Fairmount Township, PA – Motorcyclist Killed After Fatal Route 118 Crash

Fairmount Township, PA (Aug 26, 2026) – A Columbia County motorcyclist is dead after a two-vehicle crash on Route 118 in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania State Police say, in a case where alcohol is suspected.

State police say 78-year-old Martin Temple of Bloomsburg died at the scene Wednesday evening after another vehicle failed to yield near the Earl Lane intersection, around 5:15 p.m. Investigators say 68-year-old Anthony Maurer of Benton was driving the other vehicle, which struck Temple’s motorcycle as Temple traveled westbound. Maurer was not injured.

State police identify Maurer as the arrestee in the crash and say alcohol is suspected. The investigation remains ongoing.

This is a developing story. Details may change as the investigation continues.

What Comes Next in a Suspected DUI Motorcycle Crash in Pennsylvania

When troopers suspect alcohol, the investigation moves on two tracks at once: a criminal case against the driver and a separate civil claim for the family. Families don’t have to wait for one to pursue the other.

A toxicology report, if one is pending, becomes central evidence and should be tracked from the day it’s ordered, not months later.

The motorcycle, both vehicles, and the Earl Lane intersection should be preserved and photographed before anything is repaired, towed, or repositioned.

If Maurer is charged or convicted, that outcome can support a civil wrongful death claim, but a family is not required to wait for a criminal case to conclude before filing.

Pennsylvania’s dram shop law can create a separate claim if Maurer was served alcohol at a bar or restaurant before the crash, a detail worth asking about early in an independent investigation.

Under Pennsylvania law, a wrongful death claim must generally be filed within two years of the date of death, putting the deadline at August 26, 2028 (42 Pa.C.S. § 5524).

Contact Our Wilkes-Barre Motorcycle Accident Attorneys

Scartelli Olszewski is a Northeastern Pennsylvania law firm that has represented injured riders and grieving families across Luzerne and Lackawanna counties for more than two decades. Our firm is led by Melissa A. Scartelli, a Board Certified Civil Trial Advocate, and Peter Paul Olszewski, Jr., a former Luzerne County District Attorney and Court of Common Pleas judge, backed by a $10 million jury verdict record in this county.

When a motorcyclist is killed by a driver suspected of impairment, our Wilkes-Barre motorcycle accident attorney team builds an independent civil case alongside the criminal one, securing the toxicology results, the vehicles, and the Earl Lane intersection before that evidence disappears into the county’s timeline.

The firm serves families throughout Northeastern Pennsylvania, with attorneys based in Wilkes-Barre and Scranton and cases handled across the surrounding counties, including Columbia County, where Martin Temple’s family lives.

There’s no cost to talk, and no fee unless the firm recovers for the family.

If the toxicology results confirm what troopers suspect, that finding won’t wait for anyone. Call (570) 346-2600 today, before it’s someone else’s case to build.