DELMARVA - Join WBOC as we take a look back at the most-read news stories of the year on WBOC.com and our News App while we count down to 2026. We’ll revisit 2025’s headlines in three-month intervals, finishing with October, November, and December to see what stories caught our viewers’ and readers’ attention the most.
Previous recaps: First Quarter 2025, Second Quarter 2025, Third Quarter 2025
October 2025
October unfortunately began with a shocking act of violence in downtown Salisbury. On Oct. 4, just after 1 a.m., police were called to Main Street on reports of a fight. Upon arrival, police say they found 27-year-old Kemmon Walker suffering from an apparent stab wound. Walker, a local church drummer, did not survive. Police called for the public’s help in locating 35-year-old Carlus Gerald, wanted on murder charges.
Days later, WBOC obtained exclusive security camera footage of the events leading up to the alleged stabbing. We also learned this was not the first stabbing incident in which Gerald had been implicated - he was charged with attempted second-degree murder in 2022 and took a plea deal, according to court records. That case was reopened due to violation of probation just days after Walker’s death. As of Dec. 30, court records do not show that Gerald has been taken into custody.
Gerald was not the only suspect to evade police in October. On Oct. 22, a suspect in a stolen vehicle led police on a high-speed chase from Delaware into Maryland, briefly back into Delaware, then returned to Maryland when police called the chase off due to safety when the suspect entered Denton. No injuries were reported, and police said they were working to identify the suspect.
Several other crime investigations populated the top 10 articles in October. A former office manager for an Ocean City-based construction company admitted to stealing over $1.75 million from her former employer between 2016 and 2024. A months-long drug investigation in Sussex County led Delaware State Police to arrest a 58-year-old Millsboro man on charges of possession of a deadly substance with intent to distribute, among other counts. In another case, a Salisbury woman was accused of attempting to run several people over with her car following an argument.
WBOC also learned of a settlement between Ocean City and the parents of a child killed in a horrific boardwalk tram accident in 2024 through a Maryland Public Information Act request in October. The child was killed on Aug. 20, 2024, when a boardwalk tram struck the two-year-old while he was crossing the boardwalk. Nearly a year later, Ocean City officials agreed to pay $400,000 to the boy’s family, and the family agreed not to pursue any legal claims. Ocean City also announced in October that the tram service would not be returning.
A Jeep Wrangler leading one of Ocean City's Boardwalk Trams.
Ocean City officials also turned their attention to reports of unauthorized rideshare activity during the resort town’s numerous festivals. Police Commission committee member Larry Yates announced a collaboration with Ocean City Police to crack down on drivers soliciting cash rides near busy pickup areas during and after concerts. Safety was listed as a top concern, and verified drivers from Uber and Lyft urged riders to avoid cash rides and verify rides via official apps and license plates during large events.
As a new Maryland speeding law went into effect in October, so too did a new law in Delaware to curb excessive dog barking in the First State. House Bill 124 was implemented on Oct. 9 and mandated that no dog owner could permit their dog to cause a public noise disturbance for 15 minutes continuously or 30 minutes intermittently. Excessive barking, howling, and whining were all included as possible disturbances. Dogs protecting their owners from trespassing or threatening on their property are exempt, as are animal shelters, pet stores, groomers, vets, and animal clinics.
November 2025
Fatal crashes across Delmarva were again an unfortunate focus on Delmarva in November. On Nov. 7, a Delaware State Police responded to a five-vehicle crash on Route 1 in Sussex County. Police said multiple southbound cars were slowing down for a red light at the intersection of Hudson Road just before 3 p.m. A dump truck, also approaching the intersection, did not slow down, according to police. The dump truck struck one vehicle from behind, starting a chain reaction collision. The driver and passenger of the car the dump truck hit were killed in the crash.
The next day, a child was killed in Dorchester County in a crash near East New Market. Details on the crash were scarce as the Dorchester County Sheriff’s Office and Maryland State Police conducted their investigation.
WBOC also reported on two former-Smyrna Elementary School employees being sentenced in a child abuse and neglect investigation. Police first announced the arrest of three employees in 2024 stemming from reports of misconduct in a special needs elementary classroom. In November, one of the former employees pleaded guilty to one count of endangering the welfare of a child and was sentenced to 12 months probation. Another woman pleaded guilty in September and received a similar sentence. The third suspect in the investigation had her case dismissed due to lack of evidence.
(Marissa Johnson, left, and Makayla Lomax, right - Smyrna Police Department)
The Delaware State Fair ignited excitement for summer 2026 before winter had even arrived with their initial lineup release for the Delaware Lottery Summer Concert Series slated for July and August. “Weird Al” Yankovich, Bailey Zimmerman, Chandler Walters, and For King & Country were all announced as upcoming acts for the concert series, fueling anticipation for warmer months on Delmarva.
While the Delaware State Fair boasted new upcoming acts, Ocean City had disappointing news for rock-and-roll lovers in November. Due to a “variety of challenges,” the resort town announced Boardwalk Rock would not be returning in 2026. Ocean City officials and Boardwalk Walk organizers C3 Presents said the rock music festival would make its return in 2027. Meanwhile, Oceans Calling and Country Calling are still slated to return in the new year.
November’s top story was that of Maryland Governor Wes Moore signing an executive order to establish the Maryland Horse Industry Strategic Plan. With a $2.9 billion equine network supporting 28,000 jobs and drawing a massive tourism boost, Moore said the committee leading the plan would include representatives from horse racing, competition, recreation, and wellness to guide the industry’s future. According to officials, Maryland has more horses per square mile than any other state in the U.S.
