A Baltimore Police officer assigned to Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake's executive protection unit was involved in an accident on southbound I-83, sending two people to the hospital and tying up traffic on the highway.

Police said the accident occurred after 8:30 p.m. The officer was returning to City Hall when his unmarked departmental SUV was struck by another vehicle, police said. Witness reports indicated the vehicle flipped over, but police said the drivers suffered non life threatening injuries. Rawlings-Blake was not in the vehicle at the time of the accident.

Police did not release the name of the officer injured in the accident, or details about the driver of the other vehicle. The department's Accident Investigation Unit is on the scene investigating. 

Posted by Justin Fenton at 10:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

UPDATE: Police said this morning that the victim has died.

A man was shot and seriously wounded in an apparent robbery at a troubled carryout store in North Baltimore on Monday night, during the prime trick-or-treating hour, police said.

There were few details available, but police said three suspects approached the victim inside a carryout in the 2900 block of Greenmount Ave., the location of the Yau Brothers restaurant. Yau Brothers is where 72-year-old Charles Bowman was killed during a robbery last year, and where three people were shot a year earlier. 

The victim's age and condition were not known, but homicide detectives were sent to the scene due to the seriousness of the victim's injuries, police said. No one else was reported injured.

Police asked anyone with information to call detectives at 410-396-2100. 

Posted by Justin Fenton at 9:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: North Baltimore
        

A man released from prison in September and put on a watch list of the state’s most violent offenders has been arrested in the rape of a 14-year-old girl who police said was lured into a van in West Baltimore and attacked by five men.

The suspect, 22-year-old Lucky Christopher Crosby Jr., was wearing a state prison-issued GPS monitor on his ankle when he was arrested this weekend, allowing police pinpoint his precise movements when the girl said she was attacked on Oct. 23.

According to police charging documents, detectives determined the suspect was in the back of his own home “during the time that the incident would have occurred” and was “stationary for over 20 minutes.” Crosby lives in the 1500 block of Leslie St. in Sandtown-Winchester, the same block on which police said the attack occurred.

Detectives are still searching for four other suspects and declined to comment on the case until more arrests are made. A District Court judge ordered Crosby held without bail on Monday. He is charged with 28 criminal counts, including charges of rape, handgun possession, false imprisonment, sex offenses and assault. The suspect does not yet have an attorney and relatives could not be reached for comment.

For more information on this case:

According to police charging documents, detectives determined the suspect was in the back of his own home “during the time that the incident would have occurred” and was “stationary for over 20 minutes.” Crosby lives in the 1500 block of Leslie St. in Sandtown-Winchester, the same block on which police said the attack occurred.

Detectives are still searching for four other suspects and declined to comment on the case until more arrests are made. A District Court judge ordered Crosby held without bail on Monday. He is charged with 28 criminal counts, including charges of rape, handgun possession, false imprisonment, sex offenses and assault. The suspect does not yet have an attorney and relatives could not be reached for comment.

Crosby had been serving five years in prison after being convicted of armed robbery and using a handgun during a crime in June 2008. Inmates typically serve about two-thirds of their sentences in Maryland. Prison officials said Crosy was freed on mandatory release on Sept. 7, after serving three years and three months.

That put Crosby under the supervision of state parole and probation officials until his sentence was to expire in March 2013. Rick Binetti, a spokesman for the state prison system, said newly released inmates are typically put on GPS monitoring for up to 60 days.

That helps officials determine whether Crosby has been compliant with the terms of his release. Binetti said Crosby has no violations since he got out of prison two months ago — he checked in with agents on time, obtained a job and passed drug tests. Officials said Crosby also had a curfew, which he complied with.

Binetti said that Crosby was not under home detention, which would have put stringent restrictions on his movements. He said Crosby was under GPS monitoring, which allows officials to see where he went, but he was allowed to travel as he pleased.

Binetti said GPS monitoring — unlike with home detention that alerts authorities when an person leaves a restricted area — is not monitored in real time. “It is another tool to help the department keep up on them,” the spokesman said. “The purpose of the GPS is to be able to check on the person’s whereabouts over a period of time. If you are supposed to be at work, we can tell if you were there.”

State officials said this case worked the way the program is designed — helping, Binetti said, give police “intel and information about possible suspects under state supervision.”

Lucky is one of about 2,200 people on the state’s Violence Prevention Initiative, of which about 1,300 per month are from Baltimore City. It is a way for parole and probation agents to select which people get the most frequent and intense checks, and they are supposed to hold people on the list accountable for even the most minor infractions.

The program has been credited with reducing crime by keeping better track of the offenders deemed most likely to be problems upon their release.

The Oct. 23 attack on the girl occurred Sunday afternoon. She told police that she lives in a group home and was visiting her family who had recently moved to West Baltimore. She had been walking through the neighborhood with her brother and cousin, but had walked away from them after an argument.

According to the police charging document, the girl said she didn’t have her glasses because they had broke, and “this made it difficult for her to read street signs as to where she was at. [victim] kept trying to figure out where she was.”

The girl told police that she ended up in a parking lot and was approached by a man wearing his hair in a pony tail who offered her a ride. She said she got into a brown to tan van that was parked in the lot, off Leslie Street, and saw two other men inside. Two other men then got into the vehicle.

Police said that one of the men told the girl he had a gun and ordered to her to take her clothes off. The charging document says she was raped by two men and sexually assaulted the other three. After the attack, police said the men let the girl out of the van and she noticed she was in the 1500 block of Leslie St.

The girl used a woman’s cell phone to call her mother, and they contacted police. Two days later on Oct. 25, detectives later took the girl to the neighborhood to retrace her steps. The next day, police said they found a tan 1996 Ford van parked on Stricker Street, registered to Crosby at the Leslie Street address. Police said the man had his hair tied in the back in a bunch.

Police said in charging documents that the girl identified Crosby from a picture in a photo array.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 4:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: West Baltimore
        

A 38-year-old man who survived a 1998 shooting in Govans that claimed the life of his pregnant girlfriend died in June, and police have added his death to this year's murder tally.

Officers responding to a traffic accident at a gas station in the 5300 block of York Road on Feb. 1, 1998 found Kimberly A. Smith, 30, suffering from a gunshot wound to the neck, half of her body hanging out of the vehicle. Leaning across the front seat was her boyfriend, Richard A. Ford Jr., who had been shot in the back.

Ford, who was 25 at the time, was taken to Maryland Shock Trauma Center in critical condition and survived; Smith did not. 

Police said Ford was being treated at a hospice center in Middle River when he died on June 10, 2011 from complications related to his injuries. Baltimore County police notified city detectives, and the medical examiner ruled his death a homicide.

The Sun wrote about Smith's death at the time - she had lost her parents and a sister in a car crash nine years earlier, and wrote poems to cope with their deaths. She left behind two young daughters. 

"They didn't have any grandparents. They never knew their father. Now they don't have a mother. I think everyone is asking, 'How could this happen again to the same family?'" a neighbor said at the time. 

Police said the case is closed "by exception," meaning a suspect is known but cannot be prosecuted due to extenuating circumstances. In this case, police identified a suspect in the killing, but say he too was fatally shot. Police records list the suspect as Shonte Robinson, who was fatally shot Dec. 11, 1998 in the 6600 block of Hampnett Ave. A suspect was charged in Robinson's death - Walter Sheppard, who was 17 at the time and later received life in prison, court records show.

Posted by Justin Fenton at 11:14 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: North Baltimore
        

City police say they have made an arrest in the killing last week of a 53-year-old man, and officials also identified an 18-year-old man who was fatally shot in Southwest Baltimore.

Leroy Smith, 21, of the 1200 block of W. Mosher St., has been charged in the fatal stabbing of 53-year-old Eddie Nance, who was killed early Friday in the 600 block of George St., police said.

Nance was drinking with two friends in an apartment when two people, who were known to them, came over, police said. An argument over drugs broke out, which escalated to a fight, police said. One of the men began choking Nance, and the other went into the kitchen and retrieved a knife. Nance was stabbed in the chest. 

The stabbing occurred in the Heritage Crossing development, a neighborhood of green lawns and tidy brick homes that took the place of the notorious Murphy Homes towers. 

Smith was picked up Oct. 29 and is being held without bond. His prior record consists of several pending drug cases and an assault conspiracy charge for which he was sentenced to five years in prison with four years and six months suspended. 

Police also identified the 18-year-old shot Thursday night in the 1300 block of Braddish Ave. as Shyekee Wilson, of the 1900 block of Walbrook Ave. Wilson was found at 10:10 p.m. suffering from apparent gunshot wounds to the head, and was pronounced dead at the scene. The shooting occurred several blocks south of Coppin State University. Police said the case remains open and a motive was not clear.

Posted by Justin Fenton at 11:01 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)
Categories: Southwest Baltimore, West Baltimore
        

UPDATE; The Sun's Mary Gail Hare reports -- Rob Frisch, the tavern's owner, said, "Absolutely we will rebuild as quickly as possible." The bar employs 70. "This is a total loss, we're looking at a lot of work but we'll be back."

An early morning fire damaged the Mount Washington Tavern, a smokey blaze that could be smelled all the way downtown. Here are two pictures -- the aftermath sent over by the Baltimore Fire Department, and one with flames taken by an off-duty firefighter and distributed by the labor union.

We have a reporter at the scene assessing damage. But surely this venerable watering hole will be missed, even if for a short time. Here's a short history, taken from the bar and restaurant's web page:

"Our establishment is unique to Baltimore: the prints, paintings, and engravings on our walls were carefully selected to honor our local heritage. Painted by Carol Offutt, the mural on the West wall of the Tavern depicts the old clubhouse that stood at Pimlico Race Course – before it was destroyed by fire in 1966. The chandeliers that hang over the bar date back to 1889; they originally adorned the lobby of the old Gayiety Theatre on East Baltimore St. Even our antique wooden telephone booth is a relic from a famous downtown drugstore. The etched windows between the Front and Raw Bars feature scenes particularly relevant to Baltimore’s rich history.

"The Mt. Washington Tavern has been declared a historic landmark. In renovating the interior, designed by Gilman graduate Wil Baukhages and built by Towson High Graduate Doug Fry, we chose the finest raw oak. The bar is made from teak and the milling was hand crafted to our specifications."

Posted by Peter Hermann at 8:13 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: North Baltimore
        

NPR's Scott Simon traveled to Baltimore recently to talk to former Sun reporter David Simon (The Wire, Treme) and Donnie Andrews, the "real life Omar" who recently started a non-profit foundation to help at-risk individuals.

"I'm trying to be this good guy, I'm trying to be this citizen, but I can't. Ain't nobody giving me a chance," one man tells him about the hopelessness.

Watch The corner on PBS. See more from Need To Know.

Posted by Justin Fenton at 12:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (6)
        

The man who police say got shot after he jumped into a city sheriff deputy's cruiser this morning and attacked an officer with a knife is a convicted felon out on bail awaiting trial on drug and gun charges, according to court documents.

Police say they still don't know why the man got into the cruiser at Walther Avenue and Moravia Road. The deputy was on his way to work and stopped at a light, and does not know the suspect, according to authorities.

Here's an update to the story:

A city sheriff’s deputy on his way to work Friday morning shot and wounded a man who authorities said jumped into his marked cruiser and attacked him with a knife at a busy intersection in Northeast Baltimore.

The man was wounded in the left arm and taken to Johns Hopkins Hospital, where he was being treated. His condition was not available, but a spokeswoman for the Baltimore Sheriff’s Office said he was conscious and talking to paramedics.

Police identified the wounded man as Jontae L. Daughtry, 36, of the 1200 block of East Cold Spring Lane in New Northwood. He was in custody on Friday awaiting charges, according to the Sheriff’s Department. The deputy was identified as Gideon Shifaraw, a 10-year veteran of the force. He was not injured.

Sgt. Carla Lightsey, a spokeswoman for the sheriff’s department, described the attack, which occurred before 8 a.m. at Walther Avenue and Moravia Road, as purely random. “He has no clue as to why it happened,” the sergeant said of the deputy.

Shifaraw was traveling in a marked cruiser south on Walther Avenue, about six blocks northeast of Herring Run Park, and was stopped at a red light. Lightsey said the man with the knife jumped into the front passenger seat.

“He was wielding a knife at him,” Lightsey said, and the deputy pulled his handgun and fired one shot from his .40 caliber Glock handgun. Baltimore police homicide detectives are investigating, as is routine for police-involved shootings.

The deputy’s car was still parked at the intersection late Friday morning, with the streets blocked off with crime-scene tape. The area consists of mostly single-family homes and is in the Beverly Hills subsection of the Moravia-Walther neighborhood.

Sheriff’s deputies provide security for the downtown Baltimore Circuit Court buildings and typically serve arrest warrants.

The suspect, Daughtry, is out on bail pending a trial on a drug and gun charge, according to court records. Police said in court documents that members of the Violent Crime Impact Section tracked the man for several weeks and alleged that he sold heroin and cocaine from his parent’s house on East Cold Spring Lane and from his vehicle in Northeast Baltimore.

