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July 6, 2011

Parkway reopened, police still seek attacker

Maryland State Police have reopened all lanes of the Baltimore Washington Parkway but are continuing to seek a person who took a hammer to a speed enforcement vehicle. The man also had a shotgun, but police said no shots were fired.

Still, the incident shut down for hours a major highway between Baltimore and Washington, creating havoc on the roadways, and sent heavily armored police to the highway and roads near BWI Airport. An empty BW Parkway is seen above, in a picture by The Sun's Jed Kirschbaum.

The latest update from Maryland State Police:

The search is continuing this evening for an armed man who vandalized a speed camera vehicle parked along the Baltimore Washington Parkway in Anne Arundel County late this morning.

The suspect is described as a white male, aged 60-65 years, approximately 5’8” tall and 150 lbs, with gray hair. He is said to have been wearing a red and blue plaid shirt, possibly flannel, with blue jeans.

The male victim is not being identified at this time. He was not physically injured in the incident.  He is an employee of the company contracted by the State Highway Administration to conduct speed camera enforcement in construction zones on Maryland interstates.

Shortly before 11:30 a/m. today, the victim was parked in his white Jeep SUV, with cameras mounted on the hood, along the southbound shoulder of the BW Parkway, just north of the Rt. 195 exit. The victim said the suspect walked out of a wooded area to his right and was armed with a shotgun and a hammer.

The suspect tapped on the rear window of the Jeep with his shotgun. Alarmed, the victim began blowing his horn. The suspect then walked to the front of the Jeep and struck the windshield repeatedly, leaving large spider web type breaks in the glass.

In fear for his safety, the victim jumped out of his vehicle and crouched near the guardrail.  He said the suspect was yelling, but it sounded incoherent and he could not understand what the man was saying.

Moments later, the victim said the man walked back into the woods the same way he came, still carrying the shotgun and hammer. No shots were fired.

Troopers from the Maryland State Police and officers from the Anne Arundel County Police responded quickly and established a perimeter around the area. SWAT teams from both departments responded, as did support units that included K-9 teams and State Police helicopters. Due to the proximity of an armed suspect to the BW Parkway, troopers closed the road both north and southbound for the safety of motorists.

State Highway Administration personnel responded and diverted traffic at I-695 to the north and Rt. 100 to the south. Maryland Transportation Authority Police officers also assisted with the search and in securing the area perimeter.

The immediate search of the area did not lead to the location of the suspect. The BW Parkway was reopened to traffic at about 2:45 p.m. today.

The search is continuing in the area tonight. Anyone who thinks they may have seen the suspect or know him, is urged to contact 911 immediately, or the Maryland State Police at the Glen Burnie Barracks, at 410-761-5130.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 7:30 PM | | Comments (4)
Categories: Anne Arundel County
        

Comments

I guess all the windshields of the world can rest easy now. The police shut down a major highway for 4 hours due to spider cracks.

I had no idea a man cracking the window of a staffed speed camera vehicle way off on the shoulder was cause enough to shut down a major highway in both directions and surrounding roads for over 3 hours, send 70+ police officials, send nearly 2 dozen K9s, use 3 helicopters, bring out mobile command center vehicles, occupy space in nearby hotels, dispatch several SWAT units, and stage an ongoing manhunt. Something here does not make sense. Nobody was hurt. A windshield was cracked. They didn't even react this strongly to that terrible incident involving an officer on I-83 last month! I just don't get it.

Why the huge reaction to a little everyday damage Marylanders can experience on their own if they drive behind a dump truck long enough? Something does not add up here. I think there's more to the story.

----
You're leaving out the fact that he had a gun and there were initial reports of shots fired. -JF

It's entirely possible the contractor in the Jeep mistakenly identified the hammer handle as a gun while it was being tapped on the back window. There are conflicting initial reports if it was a rifle or shotgun and if shots were or were not fired. Someone would notice a person running around with a long gun in that area. Carrying a long gun and a hammer at the same time is no easy feat for a 65-year old. Hotels have a lot of people around, it was lunch time for some folks, and all those places have tons of security.

What I see is a simple case of vandalism. The response looked more like something out of that movie US Marshals.

Can we see a picture of that gun please?

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About Peter Hermann
Peter Hermann started covering news for The Baltimore Sun in 1990, first in Anne Arundel County and, starting in 1994, reporting on the Baltimore Police Department. In 2001, he was assigned to Jerusalem as the Baltimore Sun's Middle East correspondent. He returned in 2005 as an assistant city editor overseeing crime coverage. In 2008, Peter returned to the beat as a daily reporter and blogger. A recent BBC report featured him in a segment on the harsh realities of covering crime in Baltimore.

Coverage will focus on crime trends, problems in neighborhoods in the city and elsewhere, profiles of victims and police officers and try to offer readers a fresh perspective on one of the most vexing issues facing Baltimore and its future.



Contributing to this blog is Justin Fenton, who joined The Sun in 2005 and has covered the Baltimore City Police Department and the criminal justice system since 2008. His work includes an investigation into Cal Ripken Jr.’s minor league baseball stadium deal with his hometown of Aberdeen, a three-part series chronicling a ruthless con woman, coverage of the killing of five Amish children at a schoolhouse in Nickel Mines, Pa., and a job swap with a British crime reporter to explore differences in crime-fighting. A special report looking into how city police handle rape cases led to sweeping reforms that changed the way sexual assaults are investigated in Baltimore. He was recognized as the best reporter in Baltimore by the City Paper in 2010 and by Baltimore Magazine in 2011.
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