Courtesy of the Office of Governor Wes Moore
Finally, the month saw arachnophobes’ nightmares realized with scientists asking for the Eastern Shore’s help in tracking an invasive giant spider species as it spreads in Maryland. The Joro spider, an orb-weaver native to East Asia, travels via “balloon” as a juvenile, releasing silk threads to be carried off by the wind. The transportation method has allowed the spiders to spread rapidly in some parts of the country, according to researchers, and some now expect them to begin appearing more frequently in Maryland. A biologist at Washington College in Chestertown called on Eastern Shore residents to report sightings, noting that the spiders posed no threat to humans or pets. Whether due to fascination or fear, the story on the spider invasion drew significant attention in November.
(Clemson University)
December 2025
A taste of winter came early in December this year, with a light covering bringing slick conditions across much of the peninsula in the first week of the month. Less than two weeks later, a slightly more significant snowfall landed on Delmarva, providing a lovely (but fleeting) snowscape. The second winter weather event proved to be challenging for some utility providers on Delmarva, with the Delaware Electric Cooperative reporting major outages in Kent and Sussex Counties on Dec. 14. Thousands were briefly left without power due to a reported transmission provider service drop at multiple substations amid snowy conditions and blustering wind. The cooperative reported power had been restored swiftly after the outages were announced.
On Dec. 10, Wicomico County first responders and police were called to Slab Bridge Road in Fruitland after a property owner reported a missing excavator operator. The ensuing investigation revealed that the excavator had fallen into a retention pond on the property with the operator still inside. Chopper 16 was overhead as a dive team pulled the victim from the water. The man was flown to Johns Hopkins in Baltimore but did not survive the incident. He was later identified as Paul Jones, 81. The investigation into the incident is ongoing.
Ocean City Police requested the public’s assistance in locating a suspect in a series of fraudulent checks deposited at local banks in December. The investigation reportedly began in November, with police saying a woman using a fraudulent Georgia ID “washed” checks stolen from mailboxes in West Ocean City and then attempted to cash them at numerous Worcester County banks.
In Cambridge, police said they attempted to serve an extraditable warrant on a man on Dec. 19 when the suspect barricaded himself inside a home on Glenburn Avenue. After a reportedly lengthy attempt at communication with the suspect, drones were deployed in a breach of the apartment and the man complied with orders to surrender himself peacefully. Rushaan Dukes, 30, was arrested and turned over to the Dorchester County Department of Corrections.
A Gold Alert for four missing siblings also drew major attention on Delmarva in December. Cash, Cody, Evey, and Mallory Broomall - 5, 8, 6, and 12, respectively - were reported missing early in the month. Police said they were last seen on Dec. 5 in Smyrna. Luckily, by Dec, 9, Delaware State Police announced they had been found and taken to a DSP station.
On Dec. 18, the Maryland Transportation Authority Board made a significant vote on the proposed future of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge. In a unanimous vote, the board voted to pursue “Alternative C,” which includes removing the existing bridge spans and replacing them with two new four-lane spans across the Chesapeake. The plan would also see the US 50/301 corridor to eight lanes and the possibility of a bicycle and pedestrian path along the bridge. WIth the approval of the MDTA Board, the plan is now expected to undergo a lengthy review by the public and government agencies. Public hearings are set to begin in February, and then the federal government will have the opportunity to weigh-in in the spring. Should all go according to plan, officials say construction could begin in summer of 2032.
Federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement activity on Delmarva once again made the top headlines on the WBOC website in December with the arrest of a 24-year-old mother in Salisbury. A video captured by neighbors showed Vanessa Parrazal’s car being surrounded by federal agents shortly after dropping her daughter off at Pinehurst Elementary School. ICE agents can be heard shouting at Parrazal to get out of the car. When she didn’t, Parrazal’s friends say the agents smashed her window, reached in to unlock the car, then pulled Parrazal out and detained her.
A picture of Vanessa Parrazal from her most recent birthday. Photo courtesy of Elizabeth Watkins.
Parrazal was charged with felony assault in 2020, but that charge was later reduced to a misdemeanor, which she pleaded guilty to. Wicomico County Sheriff Mike Lewis tells WBOC the immigration officers operated within their rights, attributing her previous conviction as the reason she had been on ICE’s radar. An effort to bring Parrazal home to her family for Christmas was not successful. As of the end of the year, she is still held at an ICE facility in Louisiana, according to online records.
December’s most-read headline left readers and viewers from not only Delmarva, but across the region stunned by a horrific act of violence against a Delaware State Trooper in New Castle County. On Dec. 23, 10-year DSP veteran Corporal Grade One Matthew T. “Ty” Snook was working an overtime assignment stationed at the Wilmington DMV on Hessler Boulevard. Police say 44-year-old Rahman Rose, of Wilmington, entered the DMV, approached Corporal Snook from behind, and shot the DSP trooper. Snook then pushed a DMV employee out of the way and told them to run as Rose continued to open fire. Rose was later fatally shot by a New Castle County police officer.
(Delaware State Police)
Corporal Snook was taken to a nearby hospital but tragically succumbed to his injuries. He is survived by his wife and one-year-old daughter. Snook was 34.
Waves of grief were felt across Delmarva in the wake of the harrowing loss. A candlelight vigil was held to honor and memorialize Corporal Snook in Georgetown days later, and Snook’s funeral services are planned for Monday, Jan. 5 at the University of Delaware. As of Dec. 31, the top story on WBOC is that of Tunnel to Towers announcing that they would pay off the mortgage of the fallen Delaware State Trooper’s home by New Year’s Day as a tribute to his service and sacrifice.
“Corporal Snook’s final act was not to seek safety for himself, but to get someone else out of harm's way. The Tunnel to Towers Foundation is honored to stand with the family he leaves behind and ensure that his courage, selflessness, and bravery will never be forgotten,” said Frank Siller, Chairman and CEO of the Tunnel to Towers Foundation.
(Tunnel to Towers)