Woman accuses former Baltimore city council president of stalking, theft
A woman who says she is the ex-girlfriend of former City Council President Lawrence A. Bell III is accusing him of stalking her and repeatedly breaking into her home, court records show.
Bell, a Democrat who spent 12 years on the council and lost the 1999 election for mayor, has been charged with third-degree burglary, theft less than $1,000, telephone harassment and stalking. The charges were filed by Shan Mabry, who said she has known and dated Bell for 20 years.
Reached for comment Thursday night, Bell (seen in this Sun photo from 1999) declined to speak on the record. Mabry could not be reached for comment.
The charges were approved by a District Court commissioner on Sunday, after Mabry, 49, sought a peace order against Bell, 49, for the second time in six months.
Bell entered the 1999 mayoral campaign as the frontrunner and boasted a war chest of more than $1 million, but lost the Democratic primary to Martin O'Malley after a series of high-profile missteps and revelations about personal financial troubles.
Shortly after his defeat, Bell dropped out of public view and spent time in Atlanta. He made attempted to return to local politics in 2006, joining a crowded field for a West Baltimore state senate seat that went to Catherine Pugh.
Beginning in August 2009, Mabry, of the 3400 block of College Ave., says that Bell, of the 3300 block of Auchentoroly Terrace, began breaking into her home, which she says was captured on security cameras – although she says he destroyed those tapes.In a four-page complaint, she also cites numerous dates when she says Bell harassed her, and accuses him of “cyber stalking” and scratching her 54-inch television during one alleged break-in. He stole tools, computer equipment and a $700 pair of prescription sunglasses from her in October 2010, she claims.
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