Police raided the parent’s house in April, according a police report, and seized a .357 Magnum revolver, six bullets and a gold necklace. His trial on charges of drug possession and being a convicted felon in possession of a handgun is scheduled for December.

His attorney declined to comment.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 3:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Northeast Baltimore
        

A man charged with adopting cats and then killing one and mutilating another pleaded guilty in Baltimore court today.

Prosecutors said Ethan Phillip Weibman faces up to three years in prison when he is sentenced in February and was ordered to not have any contact with animals. Police and prosecutors said he brought the injured and dead cats back to a store and a vet and asked to adopt more.

The suspect is a well-to-do young man who grew up in a million-dollar home in affluent Westchester County, N.Y., and attended Hampshire College. He listed David Foster Wallace and Hunter S. Thompson among his favorite writers on his Facebook page.

His mother, Carol Weibman, professed his innocence when Sun reporter Jill Rosen reached her this summer, even while expressing frustration in her son's lawyer's warning for her not to talk. "It's hard, especially when you want to shout out your innocence to the world," she said. "I wish I could say more, but my lips, unfortunately, are sealed."

Here is a statement from the Baltimore State's Attorney's Office:

Baltimore City District Court Judge Charles Chiapparelli accepted a guilty plea from Ethan Weibman today for the mutilation of two cats earlier this year.

On March 20, 2011, the Maryland SPCA opened an investigation of Weibman after he returned a recently adopted cat to the shelter deceased. The cat’s death was attributed to a wound inflicted by a BB gun shot. Less than three weeks later, Weibman took a second cat suffering from blunt force trauma to an area veterinarian.

Based on the investigation, evidence found at Weibman’s residence, and the medical examiner’s review, Weibman was charged.

Weibman pled guilty to two counts of felony mutilation of an animal and possessing, discharging, and using a gas, air-pellett gun. Scheduled for sentencing on February 1, 2012, Weibman faces a maximum of three years in prison. Weibman also was ordered not to have contact with any animals pending sentencing.

Assistant State’s Attorney Jennifer Etheridge prosecuted the case.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 3:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: Courts and the justice system
        

For the second time in as many weeks, a patient at the Clifton T. Perkins psychiatric hospital has been charged with killing another patient. It's the third such killing in the past 13 months.

Earlier this week, health advocates pressed for increased staffing and monitoring of patients after a man who killed his psychiatrist five years ago in Bethesda killed a patient. State officials promised to investigate (read story here).

Last year, a sex offender killed another patient, and investigators found that staff had been sleeping on the job and didn't routinely check rooms. Now, Maryland State Police are back at the hospital investigating other killing.

Here are more details from a police statement:

Posted by Peter Hermann at 11:51 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Howard County
        

Baltimore City Police Detective Antonio Green is in hot water this week after being charged with filing false insurance disability claims. But three years ago he had been previously under investigation after testifying in federal court on behalf of a convicted drug dealer who he said he had known since he was 11.

Antonio Green, a member of the Violent Crimes Impact Section, contradicted the testimony of a fellow officer when he appeared at an evidentiary hearing for defendant Richard Morris, who had been sentenced to 20 years in federal prison and was appealing the conviction.

Green had arrived at the scene on April 12, 2007 as backup, and testified that the two bags of cocaine found in the silver BMW were hidden under a seat, and not in plain view as the arresting officers had reported. He also contradicted the officers' assertion that Morris had claimed ownership of the drugs recovered from the car.

Experts said it was extraordinarily rare that an officer would contradict another officer in court, or testify for the defense at a suppression hearing. Police said at the time that they were opening an internal investigation file on the incident. 

It was not immediately clear what came of that case, but Green continued to do drug investigations, making some 30 arrests this year and as recently as Oct. 18; Morris, meanwhile, lost his appeal in 2009. The Court of Appeals didn't appear to take Green's testimony into account in affirming his conviction, instead finding that the officers who pulled over Morris had a reasonable suspicion that he was involved in a drug transaction.

Now, Green is charged with a felony count of filing false claims worth more than $300, which carries a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison and a $10,000 fine. There's also a misdemeanor charge, stemming from the same claim. 

Green was charged through criminal information, and is first court hearing is scheduled for late next month.

Posted by Justin Fenton at 10:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: Courts and the justice system
        

The vigil began on an ominous note. The organizers had asked police to be there so they could mourn without looking over their shoulders, but the squad car pulled away, lights and sirens, to respond to another call.

Relatives and friends of Marquis Jones pushed down the dark East Baltimore alley anyway, holding Mylar balloons and candles, and shaking off a steady rain that plopped through the canopy of trees above. They gathered one night last week at the spot where the 19-year-old was recently gunned down.

"Do not let this tragedy mark his life," said Brandon Jones, Marquis' uncle. "What happened is only a lesson."

But their vigil would be interrupted when mourners saw a menacing figure who pointed his hand like a gun and pretended to fire. The singing and prayers were quickly replaced by screaming, running and children crying as attendees feared more violence. A swarm of police officers soon returned to the scene.

The families of Baltimore's many homicide victims would like to think they can mourn in peace. But these street vigils — rituals that have become part of the city's cultural fabric — can be emotional tinderboxes and magnets for more conflict. Police often coordinate with organizers to make sure officers are on hand.

With more than 200 homicides a year in Baltimore, violence sometimes mars the gatherings of mourners. Hours before Marquis Jones' vigil, a midday funeral service for a 17-year-old victim turned violent, with police called to a Greenmount Avenue church to break up a fight.

While no one was seriously injured as the crowd panicked at Marquis' vigil, Brandon Jones had hoped his nephew's memorial would be different.

"You wonder why, when one of our loved ones gets slain, they get chalked up as another statistic," he said after the disturbance. "It's because people don't have decency. You should be able to assemble and pay respects."

[Photo: 21-year-old Lloyd Chase wore this bandana memorializing his slain cousin]

Posted by Justin Fenton at 9:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

The shooting of Maryland State Trooper Michael S. Nickerson a decade ago still resonates on the Eastern Shore. Michael, killed along with a sheriff's deputy trying to get Frank Zito to turn down his stereo, was a member of the small Centreville police force.

He had wanted to become a state trooper, and five years after his death, his brother Phillip became a trooper to fulfill the dream. Last month, Phillip's son, Tanner, also became a trooper, bringing the family together on the force. Read the full story here.

I followed Tanner for a day. The young trooper, in his first few days of field training, had just started driving and pulling over cars. His family talked about the tragedy, and their commitment to law enforcement.

The story was big news at the time. Zito, known as "Crazy Frank," was an oddity in the small town and a frequently had issues with police and neighbors. A jury rejected his insanity defense and he was sentenced to death, but died of lung cancer a year after the incident.

Nickerson's death raised questions about how to best treat the mentally ill and told of a tragedy involving two police officers and their families. It's a story that continues to this day, with father and son now colleagues, in adjacent barracks, serving to honor a brother and an uncle.

The photo by The Sun's Kenneth K. Lam shows young Tanner Nickerson on just his sixth car stop of his career. With him is Cpl. Frank J. Stanco. The video is of Phillip Nickerson talking about his brother's death at a fallen hero ceremony in May.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 9:34 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: Confronting crime, Crime elsewhere
        

A city sheriff’s deputy on his way to work Friday morning shot and wounded a man who authorities said jumped into his marked cruiser and attacked him with a knife at a busy intersection in Northeast Baltimore.

The man was wounded in the left arm and taken to Johns Hopkins Hospital, where he was being treated. His condition was not available, but a spokeswoman for the Baltimore Sheriff’s Office said he was conscious and talking to paramedics.

The deputy was not injured. Names of the alleged attacker and the officer were not immediately released.

Sgt. Carla Lightsey, a spokeswoman for the sheriff’s department, described the attack, which occurred before 8 a.m. at Walther Avenue and Moravia Road, purely random. “He has no clue as to why it happened,” the sergeant said of the deputy.

The deputy, a 10-year veteran, was traveling in a marked cruiser south on Walther Avenue, about six blocks northeast of Herring Run Park, and was stopped at a red light. Lightsey said the man with the knife jumped into the front passenger seat.

“He was wielding a knife at him,” Lightsey said, and the deputy pulled his handgun and fired at least once. Baltimore police homicide detectives are investigating, as is routine for police-involved shootings.

The deputy’s car was still parked at the intersection late Friday morning, with the streets blocked off with crime-scene tape. The area consists of mostly single-family homes and is in the Beverly Hills subsection of the Moravia-Walther neighborhood.

Sheriff’s deputies provide security for the downtown Baltimore Circuit Court buildings and typically serve arrest warrants.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 9:28 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Northeast Baltimore
        

Police just announced an arrest in the killing last year of a church caretaker in East Baltimore. James Johnson, 18, was arrested Wednesday and charged with murder in the death of Milton Hill.

The 70-year-old victim tended the grounds at the Ark Church in the 1200 block of East North Ave. He was found on the morning of July 30 2010 slumped against a fence in a pool of blood behind his home next to the church.

His death came five days after Johns Hopkins researcher Stephen Pitcairn was fatally stabbed while walking home in Charles Village, a killing that motivated the city's political establishment and helped Gregg Bernstein upset Patricia C. Jessamy as state's attorney. Pitcairn's killer was just sentenced to life plus 20 years in prison.

City councilmen held vigils for Hill amid concern that Pitcarn's death was dominating the news. At a community cleanup a month after Hill's slaying, The Sun's Jessica Anderson reported that officials talked about a new playground.

Earlier, Jessica had talked with Hill's eldest daughter, Lennoria Hill-Joseph, who said her father had been active and took pride in his job. Police did not release a motive but authorities at the time said they believed Hill's scooter had been stolen.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 1:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: Breaking news, East Baltimore
        

Halloween is traditionally the time when police departments check up on sex offenders, and warn those on the sex offender registration that  handing out candy to kids most likely violates the conditions of their release.

Howard County police just checked up on its 91 offenders, and accounted for all but one.

He's identified as James Lincoln Spivey, 47, of no fixed address. Police said there's a warrant for him. Court records show him being arrested three times this year, once in Western Maryland for drinking in public, for which he got 90 days in jail. His mug shot is shown here.

“We wanted to do this sweep before Halloween to make sure we know where our sex offenders are
living,” Howard County Police Chief William McMahon said in a statement. “We recommend that parents check the sex offender registry before taking their children trick-or-treating.”

Maryland's sex offender registry says Spivey was convicted of a sex offense in 1991 in New Jersey. No other details were available.

Check Maryland's sex offender registry.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 11:10 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Howard County
        

A 19-year-old man convicted of shooting a neighborhood acquaintance, leaving him paralyzed, was sentenced to 40 years in prison. The shooting occurred Halloween night two years ago as the two men passed each other on Ramblewood Road in Loch Raven in Northeast Baltimore.

A jury found the suspect, Antwane Brown, guilty of attempted second-degree murder and handgun violations in July. The Baltimore State's Attorney's Office said that as Brown and the victim, Craig Pearson, passed each other, Brown called out and Pearson turned and was shot in the back.

"There is no known motive for the shooting," prosecutors said in a statement. "Brown and Pearson knew each other from the neighborhood but they had no history of animosity or conflict." 

Posted by Peter Hermann at 10:07 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Courts and the justice system, Northeast Baltimore
        

Leaving the courthouse after having just been tried is not the time to commit another offense.

But that's just what Annapolis police said 45-year-old Angela Gregory of Deale did on Wednesday. She was being tried on a charge of speeding -- 68 in a 50 on Route 258 in southern Anne Arundel -- and for driving on a suspended license.

What did police say she did when she walked out of the courtroom?

You guessed it. Police said she climbed into her car and drove away, on the very same suspended license, in front of the very same cop who had testified at her hearing.

"The officer had been in the courtroom when the judge stated that Gregory’s license to drive was currently suspended," police said in a statement. "Gregory told the judge that her son drove her to the courthouse. After court the officer observed Gregory get in a vehicle and start to drive away, she was stopped and arrested.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 7:14 AM | Permalink | Comments (6)
Categories: Anne Arundel County
        

This just in from The Sun's Arthur Hirsch:

A jury has found a Baltimore County man guilty of first-degree murder in the murder-for-hire slaying of a Towson gas station owner in March 2010.

The case will next go to the penalty phase, which is scheduled to begin Thursday morning. Walter P. Bishop Jr., 29, now faces the possibility of being sentenced to death. He could be the first person to receive the death penalty since a new law took effect that requires DNA or video evidence or a video taped confession in such cases.

Bishop was accused of shooting William "Ray" Porter in a Hess station on East Joppa Road on the morning of March 1, 2010. Five others have also been implicated in the crime, including Porter's wife, Karla, her sister, brother and nephew.

Watch video of police interview with Bishop.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 5:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Baltimore County, Breaking news, Courts and the justice system, Harford County
        

A group of labor leaders, including the head of the city police and fire unions, sent a letter to Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake today asking her not to remove Occupy Baltimore protesters but instead continue dialogue.

