Investigators were working to determine the cause of a car collision in Carroll County that killed a local orthodontist and injured seven others, Maryland State Police said yesterday.

Dr. Kevin Robert Lawyer, 39, of Finksburg died in the wreck, which occurred about 4:30 p.m. Thursday on Route 91 south of Old Gamber Road, police said. Lawyer was driving southbound on Route 91 in a GMC Yukon with his six children, ages 5 to 11, when his vehicle crossed the center dividing line and struck an Utz delivery truck.

Lawyer was pronounced dead at the scene, police said. Four of his children were taken to Carroll Hospital Center, police said, while the other two were flown to Johns Hopkins Children's Center.

One of the children at the Children's Center was treated and released, while the other was in good condition yesterday in the center's pediatric intensive care unit, a hospital spokeswoman said.

The family opted not to have information on the status of the children at Carroll Hospital Center released, a spokeswoman there said yesterday.

The truck driver, Donald E. Myers Jr. of Hanover, Pa., remained in critical condition yesterday at Maryland Shock Trauma Center, a hospital spokeswoman said.

arin.gencer@baltsun.com