Nearly six months after pleading not guilty to all charges relating to the fatal hit-and-run of 21-year-old Starllie Swonyoung, married Malden couple Lacy Maxwell, age 43, and Ryan Maxwell, age 43 changed their pleas to guilty.
On Tuesday, August 20, Lacy Maxwell pleaded guilty to Leaving the Scene of an Incident Resulting in Death and the felony of Insurance Fraud in the 3rd Degree. Ryan Maxwell, pleaded guilty to Insurance Fraud in the 5th Degree for trying to help her in misleading the insurance company and covering up the actual cause of the damage to their car. Sentencing is scheduled for Friday, November 15.
On January 10, Swonyoung and an unnamed friend were walking on Route 9W between Malden-on-Hudson and Saugerties at approximately 5:10 p.m. when Swonyoung was struck by a 2021 Subaru operated by Lacy Maxwell, who then left the scene without checking on the welfare of the victim or reporting the incident to 911 or police. The next day, she and co-defendant Ryan Maxwell staged an accident to cover up for the damage sustained to the vehicle from the hit-and-run, and then submitted a claim to their insurance company.
In March, Lacy Maxwell was remanded to the Ulster County Jail on $100,000 cash bail, $200,000 property bond, and $300,000 partially secured bond. Ryan Maxwell’s charges are ineligible for cash bail and he was released on his own recognizance.
The Ulster County District Attorney’s Office credited the Saugerties Police Department, New York State Police and the collision reconstruction unit for collaborating with them on the case, with assistance from the Saugerties and Malden West Camp fire departments. They also credited leads brought forth by members of the community.
Deputy chief ADA Paul Derohannesian is prosecuting the case. Lacy Maxwell is represented by Kingston attorney Tom Melanson and Ryan Maxwell is represented by Poughkeepsie attorney Mikael Cohn.
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