"Rather than create a confrontation, we believe it would be wise for the city of Baltimore to act with restraint and responsibility," the letter says. "Rather than remove the protesters, we call upon the city to work with representatives of Occupy Baltimore to find a solution that can maintain the protest location and respect the rights of our citizens."

The letter is signed by the heads of the city's major unions - including various AFSCME chapters, the Baltimore Teachers Local 340, Fraternal Order of Police, Fire Fighters Local 734 and Fire Officers Local 964, and the City Union of Baltimore Local 800 - who say they support the purpose of the protest. 

Here's the full letter:

"Dear Mayor Rawlings-Blake: 

We have been made aware of the city of Baltimore's intention to close down the Occupy Baltimore site sometime in the next 24 hours. We write to express our firm opinion that nothing be done to close down the site and that instead, an agreement be arrived at which allows for the continuation of a peaceful, non-violent demonstration.

The Occupy Baltimore protests have given expression to a widely shared belief that our economy and our politics are controlled by corporate interests to the detriment of the overwhelming majority of working people, including our members, their families and communities. We share this opinion and applaud the courage and sacrifice of the Occupy protestors. We believe these protestors should be commended for standing up for the 99% of us, not threatened with removal.

Cities across the country - from San Diego to Little Rock, Philadelphia and Washington DC - have worked with their local Occupy movements to find reasonable accommodations that everyone can live with. Surely, the city of Baltimore can find a solution that meets the concerns of city officials and departments while allowing the protestors to continue their democratic right to peaceful, non-violent protest.

The Occupy Baltimore activists have made a broad call for followers to converge on McKeldin Square in order to defend the occupation tonight. Rather than create a confrontation, we believe it would be wise for the city of Baltimore to act with restraint and responsibility. Rather than remove the protestors, we call upon the city to work with representatives of Occupy Baltimore to find a solution that can maintain the protest location and respect the rights of our citizens.

We look forward to your quick response. 

Sincerely,

Ernie Grecco, President, Metro Baltimore Council AFL-CIO
Glen Middleton, Executive Director, AFSCME 67
Anthony Coates, AFSCME Local 647-67
Peggy Peacock, AFSCME Local 2202-67
Ms. Johnnie Phipps, AFSCME Local 558-67
Lorretta Johnson, Secretary-Treasurer, AFT
Mariette English, President, Baltimore Teachers Local 340
Brenda Clayburn, President, City Union of Balto Local 800
Steve Fugate, President, Fire Officers Local 964
Rick Hoffman, President, Fire Fighters Local 734
Jimmy Gittings, President, Public School Administrations and Supervisors Association Local 25
Rod Easter, President, Balto Building Trades Council
Bob Cherry, President, Fraternal Order of Police Lodge #3

Posted by Justin Fenton at 5:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (13)
        

A 15-year-old middle school student was arrested on Wednesday after police said he took a loaded handgun to his school in Hampstead and told an assistant principal that he was “struggling with thoughts of suicide.”

The eighth grade student at North Carroll Middle School was charged as a juvenile with gun possession. Maryland State Police said he voluntarily surrendered the semi-automatic .40 caliber handgun, which was in a lunch bag and had three bullets in the magazine.

“There is no indication at this time that the student had any desire to harm anyone other than himself,” police said in a statement. “There is no indication that anyone else was assisting him or than anyone else even knew of his intent to harm himself.”

According to state police, the teen took the gun to school in his lunch bag and stored it in his locker. Shortly before 11 a.m., police said he took the bag to the lunchroom, but then approached the assistant principal and told him he was thinking about taking his own life.

The school official took the teen to a private room and met with a guidance counselor. “The student handed her a soft cooler bag in which he carries his lunch,” police said. “Inside the bag, the teacher found a suicide note and a semi-automatic pistol.”

Authorities said the guidance counselor call the principal, who alerted a Maryland State Police trooper who was teaching a anti-drug seminar in a nearby classroom. The trooper confiscated the weapon and arrested the young man.

Police said they are investigating who the gun belongs to and how the youth obtained the weapon.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 4:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Carroll County
        

Police are asking for help in identifying a suspect who raped a 14-year-old girl in West Baltimore. Authorities said the attack occurred Sunday afternoon in the 1500 block of Leslie St. in the Sandtown-Winchester neighborhood.

In a statement issued Wednesday, city police said the girl asked for directions from people in a passing van, who offered her a ride. Police said she was assaulted in the van, described as brown and tan, with thin white swirl lines along the side.

Police released this photo of a similar van, which has two rear doors and two passenger-side doors, and curtains covering the side and back windows, along with a rear tire cover. Anyone who sees the van is urged to call police at 1-888-7LOCKUP.

Earlier this month, a 13-year-old girl was grabbed and raped in a vacant East Baltimore house. 

Posted by Peter Hermann at 3:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: West Baltimore
        

Maryland State Police say that a 38-year-old man apparently jumped off a bridge on the Maryland-Virginia line, but never made it to the ground. Instead, police say he landed on top of a tractor trailer, and wasn't discovered until 11 miles away in Virginia.

Police said it occurred Tuesday afternoon on the Maryland side of the Woodrow Wilson Bridge. A motorist saw the man jump off a pedestrian overpass nd called police, who caught up with the truck on I-95 in Woodbridge, Va.

The man was pronounced dead of an apparent suicide. State police said his body came to rest on top of a canvas cover on the open-bedded trailer, which was hauling waste products.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 2:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)
Categories: Crime elsewhere
        

You'd think that the one person who could escape a parking ticket from the city, and a boot, would be someone driving a city vehicle.

Think again.

 Apparently no one can escape the wrath of the parking agents, who have targeted a vehicle owned by the very same city that writes their checks.

And for anyone hopping mad over a fine, here's a picture guaranteed to brighten your day. Yes, someone, I would assume a ticket agent, booted a car owned by the housing department.

The Sun's city government reporter Julie Scharper snapped this pic  [go to Julie's Twitter page] outside City Hall this morning, and we're awaiting an answer from transportation officials. Read more on the politics blog.

So far, they haven't been able to say how the car got booted, and whether one city agency owes another city agency money for parking tickets.

Can't wait for to see someone try to argue this one in front of a judge.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 1:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Downtown
        

With a deadline looming for the Occupy Baltimore movement to vacate its overnight encampment at the Inner Harbor, the city's mayor would not describe what action authorities might take. The Sun's City Hall reporter, Julie Scharper, reports:

Posted by Peter Hermann at 12:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)
Categories: Downtown
        

A day after the city declared the Occupy Baltimore movement an illegal encampment, protesters are awaiting the next move from authorities. But it appears the police aren't moving in just yet.

The Sun's Luke Broadwater reports that at last night’s meeting of what the group calls their General Assembly, protesters said city officials had indicated to them that a representative from the city’s Department of Recreation and Parks would attend tonight’s 8 p.m. meeting. City officials did not immediately confirm that information, but had tentatively set today as a deadline for the protesters to come to an agreement with City Hall.

In the photo above by The Sun's Karl Merton Ferron, college student Brandie Cross holds a flag raised in distress, whose stars are instead symbols of large corporations.

Police and city officials have been circumspect about telegraphing their next move, perhaps to avoid a confrontation similar to what has occurred in other cities, most recently Oakland, where police moved in with tear gas, or to keep the element of surprise. What does seem clear is that the city is gearing up for some action to evict what they've determined has morphed from a protest to a campground.

Also today, after having distributed pamphlets that advocates and police said discouraged victims of sexual assault from going to authorities, the Occupy Baltimore has revised its guidelines.

The new pamphlet now lists services available to victims. Gone is controversial language that said the protesters would rather handle complaints amongst themselves, and that while they wouldn't prevent someone from going to police, they would prefer not to involve law enforcement.

The memo now reads, in part: 

Instances of sexual abuse and assault will be handled according to the expressed desires of the victim. The Security and Medical teams are equipped with a list of resources, including contact information for the police, hospitals, sexual assault hotlines, and women's shelters. In these instances, #Occupy Baltimore welcomes the involvement of the Baltimore City Police and encourages victims to report crimes.

The complete memo on sexual assault is below:

OCCUPY BALTIMORE RELEASES OFFICIAL SEXUAL OFFENSE POLICY
 
Occupy Baltimore has released an official statement detailing their attitude and procedure for dealing with sexual assault. This comes in response to false allegations by several media sources that a previous, official policy had discouraged police involvement in such instances.

The document in question was written, and distributed in leaflet form, by a now-replaced security team. It was never approved by the General Assembly or endorsed by Occupy Baltimore.

Occupy Baltimore is not in the habit of codifying our policy in written form.  A zero-tolerance policy for sexual harassment, abuse, and assault – as well as other forms of violence and intimidation – has existed and been enforced since the movement’s inception.

The full text of the new policy, which was approved by the General Assembly on Tuesday, October 25, is printed below:
 
Occupy Baltimore Sexual Offense Policy
Since its inception, Occupy Baltimore has maintained a zero-tolerance policy against sexual harassment, abuse, and assault.  We maintain that creating a safe space for all people is paramount to our goal of building community.  We actively oppose sexual violence in all its personal, cultural, and systemic forms.
 
Procedure
Victims can alert the Security Team using the all-purpose call, "Round-up!" to ensure immediate physical protection and subsequent enforcement of our policy.

Sexual harassment is defined as any unwanted commentary or physical contact.  It is the victim's prerogative to classify any action as sexual harassment, and to decide whether or not the harasser be ejected from Occupy Baltimore.  If the victim chooses to enforce the ejection policy, the harasser will be ordered not to return until the Safer Spaces Committee in conjunction with the Mediator’s Committee has reviewed the incident on the following day.  

Instances of sexual abuse and assault will be handled according to the expressed desires of the victim.  The Security and Medical teams are equipped with a list of resources, including contact information for the police, hospitals, sexual assault hotlines, and women's shelters.  In these instances, #Occupy Baltimore welcomes the involvement of the Baltimore City Police and encourages victims to report crimes.  We also recognize that the U.S. Justice System is flawed, especially when it comes to cases of sexual assault. If for any reason the victim feels uncomfortable with police involvement, their wishes will be respected.

Anyone reporting sexual assault, with or without police involvement, will have the support of the Occupy Baltimore community.  This includes but is not limited to medical assistance, transportation, protection, investigation, mediation and conflict resolution, and emotional support and counseling.  
 
Resources
 Baltimore City Police
-       Emergency: 911
-       Central District Precinct: 410-396-2411
 TurnAround, Inc.
-       Sexual Assault Response Hotline, 9am-7pm: 443-279-0379
-       Local Office: 410-837-7000
 Baltimore City Health Dept.
-       Emergency Medical Care Team: 410-545-3229
 Mercy Medical Center (Sexual Assault Center and Emergency Services)
-       410-332-9477
 Hopkins Bayview Medical Center
-       Main: 410-550-0100
-       Emergency : 410-550-0350
 Sinai Hospital of Baltimore (24-hour crisis intervention)
-       Main: 410-578-5678
-       Emergency: 410-578-5000
 University of Maryland Medical Center
-       Emergency Room: 410-328-6722
-       Pediatric Emergency: 410-328-6335, 410-328-6677
-       Child Sexual Abuse: 410-328-5289
-       Adolescent Clinic (Rape Team): 410-328-8336
 RAINN (Rape, Abuse, and Incest National Network):
-       National Sexual Assault Hotline: 1-800-656-HOPE (1-800-656-4673)
-       Online Hotline:  www.online.rainn.org
 House of Ruth (Emergency Shelter for Battered Women and Children)
-       24-hour Hotline: 410-889-7884
-       Legal Services: 410-554-8463, 410-889-7790, 410-889-7791
-       www.hruth.org
 Child Protective Services
-       Adults: 410-361-5000
-       Children: 410-361-2235

Posted by Peter Hermann at 10:53 AM | Permalink | Comments (11)
Categories: Downtown
        

City prosecutors have for the second time won the first conviction under the state's gang statute.

Dajuan Marshall, 29, was convicted in August 2010 of first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder, and participation in a criminal gang - a statute enacted in Maryland in 2007 - in the 2008 killing of Kenneth "Cash" Jones, a leader in the Pasadena Denver Lanes Blood set abducted near The Block and later found dead in the trunk of a car. But that conviction was overturned due to juror misconduct, after a juror did an Internet search for Marshall's prior criminal record. Circuit Court Judge L. George Russell said the evidence was overwhelming against Marshall, but said he had no option but to declare a mistrial.

Prosecutors gave it another try this month, and once again convicted Marshall, this time of conspiracy to commit murder and participation in a gang.

Witnesses identified Marshall, a leader in the Spyda Bloods set, as the person who ordered Jones' murder and one of two men who forced Jones into the trunk. 

Marshall will be sentenced on Dec. 20 and faces a maximum sentence of life plus 20 years in prison.

Posted by Justin Fenton at 5:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Courts and the justice system, Gangs
        

Erick Lee Spencer walked into a Baltimore County Jiffy Lube on the day after Christmas 2006, confronted a clerk and said, "Don't say nothing."

