearston Lee Frey, and father-in-law, Ralph Deangelus, are also named as defendants. The Knupp family claims the pair helped hide the vehicle Mailloux was driving the night Gavin was killed.
The complaint also targets Matt Ortt Companies and the Ocean Pines Association — Mailloux’s employer at the time. According to court filings, the Knupps allege that the company, which operated the Ocean Pines Yacht Club, provided Mailloux and other employees with free alcohol shortly before the incident.
The legal filing accuses Mailloux of fleeing the scene because he knew he had been drinking and feared his impaired state may have caused or contributed to the deadly crash.
The Knupp family’s civil complaint includes over a dozen claims, including negligence, wrongful death, and intentional infliction of emotional distress. They are seeking damages exceeding $75,000 per claim — more than $1.2 million in total.