Tyrone Stinnette promptly handed the man money from the till. He testified in court that no weapon was revealed, and nothing else was said. But he concluded, "We got robbed."

The prosecutor asked if he believed the man had a weapon.

"I wasn't taking no chances," Stinnette replied.

Spencer was convicted of robbery, theft and assault and sentenced to 25 years in prison, without the possibility of parole, because he had two prior felony robbery convictions.

The suspect appealed, arguing that evidence was insufficient to support a robbery conviction. Today, the Maryland Court of Appeals agreed, and sent the case back to Baltimore County Circuit Court.

Read the Court of Appeals decision.

For more details:

The judges on the state's highest court embarked on an earnest discussion of what it means to rob someone. What about a bank robber who hands a teller a note saying, "Put money in the bag" and "not to hit an alarm, not to let anybody know," follow by "and no one will get hurt?"

Courts ruled that the defendant in the bank case was rightfully convicted of robbery because he implied fear.

But in Spencer's case, the court ruled that his "brief statement, by itself, would not cause an ordinary reasonable person to have felt apprehension that Spencer was about to apply force." The judges said a reasonable cashier would not have handed over money.

"To intimidate or threaten an individual to the extent necessary for the legal standard of robbery, something more is needed," the judges ruled. "If this Court were to accept the position advanced by the state, we would largely annul the common law distinction between robbery and theft."

Three judges dissented from the ruling, noting that unlike theft, "robbery is a crime against persons," which is what happened in the Jiffy Lube case. "The victim felt compelled to to part with the money or face a risk of escalation by Spencer," the dissenting judges wrote. "This is classic intimidation. A reasonable jury could infer from the testimony that Spencer was not benignly at Jiffy Lube that day to exchange money for an oil change..."

The judges also noted that many employers instruct their employees not to resist robbery attempts. They lauded the employee for refusing "to place his health or life in danger over mere money."

The judges concluded:

"Although I am not suggesting that Spencer is the very embodiment of Lex Luther, his conduct in this case could be viewed as a criminal calculation to hide in the margins of the distinctions between theft and robbery so as to minimize his downside exposure if, as, and when he might be brought to justice. If that was the case, the jury penetrated the charade and returned a sustainable verdict of guilty of robbery."

Posted by Peter Hermann at 2:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Baltimore County, Courts and the justice system
        

A 43-year-old woman who sold candy and DVDs from her Pen Lucy home was found beaten to death Monday evening by relatives, police said.

Sherry Montgomery-Cantey was found at about 5:15 p.m. inside her home in the 900 block of E. 41st St., and was pronounced dead at the scene. She had suffered from severe trauma to her head, though police have not disclosed how they believe she was killed.

Police said this morning that Montgomery-Cantey was known to operate a small candy and DVD shop from her home, and they are asking anyone who frequented the business or saw anything suspicious to call detectives at 410-396-2100. 

Property records show she had lived in the home since 2004. On her Facebook page, Montgomery-Cantey wrote that she was a "self employed entrepreneur" who gradated from Mergenthaler Vocational Technical High School in 1986 and was married. The picture at right is from her page - the caption that says she's holding her dog Jenny.

Posted by Justin Fenton at 11:54 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)
Categories: North Baltimore
        

The FBI last week released its latest Gang Threat Assessment report, which takes information from law enforcement agencies and news reports across the country to spot trends in gang activity. The big takeaway, which the FBI admits isn't a news flash: gangs continue to expand and evolve.

Among the key findings is that gangs are increasingly engaging in non-traditional crimes like human trafficking, prostitution and counterfeiting and mortgage fraud, and are making greater use of social networking sites to connect with other members and recruit new ones. 

Maryland-specific findings aren't broken down by jurisdiction, but they include:

-The report found that there's been a significant increase in the number of criminal motorcycle gangs. Maryland isn't among the states cited as having the biggest increase, though Pennsylvania and Virginia are, and Maryland is listed as one of five states seeing a spike in the Outlaws gang.

-Maryland is among 15 states that has jurisdictions where juveniles are responsible for the majority of crime, it says. The report attributes increases in juvenile gangs and violence in part to incarceration rates of older members and aggressive recruitment in schools.

-Asian gangs, which the report says are growing but maintain a lower-profile and "prey on their own race," are expanding significantly in Maryland and 10 other states. Maryland also is among a handful of states that report the presence of Haitian and Jamaican gangs.

The report also cites the Black Guerrilla Family's use of pre-paid debit cards as a currency in Maryland prisons as an example of money laundering tactics used by gangs. 

Read the full report here. 

Posted by Justin Fenton at 11:27 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Gangs
        

The teenager from Ellicott City who is charged with using the Internet to solicit money for a convicted terrorist who called herself "Jihad Jane" pleaded not guilty in U.S. District Court in Philadelphia. The hearing was brief; a trial date was set for December.

Attorneys for the Mount Hebron High School graduate, in interviews outside the courtroom, portrayed their client, Mohammad Massan Khalid as a stellar student with a family described as the "true American immigrant story."

They said federal prosecutors misconstrued the emails they intercepted on Internet chat boards but noted their client's life has been destroyed. He withdrew from Johns Hopkins University, where he had a full scholarship this fall. He was arrested in secret when he was 17 years old; the charges were unsealed last week, after he had turned 18.

Federal prosecutors have outlined an indictment that alleges Khalid tried to raise money to help fund a holy war in Europe. More on the prosecution's case in today's story. He is being detained in federal custody until his trial, one of the country's youngest terror suspects.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 6:34 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Courts and the justice system, Crime elsewhere, Howard County
        

Police in Harford County are looking for a man who they said tried to abduct a 14-year-old boy who was walking to a bus stop in Abingdon. The incident occurred about 6:30 a.m. Monday at St. Clair Drive and Benefit Court.

Authorities said the potential abductor was in a black work van with tinted front windows. Police said the man threatened to hurt the child if he didn't get inside. The youth ran back to his home and a parent called 911.

Here are more details from the Harford County Sheriff's Office:

The Harford County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a suspicious incident that occurred on Monday, October 24, 2011 at the corner of St Clair Drive and Benefit Court in Abingdon, MD at approximately 6:30am. While on his way to his bus stop, a 14 year old student was approached by an unknown male in a black work van with tinted front windows.

The unknown person threatened to harm the student, if he did not get in the vehicle.  The student immediately turned and ran back to his residence.  After arriving home safely, the student’s parent immediately called 911 to report the incident to the police.
 
Harford County Sheriff’s Office deputies canvassed the area but were not able to locate the suspicious vehicle described as a black commercial type work van with black bumpers, tinted front windows, and no back windows or driver’s side rear windows.  During the course of the investigation, several residents from the neighborhood indicated seeing a suspicious vehicle throughout the weekend that matched the description provided by the student. Harford County Sheriff’s Office investigators are asking anyone with information regarding the described vehicle to please call 911.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 6:28 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: Harford County
        

A man found not criminally responsilble in the killing of his psychiatrist has been charged with murder in the death of his roommate at a state mental hospital, according to Maryland State Police.

The victim, David Rico-NOyola, is accused in the death of his mother in 2008 in Anne Arundel County. The suspect, Vitaly Davydov, beat his Rockville psychiatrist to death after thinking the man treating him wanted to be killed, according to the Washington Post.

Police said hospital staff had checked on the room 30 minutes before Friday afternoon's killing. It's the second time one patient has been accused of killing another at the hospital. El Soundani El-Wahhabi, 51, is charged with murder in the Sept. 25, 2010 death of Susan Sachs, who was found dead in her bed.

After that case, employees at the maximum security psychiatric hosptial were criticized. Here is what was said in a report on that strangulation, which occurred in 2010 and was described as the first slaying at the institution in its 50 year history:

Video surveillance showed that as the killing unfolded, one staff member was sitting on a couch on the ward with no view of patients' rooms, another was seated at the nursing station but did not make any movement, and a third was not seen at all, the report said.

"We were disappointed to find out that staff were clearly inattentive on the job that night, and, since learning of the problem, the Department has taken prompt and thorough action," wrote Wendy Kronmiller, the assistant secretary for regulatory affairs at the health department, in an e-mail Friday. "While we believe this was an isolated occurrence, the report is disturbing — our facilities and staff are responsible for meeting needs of patients, during the day and at night."

Posted by Peter Hermann at 7:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Howard County
        

UPDATE FROM AUTHORITIES: "Police have identified the victims as John Lewis Sigmond, 85; and Margie Beatrice Sigmond, 84. A note was found at the scene. Both appear to have died from a gunshot wound. A family member called 911 after visiting the home."

Baltimore County police say an apparent murder-suicide led to the deaths this afternoon of an elderly couple near White Marsh. 

Few details were made available, but authorities said police found a note and that both had been shot. Their names were not immediately released, but police said the man was 84 and the woman was 85.

They were found about 2:45 p.m. by firefighters in their living room of their house in the 10100 block of Bird River Road. It's unclear who called them.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 4:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Baltimore County
        

The final two suspects -- out of 22 -- have pleaded guilty to selling cocaine in West Baltimore's Gilmor Homes public housing project. The Sun's Justin Fenton noted on Twitter that three generations of the same family are now behind bars.

The Maryland U.S. Attorney's Office announced the pleas of the father-son team on Friday. Dione Fauntleroy Jr., also known as "Sticks" and "Dummy," will be sentenced to 13 years in prison as part of his agreement. His father, Dione Fauntleroy Sr, known as "Big Man," will also be sent away for 13 years.

Prosecutors said the two men and the other defendants -- all sentenced to three to 13 years in prison -- sold drugs from the housing project between January 2009 and June 2010. Prosecutors described Fauntleroy Jr. as the leader.

Justin wrote last year that one of the suspects convicted earlier in the case had been featured in an documentary on the Baraka School, a now disbanded program for at-risk city youth that sent them to Africa.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 2:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: West Baltimore
        

Breaking news from The Sun's Tricia Bishop:

John Alexander Wagner, who was convicted in August of first-degree murder and armed robbery in the stabbing death of Johns Hopkins researcher Stephen Pitcairn, was sentenced Friday to life in prison plus 20 years.

Pitcairn was attacked in July of last year, two days before his 24th birthday, as he walked home from Penn Station along St. Paul Street while talking to his mother on a cellphone.

Read more about Pitcairn and his family in a story Tricia wrote earlier this month from Florida.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 1:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: North Baltimore
        

A 37-year-old man was sentenced to 20 years in prison on Thursday for helping rob a bank in Harbor East and stealing $157,000. Federal authorities said that the man's accomplice has already been sent to prison for 15 years.

Bank robberies in Baltimore typically net only a few thousand dollars -- the so-called "bait money" that tellers set aside. The typical bank robber is armed with a note more often than a gun. But this case was far more brazen.

Prosecutors with the Maryland U.S. Attorney's Office said the gunmen hit the Harbor Bank branch in the 1000 block of Lancaster St. on March 11, 2010. The man sentenced Thursday, Jenerette Dixon, 35, jumped over the counter and forced tellers at gunpoint to open the vault.

Police said the Dixon and his accomplice used a fake bomb to slow police response.

More details from the Maryland U.S. Attorney's Office below:

Posted by Peter Hermann at 6:43 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Courts and the justice system, Downtown
        

For the second time in two years, Baltimore County prosecutors have successfully convicted a man of murder despite not finding the body of the victim.

The state's attorney, Scott D. Shellenberger, said a jury on Thursday convicted Jason Gross, 36, of second degree murder. Gross killed 16-year-old Rochelle Battle around March 2009 in Essex. A sentencing date has not yet been set.

Last year, county prosecutors convicted Dennis J. Tetso, 45, of killing Tracey Leigh Gardner, his wife, who had vanished on her way to a concert to join a man with whom she was allegedly having an affair. He was sentenced to 18 years in prison. The victims body has not been found.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 6:29 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Baltimore County
        

The surveillance photos are fuzzy, but I'll put up what police gave us. They show a robbery that occurred Oct. 15 at a Chick-fil-A restaurant on Constant Friendship Boulevard in Abingdon.

Harford County sheriffs the gunmen attacked workers in the parking lot as they were preparing to open the restaurant for business.

They forced their way into the restaurant at gunpoint, got the manager to open the safe and escaped with an undisclosed amount of money.

No employees were injured in the attack.

More details from the Harford Count Sheriffs Department and information about a reward is below, including a description of the gunmen:

At approximately 5:00am on Saturday, October 15, 2011, Harford County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to a report for an armed robbery that had just occurred at the Chick-fil-A located in the 400 block of Constant Friendship Blvd in Abingdon, MD.

As the opening crew was arriving at work, two armed suspects approached them in the parking lot and pushed there way into the restaurant, as the opening manager was letting them into the
building. At gunpoint, the suspects forced the manager to open the safe, and stole an undisclosed amount of cash.

The first suspect is described as a black male, approximately 5’6” tall with a deep voice, white cloth bandana around his head and face, black gloves, a black hooded sweatshirt and baggie black sweat pants.

The second suspect is described as a black male approximately 5’8” tall dressed all in black. The suspects exited the building and fled the area in a black or dark colored Chevy Colbalt.

No Chick-fil-A employees were injured during the robbery.

Website/Email: Submit a tip online to the sheriff's office. Text message: Metro Crime Stoppers: Text “CRIMES" (274637). Begin the message "MCS," then add the information.
Phone: Harford Crime Solvers: Call 1-888-540-8477.

Anyone with information regarding the crime who wishes to remain anonymous may
report their information through the following methods listed below. Qualifying tips submitted
to the tip lines below that lead to a conviction may be eligible for up to $ 2,000.00 in rewards.
HCSO CC# 2011-182433.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 6:19 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Harford County
        

Baltimore police have arrested two men in connection with two armed robberies around the Lower Charles Village area. Authorities said they seized two guns in a car.

Officers were alerted early Oct. 16 when one of the men flagged down a passing police car. Authorities said said two men had been robbed about the same time in the same area, near North Charles and East 21st Street.

Here is more details from a Baltimore Police Department statement:

The Baltimore Police Department recently arrested two individuals sought in connection with two armed robberies in North Baltimore.

Just after 4:30 am on October 16th, while within the area of Charles and 21st Streets, officers were flagged down by an individual who advised that he was just robbed by two armed individuals who then fled in a Toyota. The victim indicated that the vehicle headed onto Guilford Street.

Additional officers responded, canvassed the area for the vehicle, and in short order located a vehicle matching the description provided by the victim. Officers approached and located 22 year-old Christopher Bracey and 24 year-old Reginald Thomas attempting to hide within the vehicle.  

An investigation was conducted and among the items located within the vehicle were .357 and .22 caliber handguns. It was determined that two separate robberies had just occurred, with two separate victims. The victims were transported to the scene and positively identified the suspects as the individuals responsible for the robberies.

Mr. Bracey and Mr. Thomas were placed under arrest. Charges include armed robbery, 1st degree assault and handgun possession offenses. An immediate and thorough response by Baltimore Police patrol officers resulted in the quick apprehension of the suspects and prevention of their potential involvement in any additional crimes that evening. 

Posted by Peter Hermann at 6:06 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: North Baltimore
        

An 18-year-old teenager from Ellicott City was indicted Thursday on charges that he helped a suspected terrorist who called herself "Jihad Jane." Federal authorities had charged the youth in secret earlier this year, one of the few juveniles held in federal custody.

He was 17 when he was first arrested, and 15 when authorities said he committed criminal acts. The teen's attorney denies the allegations; an arraignment is scheduled for Monday in Philadelphia for the now 18-year-old.

The Sun's Tricia Bishop reports:

Mohammad Hassan Khalid, a Pakistani citizen and Maryland resident who graduated from Mount Hebron High School this year, is accused of using the Internet to recruit people and solicit funds for a violent jihadist war in South Asia and Europe.

He was indicted alongside Ali Charaf Damache, a 46-year-old Algerian man living in Ireland, and allegedly acted under the direction of Colleen R. LaRose, who dubbed herself "Jihad Jane" online, according to the indictment. LaRose, 47, pleaded guilty in February to conspiring to provide terrorist support and kill in a foreign country, attempted identity theft and making false statements to federal investigators.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 5:53 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Howard County
        

Maryland State Police are searching for a Dorchester County man who may have been missing since 2009. Authorities said they began their search last week; they said Craig Junior Parker, 39, was never reported missing before now.

Police said Parker lives alone in Hurlock. He is described as a black male with brown eyes and a medium complexion. He is about 6 feet tall and weighs 215 pounds.

Anyone with information about Parker or his current whereabouts is urged to contact Maryland State Police at the Easton Barrack. A dedicated tips line is available around-the-clock at 410-819-4796. Callers may remain confidential.

A Maryland State Police statement with more details is below:

Posted by Peter Hermann at 5:45 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Crime elsewhere
        

Baltimore County police announced an arrest in the killing earlier this week of an 18-year-old found stabbed to death in Curtis Bay, a crime which police say was carried out with a hatchet.

Larry Eugene Horton, a 37-year-old who lived in the block where Ryan Wesley Jackson is believed to have been killed, was apprehended in Mobile County, Alabama late Wednesday afternoon by U.S. Marshals, county police said. 

Jackson was reported missing by his pregnant girlfriend on Oct. 14, after two days had passed since she last spoke with him. Family members visited the 700 block of Rambo Court, a "known drug house" where they believed he might be, and found blood inside. 

[Photo via WJZ-TV]

Police obtained a search warrant for the home and found that the carpet had recently been cleaned, but there was still "cast off blood" around the living room. They found a hatchet in a trash bag, along with Jackson's wallet and two bottles of bleach.

Jackson's body was discovered in a wooded area in South Baltimore the next day.

hey say he fled to Alabama and coordinated with authorities there to apprehend him.He was picked up at the Bayou Inn and Suites in Bayou La Batre, Ala.

He's being held in Mobile County, pending extradition. According to court records, Horton has been charged numerous times over the years with charges with theft, drug possession and assault charges in the city and Baltimore, Anne Arundel and Howard counties.

Posted by Justin Fenton at 2:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: Baltimore County
        

Another leader of the Black Guerrilla Family and a co-defendant were sentenced this week in federal court. Fifty-seven-year-old Ray Olivis, also known as "Unc," received 11 years from U.S. District Judge William D. Quarles Jr. for racketeering conspiracy. Erik Ushry, 27, was sentenced to 57 months in prison on drug conspiracy charges.

Here's how the U.S. Attorney's Office characterized Olivis' participation: 

According to his plea, from 2006 through June 2010, Olivis was one of the leaders of BGF, enforcing discipline in the gang and directing and participating in the drug trafficking activities of the gang. It was forseeable to Olivis that during the conspiracy he possessed with intent to distribute between 700 grams and one kilogram of heroin. According to Ushry’s plea agreement, from September 2009 through April 2010, Ushry distributed between 80 and 100 grams of heroin in and around Baltimore as part of the conspiracy.
 
Specifically, while BGF leader and co-defendant Eric Brown was incarcerated, he extorted a fellow inmate for protection from violence at the hands of BGF members and assaulted another inmate who failed to make timely extortion payments to BGF. Brown and Olivis transferred some of the proceeds of BGF’s illegal activities, including drug trafficking and extortion, into prepaid debit card accounts. In addition, Brown arranged for contraband to be smuggled into correctional facilities through the use of couriers and corrections employees. Co-defendant Rainbow Williams delivered contraband, including narcotics, to corrections officers to be smuggled into correctional facilities, sometimes paying the officer for smuggling the contraband into prison. Williams even attempted to smuggle contraband into a Maryland correctional facility via a pair of tennis shoes, but he was discovered by corrections officials.
 
During intercepted phone conversations, Olivis and Williams discussed the day to day operations of BGF, violations of BGF protocols, and the sanctions that should be ordered against the members violating those protocols. In a phone conversation, Olivis and other BGF members discussed retaliating against a suspected informant and plans to assault an inmate who had been involved in the murder of another BGF member’s brother.

 
Eric Brown, the 42-year-old leader of the gang, was sentenced to 12 years in prison on August 18, 2011. Rainbow Williams, age 32, of Baltimore, was sentenced to 151 months in prison on August 30, 2011.

Posted by Justin Fenton at 2:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Gangs, Prisons
        

The deaths 14 months apart of Harsh Kumar, 30, and Emily Hauze, 23, are purely coincidental, city police said on Wednesday. That the two victims went down the same trash chute at the same apartment building, the Park Charles, is a bizarre coincidence, the police say.

Beyond that, police have released next to no information on how Hauze, a recent honors graduate of Loyola University Maryland, died on Sunday morning. Her family has not talked, and neither have officials at the school.

Tenants of the high-rise apartment at Charles Center have expressed doubt that anyone could accidentally or purposely go down the chute, which have oven-like doors that are heavy and spring-loaded.

But police reiterated on Wednesday that Kumar likely died an accidental death. An autopsy report I reviewed on Wednesday shows that Kumar had been drinking and taken powerful sleeping pills before he died:

The report says he suffered numerous cuts on his head, face, arms, chest and legs, and that his fingernails were dirty and bloody. It also says that his black tank top had “large tears and blood stains.” Kumar was 5 feet 7 inches tall and weighed 156 pounds, according to the report.

The report concluded that Kumar “bad been consuming alcoholic beverages prior to his death and also took Zolpidem concurrently.” Zolpidem is a sedative that slows the brain to help people sleep and is prescribed to treat insomnia. The manufacturer warns that sleep can come quickly and last several hours, and that the drug should not be taken with alcohol.

Pathologists did not say how much alcohol Kumar had consumed or how many pills he had taken. The report concluded: “The facts of the investigation did not demonstrate overt signs of suicidal intent.”

Posted by Peter Hermann at 6:57 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)
Categories: Downtown
        

The Occupy Baltimore movement is trying to become its own community, complete with its own rules, committees and general assembly. But a pamphlet advising how victims of sexual assaults should handle alleged crimes has gotten rape counselors concerned.

The pamphlet instructs victims to report to the "security committee" and advises that the group would prefer to mediate issues internally. One paragraph reads:

Though we do not encourage the involvement of the police in our community, the survivor has every right and the support of Occupy Baltimore, to report the abuse to the appropriate law enforcement.

A spokeswoman and the author of the memo -- herself a victim of a sexual assault -- say the directive in no way discourages victims from contacting police. But heads of advocate groups, such as Jacqueline Robarge of Power Inside, complained the tone says different.

"It might actually passively prevent someone from seeking justice," Robarge said.

The pamphlet came to our attention from a blogger posting on Andrew Breitbart's big government web site. The memo's author told me she only wanted to make sure victims knew they had an alternative to calling police.

Trouble is that victims of sexual assault already can get help at places such as Mercy Medical Center, and not involve police. Nurses there will preserve files and physical evidence for up to a year in case the victim changes her mind.

Here is the pamphlet in full:

As the Security Committee of Occupy Baltimore, we release this statement to ensure the safety of our newly forming, delicate yet strong community.

Sexual abuse and assault are dehumanizing acts for the survivor as well as the abuser.  It strips people of their right to safety, dignity, and respect.  All of these basic values embody many of the intentions behind Occupy Baltimore.  As a vibrant community, we recognize and give power to these values and the rights of survivors.

Sexual abuse or assault at Occupy Baltimore is in violation of our values, and will not be tolerated. It is an explicit policy of Occupy Baltimore to prohibit abuse by any member of the community upon another person. Violation of this policy will result in the abuser no longer being welcome at Occupy Baltimore.

Though we do not encourage the involvement of the police in our community, the survivor has every right and the support of Occupy Baltimore, to report the abuse to the appropriate law enforcement.

Reporting Procedure Any member of the Occupy Baltimore community who believes he/she/they have been the victim, or if you are aware of, or suspect sexual abuse taking place, are encouraged to immediately report the incident to the Security Committee.

Point person for dealing with these situations will be Koala Largess. ... Survivors of Sexual Abuse will be given the support, resources, and assistance needed for their emotional and physical health.

Anti-Retaliation

The Occupy Baltimore prohibits retaliation against any member, survivor, or outside person who reports in good faith a complaint of an abuser or who participates in any related inquiries. False accusations of sexual abuse in bad faith can have serious consequences for those who are wrongly accused.

Occupy Baltimore prohibits making false and/or malicious sexual abuse allegations, as well as providing false information during an inquiry. Anyone who violates any part of this policy will not be welcome at Occupy Baltimore.

Investigation and Follow-Up

Occupy Baltimore's Security Committee will make every reasonable effort to keep the matters involved in the allegation as confidential as possible while still allowing for a prompt and thorough inquiry. All allegations of abuse will be treated seriously and will be promptly and thoroughly investigated.

If the survivor wishes to involve law enforcement, in order to obtain physical evidence of the assault, you must report the incident immediately within 72 hours of the assault as collection and preservation of evidence is critical.

Occupy Baltimore will also work to supply the abuser with counseling resources to deal with their issues. The Occupy Baltimore Community has a Zero-Tolerance policy for any sexual physical or mental abuse of or by a community member or other person."

Posted by Peter Hermann at 6:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (8)
Categories: Downtown
        

I just received from the FBI's Criminal Justice Information Service a copy of the proposed revision to the federal definition of rape, the first in more than 80 years, which was drafted yesterday at a subcommittee meeting in Baltimore.

The new definition would be:

“Penetration, no matter how slight, of the vagina or anus with any body part or object, or oral penetration by a sex organ of another person, without the consent of the victim.”

If approved at a December meeting Albuquerque, the new definition would be forwarded to FBI Director Robert Mueller for approval. It would replace the current definition, unchanged since 1927, that defines rape as "the carnal knowledge of a female, forcibly and against her will," which critics say omits all cases where victims are drugged or are under the influence of alcohol as well as those who are violated in ways excluding intercourse.

In today's paper, we talked to police and women's advocates, who say the change is long overdue.

"This is a huge step forward in accurately reflecting the true number of rapes that are occurring in our country," said Chuck Wexler, executive director of the Police Executive Research Forum, a law enforcement policy think tank.

The new definition is expected to expand the number of crimes that would be reported as rapes to the FBI by local police agencies. Experts say many states already track such crimes but don't submit them to the federal Uniform Crime Reporting data collection program as rapes because of its narrower definition. That, they say, misleads the public about the prevalence of rape and leads to fewer resources to investigate the crimes and catch the attackers.

Support has been building. Today, U.S. Rep. Lucille Roybal-Allard (D - Calif.) and 41 others sent a letter to Mueller calling him to accept the new definition.

Better statistics are also critical to our ability to effectively evaluate our progress in reducing the scourge of sexual assault in America.  Law enforcement officers agree – in a recent survey conducted by the Police Executive Research Forum, nearly 80 percent of police departments polled believe the federal definition of rape should be revised.     

Here's a full explanation of the steps that still need to occur. 

Posted by Justin Fenton at 5:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Baltimore's homicide count grew by two in recent days, with two men who died in earlier incidents added at the direction of the state medical examiner's office.

They are:

-Earl Brown, 36, of the 2200 block of Callow Ave. in Reservoir Hill. Brown was traveling in a mobility vehicle on Oct. 7 when he suffered a seizure and died, police said. Police determined that Brown had been shot in the head on Sept. 23, 1999 and developed a seizure disorder, and the medical examiner ruled that his death was the result of complications from the shooting.

-Willie Nelson, 52, of the . Nelson was found dead inside a vacant home in the 2800 block of W. Mulberry St. in the Penrose community on Aug. 16. Police said an autopsy revealed he had suffered from head trauma, and on Oct. 13 the medical examiner ruled his death a homicide by blunt force trauma.

A search of court records show police have closed the following cases by arrest:

-Suliman Abdul-Wahid, 31, has been charged with first-degree murder in the Nov. 4, 2010 killing of Jerry Harden, who was found inside a burning home in the 7000 block of McLean Blvd. and was determined to have been stabbed. The fire occurred in the Dutch Village Apartments, and police say it was set to cover up the killing.

No motive was provided. According to charging documents, officers found Harden's body in a second floor rear bedroom with stab wounds, and police said the only identifiable objects in the room were a mattress and boxspring. The lower level appeared to have been recently cleared out, police said, but there was blood on the wall near a sliding door. 

Police developed Abdul-Wahid was a suspect and brought him in for questioning on Nov. 9, 2010, records show, but he denied any involvement in the murder. However, police say his DNA was obtained and matched to the crime scene and the victim's remains. Records show Abdul-Wahid was homeless at the time of his arrest, but once lived in the Dutch Village Apartment building.

-Davon Johnson, 22, of the 500 block of N. Potomac St., and Travis Bell, of the 4000 block of Century Rd., have been charged with the fatal shooting of Wendell Woodard on Jan. 10 in the 3000 block of Harford Road.

Woodard was found unresponsive on the second floor of a home suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. No motive is given; police say witnesses were located who identified Johnson and Bell was "being responsible" for the killing. Johnson was arrested Oct. 8, while Bell was picked up today. Both men were being held without bond.

Posted by Justin Fenton at 3:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Police have charged an Essex man with pretending to be a police officer and stealing cash and cell phones from a group of men in Washington Hill last month, court records show.

Ioannis Skordalos, 35, of the 300 block of Riverside Dr., faces of charges of robbery, impersonating an officer, theft and is being held without bail. There have been a series of other police impersonation cases in recent months, including one case in Greektown that occurred the day after Skordalos was charged, but he has not been linked to any other incidents.

A victim told police that three men wearing badges around their necks resembling FBI badges knocked on their door, in the 1800 block of E. Lombard St., and demanded to come inside, according to charging documents. One of the men held a clipboard with pictures of Hispanic males and told the three victims to sit on the couch, as two other suspects went upstairs and began looking through their belongings, court records show.

When one of the victims ask if they were really police, the man with the clipboard made threatening comments and said, "Shut up or we'll call [Immigrations and Customs Enforcement]!" according to court records.

The suspects walked outside and got into a white or tan Ford Expedition, and drove away. The victims checked their rooms to see what was taken and found that $1,015 in cash, two business checks and a cell phone were taken, police said.

Police developed Skordalos as a suspect, and the victim identified him as the man who was holding the clipboard, according to court records. 

Court records show Skordalos was previously charged with armed robbery and impersonating a police officer, in 2004. Those charges were dropped 10 days after he was charged. 

Posted by Justin Fenton at 3:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: Southeast Baltimore
        

Baltimore County police have charged a 22-year-old man with sexually assaulting two teenagers, and authorities said they are concerned there might be more victims.

Henry Sukeforth, of the 8200 block of Quarterfield Road in Severn, in Anne Arundel County, was arrested earlier this month.

Police said one case involves a 14-year-old boy and another a 13-year-old boy.

In both cases, police said they confirmed the youths were involved with sexual activity with the young man.

Police said the suspect had a Facebook page and used the social media site to communicate with the victims.

A full statement from police is below:

Posted by Peter Hermann at 11:53 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Anne Arundel County, Baltimore County
        

For now, it appears that Baltimore police are taking a wait-and-see attitude toward the Occupy Baltimore protesters who have pitched tents at McKeldin Square at the Inner Harbor. That's in contrast to police in other cities who have removed the groups from various places, in some cases by force.

Police report making no arrests and it appears the group is seeking a permit. The rules allow up to 25 protesters at the triangle-shaped park but any more requires permission from the city. That guideline was put in place while the ACLU and city finish negotiations over a free-speech lawsuit filed by the ACLU on behalf of a protest group arrested by police eight years ago.

At the moment, it seems police and protesters are locked in a battle of uncertainty. The protesters (seen above in a picture by The Sun's Gene Sweeney Jr.) don't have demands or clear goals, other than to raise awareness, and police say they have no timetable for acting. Of course, Baltimore's movement hasn't attracted nearly the numbers of other cities.

Here's what city mayoral spokesman Ryan O'Doherty told The Sun's Jean Marbella: 

"That's not to say we will not do that in the future. If we do take such measures, it will be at the time we think is appropriate."

O'Doherty said the city is responding to specific complaints, such as concerns about trash or pedestrian traffic being blocked, rather than the protest as a whole. Officials wanted to make sure, for example, that protesters would "share space" with the recent Baltimore Marathon, he said, and everything ran smoothly.

"There's no broad policy toward the protest movement to interfere with it in any way," he said. "We're trying to have a constructive dialogue with the protesters so things are dealt with respectfully."

Posted by Peter Hermann at 8:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: Downtown
        

Baltimore police have been unusually quiet about the 23-year-old Loyola University Maryland student whose body was found at the bottom of a trash chute on Sunday at the Park Charles apartment building in the city's downtown.

What was Emily Hauze doing there? What led up to her death? Was she killed before someone put her down the chute? Compounding the mystery is that she's the second person to go down the chute in the past 14 months at the same building. That has got residents concerned.

The cause of death of the man who died last year was ruled undetermined (we are seeking the autopsy report but I wasn't able to obtain it on Tuesday). The Medical Examiner has not made a ruling on how Hauze died.

Hauze's relatives have not said anything publicly and the university has said nothing beyond a brief statement that their "thoughts and prayers" are with the family.  I'll keep you updated as we learn more. Photo above taken by The Sun's Jerry Jackson. 

Posted by Peter Hermann at 7:42 AM | Permalink | Comments (8)
Categories: Downtown
        

An FBI subcommittee made recommendations Tuesday at a meeting in Baltimore to create a new federal definition of rape, moving the agency a step closer to updating the way it counts sex crimes for the first time in more than 80 years.

The new definition is expected to expand the number of crimes that would be reported as rapes to the FBI by local police agencies, though specifics were not available Tuesday night.

Experts say many states already track such crimes but don’t submit them to the federal Uniform Crime Reporting data collection program as rapes because of its narrower definition. That, they say, misleads the public about the prevalence of rape and leads to fewer resources to investigate the crimes and catch the attackers.

“This is a huge step forward in accurately reflecting the true number of rapes that are occurring in our country,” said Chuck Wexler, executive director of the Police Executive Research Forum, a law enforcement policy think tank.

Since 1927, the definition of rape used by the FBI has been “the carnal knowledge of a female, forcibly and against her will,” which excludes incidents of anal or oral penetration, male rape, and incidents where force is not used. Wexler said 80 percent of police chiefs agreed that the definition was outdated and should be updated.

Women's advocates accelerated their push for a revised definition last year during a hearing on Capitol Hill, spurred in part by reporting by The Baltimore Sun showing how city police had for years dismissed a large number of rape cases as “unfounded.” City officials have been reforming the way sex crimes are investigated and Police Commissioner Frederick H. Bealefeld III was among the law enforcement leaders who spoke out in support of the change. He attended Tuesday’s meeting.

The changes were approved by a subcommittee of law enforcement officials and will next go to an advisory panel, which is expected to sign off on them and submit them to FBI Director Robert Mueller for approval. Stephen Fischer, a spokesman for the UCR program, confirmed that recommendations were drafted as a result of the meeting but said he could not provide details.

The Women’s Law Center in Philadelphia helped lead the push for an updated definition, and executive director Carol E. Tracy drove to Baltimore for the meeting, which officials said was held at the Tremont Plaza but was closed to the public.

Tracy noted that the expanded definition won’t change any state laws.

“The states have been collecting this data, it’s just that the UCR hasn’t been collecting the data, and so each year it reflects this limited number of really serious sex crimes,” Tracy said.

Eleanor Smeal, president of the Feminist Majority Foundation, said on a conference call Monday that advocacy groups say that better tracking will lead to greater resources. Police and crisis centers cite the federal statistics in applying for grants and other support.

“We want to make sure the crime of rape is measured in a way that it measures all rape, and it essentially becomes a crime in which more attention is paid. It’s intolerable the amount of violence against women, and we feel this will have a significant impact.”

Posted by Justin Fenton at 7:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

A 13-year-old girl walking through East Baltimore last night was grabbed and taken into a vacant home, where she was beaten and sexually assaulted, police confirmed.

The attack occurred in the 800 block of N. Caroline St. at around 9 p.m., police said. The victim suffered scrapes and bruises and was taken to a local hospital for treatment.

The suspect is described as a black, between 45 and 50 years old, 5-foot-3, and 180 pounds. He was wearing a black skull hat, a grey sweatshirt, black boots, and had a mustache. 

Police spokesman Kevin brown said detectives were "investigating vigorously, and canvassing the area for possible surveillance footage and/or witnesses." He said police were working up a sketch of the suspect and hoped to release it later today.

Anyone with information was asked to call Metro Crime Stoppers at 1-866-7LOCKUP.

The 800 block of N. Caroline St. is about a block west of Johns Hopkins Hospital and the Kennedy Krieger Institute. 

Posted by Justin Fenton at 11:06 AM | Permalink | Comments (5)
Categories: East Baltimore
        

The investigation into the mysterious death of Loyola University Maryland graduate Emily Hauze, whose body was found at the bottom of a trash chute at the Park Charles apartment building, continues with many unanswered questions.

We are pursing the case vigorously, including trying to determine how she died and got into the chute. One question raised by many readers and apartment residents is how anyone could've gotten into the chute.

Occupants describe the door as heavy and small -- roughly 14 by 16 inches -- and spring-loaded, so it closes automatically. Residents say they have to hold it open and struggle to get a trash bag inside, so they can't imagine anyone being able to climb in on their own.

Last year, police said a 30-year-old man did just that, and fell 16 stories to the trash compactor below, where he died. Now, police are trying to determine how Hauze got into the same chute. Here's a picture of a trash chute door from the Park Charles taken by a resident.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 9:18 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: Downtown
        

City prosecutors secured a guilty verdict from a jury in the torture and drug-related killing of a college student, while a former pastor who pleaded guilty to taking out life insurance policies and arranging the death of a blind, disabled man in his care was sentenced to life in prison.

Neither was publicized by the State's Attorney's Office, which hasn't publicized a case on its website or Facebook since Sept. 28.

Kevin Pushia, 35, pleaded guilty last year to orchestrating the 2009 murder of Lemuel Wallace, who was found shot in the head in Leakin Park, and on Monday Pushia was sentenced by Baltimore Circuit Court Judge Barry Williams to life plus 45 years for the murder and related fraud charges, Reuters reported.

Pushia worked with the group home where Wallace lived, and said he obtained life insurance policies in Wallace's name and then conspired with brothers James and Kareem Clea to murder him. The Clea brothers were acquitted by a jury at trial, despite Pushia's testimony against them.

In another high profile case, prosecutors secured a conviction last week against Johnny Butler in the killing of Sintia Mesa, a college student who police said was killed over debts owed by her drug dealing boyfriend. Here's an account from opening statements and the first day of trial.

Prosecutors showed the jury that DNA was found on Mesa's body; she had been raped and tortured before being found in the trunk of her vehicle. 

After the verdict, Khalilah Harris, a friend of Mesa who attended the testimony, tweeted this thanks to the detectives: "Det. Boris was honorable and professional the entire time. We thank him and his unit 4 their work."

Posted by Justin Fenton at 11:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Courts and the justice system
        

Northern District officers told Charles Village residents on Monday night that police have made an arrest in the shooting of a man in the heart of their neighborhood - and court records show the suspect has already posted bail and been released.

Dwayne Reginald McCoy, 21, of Catonsville, was charged Oct. 10 in the robbery and shooting of a Prince George's County man who was shot while leaving his girlfriend's residence in the 2600 block of St. Paul St. Sgt. Robert Snead, of the district detective unit (seen at the podium at right), said the victim was able to describe his attackers' vehicle and recalled one of the license plate digits. 

But that was enough, Snead said, to track down the suspects. Police recovered a gun in the arrest. "We're going to try to link these guys to other crimes, not only in the city, but the region," Snead said. 

In the meantime, court records show McCoy is out on bail. He was held on $275,000 bond after being picked up on Oct. 11, which he was able to post three days later. McCoy doesn't appear to have a prior record.

Residents met at the Lovely Lane United Methodist Church to discuss crime concerns and address ongoing efforts to make the area more safe. Maj. Sabrina Tapp-Harper, commander of the Northern District, said that while the district as a whole has seen notable drops in burglaries and robberies, Charles Village hasn't followed that trend. Prostitution also remains a major concern for residents.

Tapp-Harper said she plans to move administrative and operators officers into patrol for a few days each through the rest of the year, an effort to supplement patrol but also get overtime costs under control. A beat officer, Bill O'Donnell, told residents that he's also been tasked with revisiting a number of recent larcenies and burglaries to track down serial numbers.

Residents in attendance had praise for Northern District officers. Jill DiMauro said an increased police presence in her neighborhood after a recent shooting has made her area "a completely different neighborhood." "It's the first time in eight years I've been able to walk my dog after dark," she said. "I'm grateful for what you've done."

When asked if police had solved the shooting, Tapp-Harper said they know who it is but don't have the evidence. The suspect is in custody on an unrelated charge. "Sometimes, the dots don't add up and you can't arrest in that case, but we track these individuals," she said.

Since the fatal stabbing of a Johns Hopkins researcher in Charles Village, resident shave been meeting to discuss ways to improve safety. They've been organizing neighborhood walks, instituted a "court watch" program where a volunteer tracks cases and keeps residents up to date, and have engaged Johns Hopkins University in conversations about expanding their security patrol footprint.  State's Attorney Gregg Bernstein said he talks about the neighborhood's efforts when he visits other community groups.

Sharon Guida, an attorney and who sits on the Charles Village Civic Association, told the 40 or so residents in attendance that the biggest thing they can do is stay involved. Previous meetings weren't so well attended, she said.

Posted by Justin Fenton at 8:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)
Categories: North Baltimore
        

State police are asking for the public's help in the search for a man who shot at police officers during a robbery at a Virginia bank Friday and is known to frequent Baltimore and Harford counties.

Police say James Whittlesey, 51, may frequent or live sometimes in Harford and Baltimore counties. Authorities in Winchester, Va. have obtained an arrest warrant changing him with the attempted capital murder of a law enforcement officer after he fired at officers during a robbery of a bank on Oct. 14. 

Whittlesey is described as a white male, 5'11", 235 pounds with black/grey hair and brown eyes. He may have a mustache, and has a tattoo on his right forearm. He's considered armed and dangerous. According to the Winchester Star, he lists Dundalk as his residence on a Facebook page.

Anyone who sees Whittlesey or knows of his location is urged to contact Maryland's 24-hour tip line at 1-800-492-TIPS.

Maryland court records show Whittlesey was convicted in 1978 of armed robbery and sentenced to 15 years in prison. He escaped from the Brockbridge Correctional Institute in July 1980, and while a fugitive committed other crimes in Florida. Records indicate he was serving a 136-year sentence in Florida after being convicted for armed robbery and narcotics violations. Whittlesey appealed his Maryland conviction, arguing that he was not competent to stand trial; that, along with an appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals Fourth Circuit, was denied.

After serving 25 years in prison, he moved back to Maryland, according to the Star.

Posted by Justin Fenton at 5:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Baltimore County, Harford County
        

UPDATE: County police confirm that Ryan Wesley Jackson's death is being investigated as a homicide that occurred in Baltimore County. Police say his girlfriend reported him missing on Oct. 14 after not hearing from him since Oct. 12, and family members found blood inside a home in the 700 block of Rambo Court where they believed he may have been. Anyone with information was asked to call 410-307-2020.

The man found stabbed to death Saturday in a wooded area in Curtis Bay has been identified as an 18-year-old who went missing from Lansdowne last week, ABC-2 is reporting.

Reginald Jackson told the TV station that police told him that his son, Ryan Jackson, was the man found Saturday afternoon in the area of the 5500 block of Pennington Ave. Ryan was reporting missing Wednesday and was last seen at a home on Rambo Court, which Reginald Jackson was described as a "known drug house." He believes his son's body was taken to another location, he told the station.

"Whatever the incident was, it doesn't give another person rights to take someone's life," Reginald Jackson said.

We're made an inquiry with city police to get more information on this case. This morning, spokesman Kevin Brown said the case wasn't listed on the list of city homicides, and that could be because investigators have determined Jackson was killed on Rambo Court in the county.

Posted by Justin Fenton at 12:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (22)
Categories: Baltimore County
        

The Frederick County Sheriff's Office is confirming that the man shot during an apparent robbery in a downtown parking garage owned by the University of Maryland, Baltimore had been stabbed in March during a home invasion there.

The victim was identified through that home invasion as Amir Abbas Doulatshahi, 45, of Middletown, Md. Capt. Tim Clarke, the special operations commander for the Frederick County Sheriff's Office said investigators have turned over their files from that case to Baltimore Police, but would not comment on whether they believe the cases are related. "It's too early," Clarke said.

Sources had told The Sun that the shooting victim was in the parking garage near University of Maryland Medical Center for a follow-up appointment related to surgery for injuries he suffered during that home invasion. Clarke said Doulatshahi had come home on March 26 and encountered two men in his home, and was stabbed and knocked unconscious. According to news reports, he woke up six hours later and called police.

In the shooting incident, a police report shows Doulatshahi was found by a woman in the parking garage, suffering from multiple gunshot wounds to the back. He told her had been robbed and shot, but was unable to speak when police found him. 

City police have provided any updates on the shooting investigation, which as of last week was classified as an aggravated assault. 

Posted by Justin Fenton at 12:26 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: Downtown
        

City police were investigating the shooting death of a man early Monday near the North Avenue District Court building.

An officer in the area of Harford Road and Bonaparte Ave. at about 1:30 a.m. and heard gunshots, then saw a vehicle drive past that was riddled with bullet holes, said a police spokesman. The vehicle came to a stop, and the officer saw the driver inside suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. He was taken to Johns Hopkins Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 3:30 a.m.

Police believe the shooting occurred at the intersection of Harford Rd and North Ave, when a man on foot approached the victim's vehicle and opened fire. 

The shooting was the second over the weekend in that area, after 20-year-old Marquis Jones was fatally shot in the 2200 block of Aiken St. just a few blocks over. There hasn't been any additional information released on Jones' killing, including any possible link between the cases.

There have been 165 people killed in Baltimore this year, compared with 174 at this time last year. 

Posted by Justin Fenton at 12:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: East Baltimore
        

Police were continuing to investigate the discovery of a body at the bottom of a trash chute at a downtown apartment building Sunday morning – the second time a body has gone down a trash chute in that building in the past year.

There were few details released by police. Officials said only that the woman's body bore no obvious signs of trauma and that she appeared to be in her early 20s. The body was found at 8:12 a.m. in the Park Charles building in the 200 block of N. Charles St.

In a letter to apartment residents, property manager Kisha Peterson wrote that “an isolated incident occurred on the community that resulted in death. This incident is currently under investigation and we have no details at this time that we are able to release.”

But residents questioned whether the incident was in fact isolated – in August 2010, a 30-year-old resident of the building was found dead after apparently falling down a trash chute and into a trash compactor.

Harsh Kumar, a resident of the 16th-floor, had no injuries to his body except those consistent with a fall, and the death was ruled an accident.

Current and former tenants told The Sun at that time that the trash chutes on each floor have a spring-mounted door that residents must pull. Justin Sausville, 29, a former resident of the building, said the opening is about 3 feet high by 2 feet across, and opens on an angle.

Another resident, who did not want to be identified, said he usually has to “push a little bit” to get a standard garbage bag to fit into the opening.

“It would be very difficult for someone to have put a body in the trash compactor without more signs [of a struggle] on the body,” police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said last year of Kumar’s death. “We don't know why he would go down the trash chute or if he was impaired by anything, but that's where we are, and that's where the evidence is taking us.”

Such incidents are not unheard of. On Oct. 11, a man was found dead after falling down a trash chute from the ninth floor of a San Diego apartment building. Two years ago, a 34-year-old man fell 25 stories down a garbage chute in New York last year after jumping out of a cab without paying and running into a luxury apartment building, according to news reports. And last February, a Central Illinois man became stuck in a trash chute and suffocated.

Posted by Justin Fenton at 10:59 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: Downtown
        

Law enforcement officials differ all the time, but rarely in public. That's what made the case of Joseph A. Miranda so intriguing. The young man was killed five years ago when an earth mover ran over him at a landscaping company.

Police and prosecutors all ruled accident. Joseph's mother, Adrienne, thought differently. And through her persistence, got the ruling she wanted. This summer, the Maryland Medical Examiner's Office ruled that Joseph had been pushed or had fallen face down during an altercation with another man before the Bobcat ran over him.

The cause of death was changed, from undetermined to homicide.

Still, prosecutors and police in Baltimore and Carroll counties refuse to investigate further, leaving the mother to try to find some other way to bring justice. Said Baltimore County Scott D. Shellenberger: "It does not rise to the level of a crime."

The Medical Examiner pointed to inconsistencies in a key witness statement taken during a civil deposition five years after the accident. But the ME had questions going back years, and had been asking the police do do more. Police believed the account of the witness -- that Joseph slipped off the wheel of the machine and was accidentally crushed, which the ME says now was impossible.

It is a remarkable tale of a mother (seen above in the picture by The Sun's Amy Davis) who won't give up, no matter how many people she's exacerbated over the years during her relentless campaign. Read the full account here.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 8:06 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)
Categories: Baltimore County
        

It was a violent weekend in the Baltimore area, and we'll be trying to get more information on some of these stories today. Here's a quick recap:

-Three people were shot and another injured in a drive-by shooting in the Turners Station area of Baltimore County, which county police say occurred after a fight in the neighborhood. The night before, three were stabbed at the Seahorse Inn in Dundalk.

-Police reported five shootings, two of them fatal. The first occurred Friday night in the 1500 block of E. 29th St. in the Homestead community in the Northeast District. Just after midnight Sunday, 20-year-old Marquis Jones was killed in the 2200 block of Aiken St. in the Midway community in the Eastern District.

-Another man was found stabbed to death Saturday afternoon in an industrial area in Curtis Bay.

-We're looking for more information on the death of a woman found in a trash bin in the Park Charles apartment building downtown. Police said there was no obvious signs of foul play, and information was scant. It's the second time someone has been found dead at the bottom of a trash chute in that building since last year. 

In police administration news, we also reported this weekend that there's a new commander for the city police department's homicide unit - a 22-year-old veteran who hadn't sought out the job - and police have for years failed to regularly conduct training reviews of officer-involved shootings.

The Sun's Arthur Hirsch wrote about a death penalty case moving forward involving a Baltimore County murder-for-hire scheme, the first since the state revamped the law, while Peter Hermann profiled a mother's quest to get investigators to dig deeper into the death of her son, who was run over by a Bobcat while on the job in 2006. 

Posted by Justin Fenton at 7:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)
        

Baltimore police are investigating two killings -- one in Northeast Baltimore that occurred Friday night, and another in South Baltimore that happened this afternoon.

The latest slaying occurred just after 2 p.m. on Pennington Avenue in Curtis Bay. Few details were immediately available, but police said the victim had been stabbed.

The killing in Northeast Baltimore occurred about 8 p.m. in the 1500 block of East 29th St. An officer responding to reports of shots fired found the body of a man; he was pronounced dead at the scene. He has not yet been identified. 

Posted by Peter Hermann at 2:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Northeast Baltimore, South Baltimore
        

After conducting a nationwide search for a new leader for his vaunted but scuffling homicide unit, Baltimore Police Commissioner Frederick H. Bealefeld III instead looked inward to a trusted commander who hadn’t even applied for the job.

And Bealefeld said Lt. Col. Garnell Green will have his support to make changes that he deems necessary.

“I want progress,” Bealefeld said. “At the end of the day, I don’t have time for excuses. The mayor and the people of the city should expect that the homicide clearance rate improves.”

Green, a 22-year veteran seen at right in this photo from 2006, replaces Maj. Terrence McLarney, who had been investigating murders since the 1980s, when detectives were clearing more than 70 percent of cases. That figure in recent years has dipped below 50 percent, and McLarney was forced out over the summer.

Green’s experience with homicide cases is relatively brief, spending just a year in the unit in 2002 as a sergeant, though officials said he has extensive investigative experience and once worked in internal affairs. Though there were 30 to 40 candidates for the job, including some from New York City and other outside agencies, Green wasn’t one of them.

“I was excited about some of the names I saw on there, but at the end of the process, the feedback was that it was more of the same of what we’ve got,” he said.

Bealefeld said he isn’t concerned that Green, who wasn’t made available for an interview, wasn’t gunning for the spot.

“I went to the man and said, ‘Look, I need you to do this job. This department needs you to do this job, and you are the guy who has the skill set to deliver what needs to be done there,’” he said. “He’s delivered in every task that I’ve asked him to do.”

Bealefeld’s priorities include developing a long term strategy for the unit, including improving the clearance rate but also “developing talent.” Observers have said the homicide unit hasn’t been the same since a policy was instituted in the late 1990s that moved veterans out and involved rotating other officers through.

With murders at the lowest rate in the city since 1988, Bealefeld said detectives are handling fewer cases – and should be solving more.

“I’m the guy that sacked McLarney,” Bealefeld said, referring to the dismissal of a detective who featured prominently in “The Wire” creator David Simon’s seminal book, “Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets.” “That speaks volumes about how I feel about the direction [the unit] was going.”

Green’s promotion led to a number of other changes, including the promotion of Lt. Col. Robert Booker to Green’s old post, and Maj. Clifton McWhite to the Western District. McWhite, a 16-year veteran, was moved 13 months ago from the district to the Special Investigations Section to oversee reforms in the sex offense unit in the wake of the Sun's reporting on unfounded rapes.

“[McWhite] has put some foundations in place in his tenure there, and now its time to take that to the next level. He’s put us in a position to do that,” Bealefeld said.

Taking McWhite’s place will be Martin Bartness, a 14-year veteran who in recent years has been working for the Deputy Commissioner of Operations Anthony Barksdale. Bartness, who briefly served as a department spokesman a decade ago, was in the first graduating class of an innovative recruiting program to attract college educated police officers.

He and 43 others from 10 states, 28 universities and 18 disciplines were among the first officers in the nation to get their college tuition reimbursed from the federal government in exchange for a four-year commitment to the police department, a program called the Police Corps.

“We are the product of an experiment,” Bartness told his training class. “We are likely to encounter skepticism, and potentially we will even face resentment. We will try extremely hard to act with humility and to tell other officers we are there for the same reason – to improve the life of others.”

Posted by Justin Fenton at 6:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
        

A 61-year-old man has pleaded guilty on Friday to holding up three banks in Baltimore County, once putting a gun to a teller's face and another time robbing the same teller at the same bank twice.

Gregory O'Neil, faces up to 30 years in prison when he is sentenced Jan. 5.

Prosecutors outlined a brazen series of robberies that began Jan. 25 when he walked into the Wachovia Bank on Rolling Road in Catonsville and escaped with nearly $4,000. Authorities said he pointed a gun at the teller's face and body.

A few days later, on Feb. 3, the man hit the M&T Bank on Ambassador Road in Woodlawn. He again pointed a handgun at the teller and got away with nearly $3,000. Police said he returned to the same branch on Feb. 22 and confronted the same teller,

Here are more chilling details from the plea agreement filed in U.S. District Court in Baltimore:

On Tuesday, January 25, 2011, Gregory McNeil, now age 62, entered the Wachovia Bank at 860 N. Rolling Road, Catonsville, Maryland. McNeil approached a teller, pointed a shiny revolver handgun at her face and torso, demanded “twenties, fifties and hundreds” and warned her not to give him any dye packs.

As the teller was complying with the demand, McNeil continued to point the handgun in her direction, which is clearly shown on the bank surveillance tapes. Fearing for her safety and that of others in the bank, the teller complied and placed $3,945.00 of U.S. currency on the counter, which McNeil seized and placed in a black attache bag before leaving the bank. Witnesses observed that McNeil had been wearing sneakers with red soles and a winter hat with ear-flaps. Items matching these descriptions were later recovered from the McNeil’s girlfriend’s apartment, where McNeil was
living at the time.

On Thursday, February 3, 2011, McNeil entered the M&T Bank at 7210 Ambassador Road, Woodlawn, Maryland, approached a teller, pointed a silver revolver handgun at the teller and again demanded U.S. currency in the form of twenty, fifty and one-hundred dollar bills. Bank surveillance tapes clearly depict McNeil pointing his handgun at the teller, which caused her to fear for her safety, as well as others.

As before, McNeil warned the teller not to hand him any dye packs. When the teller put the money on the counter, McNeil placed the bundles of cash in a shoulder bag before leaving the bank. McNeil stole $2918.00 of U.S. currency. Witnesses observed that McNeil was wearing a black leather hat, black leather “bomber” jacket and black jeans. Items matching these descriptions were later
recovered from the same apartment where McNeil was living.

On Tuesday, February 22, 2011, McNeil robbed the same Wachovia Bank at 860 N. Rolling Road, Maryland as that described above. McNeil entered the bank, approached a teller, pointed a silver revolver handgun at her and demanded money. McNeil had approached the same teller as that whom he robbed on January 25, 2011. The teller recognized McNeil as the same man who had robbed her roughly one month prior and was extremely fearful for her personal safety. McNeil repeated a similar demand for twenty, fifty and one-hundred dollar bills and again warned “no dye packs.”

The teller placed $5,249.00 in U.S. currency on the counter, which McNeil grabbed and placed in a black leather bag before leaving the bank. Witnesses observed that McNeil was wearing a black leather jacket, black pants, a hat with ear flaps, sneakers with red soles, and a portfolio-style laptop bag.

Items matching these descriptions and a silver revolver handgun were later recovered from the same apartment where McNeil was living. Bank surveillance tapes clearly show McNeil pointing the revolver directly at the teller, whom he frightened for the second time.

McNeil admitted to having committed all three of the robberies described herein.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 3:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Baltimore County
        

From Howard County Police:

Howard County police are releasing photos of an attempted robbery in which a man tried to get cash from a woman at an ATM machine. The woman was at the ATM around 1 p.m. on Oct. 10 with her 4-year-old child.

The victim reported she was alone in the ATM vestibule with her child at a Bank of America in the
9200 block of Old Annapolis Rd. She told police that a man approached with an unknown weapon in his hand and demanded money.

The woman saw a cab pull up to the bank; she pointed to it and shouted to the man that the police were there. The suspect walked out of the bank and the woman ran outside with her child. No one was injured and no money was stolen. The cab was unrelated to the robbery. Police are asking anyone who recognizes the suspect in these photos to contact police at 410-313-STOP.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 12:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Howard County
        

The South Side Brims, the Bloods gang taken down by the feds on Thursday, worked from one end of the state to the other. Authorities allege a broad scheme that stretched from the Eastern Shore to Western Maryland.

As The Sun's Justin Fenton wrote today, court documents describe a virtual modern-day tutorial in gangs. Along with the allegations of murder, revenge killings, drug running and gun use, federal prosecutors say members used YouTube, Facebook and text messaging to communicate and to boast.

It's a colorful rendition.

They kept meticulous notes and lists of members, including phone numbers, broken down by geographic region. Those who were locked up were called "G-Wall Homies." Those on the street were "G-World Homies."

Alleged gang members threw dues into a kitty to pay expenses, such as bail, firearms and legal bills. They had the Brim Association Blood Application, a list of signs and signals, and the Brim's Concept of War. Many had multiple nicknames -- Squeaky, Redrum, Platinum, Diamond,
Trigger, Ransom, Blaze, Breezy Brim.

Targets were "on the menu." Members went on Facebook, openly talking about their affiliation and posting pictures of meetings.

Leaders, called "hats," had "round table" discussions, once the feds say, to plan on how to gently recruit two members from a rival gang without inciting a war.

They had First Lady's," one of whom kept the books in Salisbury.

The feds said one text message from a First Lady: "Bang Bang Brim Gang Hat Til I Die."

Posted by Peter Hermann at 9:57 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: Anne Arundel County, Courts and the justice system, Crime elsewhere, Howard County
        

[This post has been updated]

A 45-year-old Frederick County man and hospital patient who was shot and seriously injured Thursday evening in a downtown parking garage was a victim of an apparent robbery, officials said.

Police said that the condition of the unidentified man, who is from Middletown, Md., had improved and confirmed that the man had been a patient at a nearby hospital, but declined to specify a motive for the shooting, which occurred on the sixth level of an underground garage at Greene and Redwood streets.

Robert F. Cherry, president of the city police union, took to the union's Twitter page and said that the victim had been shot three times in a robbery try. He had been visiting the hospital for treatment after being stabbed in a recent home invasion, Cherry said.

A source with knowledge of the investigation corroborated that information, saying the gunman demanded the man's keys and wallet. The man refused, the source said, and was shot at four times as he ran away. Three of the bullets struck him in the back.

Cherry blasted the city and police department for not releasing more information.

“A patient leaving the University of Maryland is robbed and shot and no news from the BPD or City? This should outrage every citizen!” Cherry wrote on Twitter Thursday night.

Councilman William Cole IV also said police should release more information to the public. “I want to know as quickly as humanly possible what's going on. I do think the public needs to know what's happening, and at the same time I'd like to know what the next steps are going to be. I'd like to know if it was captured on video,” Cole said.

“The more information the better, so that people can respond appropriately,” Cole said.

Students at nearby University of Maryland, Baltimore were also critical of a lack of information disseminated while the crime scene was unfolding. An “alert” message went to students at 1:38 p.m. Friday.

The shooting occurred just before 6 p.m. in the busy garage, which is patrolled by a private security force. Officers were nearby, but not on that floor, a source said.

The victim has no prior criminal record, but detectives were exploring any possible correlation between the home invasion and the shooting, the source said. However, preliminary indications were that the shooting was a robbery gone awry.

Friday afternoon, the University Maryland sent out an e-mail to students and staff describing the suspect as a black male in his 20s, who was wearing a Ravens hat, a white t-shirt and blue jeans.

“The University of Maryland Police Force remains vigilant in its effort to keep the Campus and its surrounding community safe through the continued cooperation and intelligence sharing with the Baltimore Police Department. We have increased our patrols on Campus and in the garages,” the e-mail said.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 8:05 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: Downtown
        

[Raw video of police press briefing embedded from YouTube page of James MacArthur, who was at the scene]

A man was shot multiple times in the back just before 6 p.m. on a lower level of an underground parking garage in the heart of the University of Maryland, Baltimore and Medical Center campus, The Sun's Steve Kilar is reporting.

The victim, who appears to be in his mid-40s, is in critical condition but stable at a local hospital, said Detective Kevin Brown, a police spokesman. After the shooting, the assailant fled, he said. No shooter description was available by 9:15 p.m.

Police union President Robert F. Cherry, attributing information to a source, said on the union's Twitter page that the victim was a hospital patient who was robbed and shot three times. Cherry claimed the victim had been previously stabbed in a home invasion and treated at Shock Trauma.

Later, apparently incredulous that the city had not released more information, Cherry tweeted: "A patient leaving the University of Maryland is robbed and shot and no news from the BPD or City? This should outrage every citizen!"

Officers were still conducting a forensic investigation of the scene about 7:15 p.m., Brown said, and surveillance footage will be reviewed.

The University Plaza Garage, which is owned by the university and has an entrance off Redwood Street between Greene and Paca streets, is six floors deep, according to Patricia Fanning, a spokeswoman for the University of Maryland, Baltimore.

Posted by Justin Fenton at 9:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Breaking news, Downtown
        

[Note: Embedded video does not appear to be a Maryland Bloods member but was linked to on a Frederick South Side Brim member's YouTube account]

Read the full indictment here.

Two years after police found a gang roster in a Frederick motel room, federal authorities announced Thursday a racketeering indictment charging 35 alleged Bloods gang members with murder, kidnapping and other crimes from Western Maryland to the Eastern Shore — a move they said had "dismantled" the gang.

Authorities say cells of the South Side Brims coordinated gang activity across the state and region, and court documents offer a tutorial on how modern criminal organizations operate, including posting photos and messages on Facebook, and uploading initiation videos on YouTube.

Those indicted are accused of at least one murder in Baltimore, an attempted murder in Wicomico County, a home invasion in Howard County, a kidnapping in Frederick, and witness intimidation in Allegany County, among a host of other alleged crimes.

"Gangs represent the most significant violent crime challenge we face throughout the state of Maryland," said U.S. Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein, flanked at a Baltimore news conference by police officials from across the state. "We hope these gang indictments send a message to gang members and prospective gang members to get out while you can."

Frederick police chief Kim C. Dine said the case was "extremely significant" for his city, which he said has been conducting gang outreach work in recent years but is not immune to the spreading of gangs. "Sixteen of these gangsters are from Frederick, and it will have a huge impact on the city of Frederick and quality of life," he said.

The alleged leader of the gang was identified as Andre Ricardo Roach, a 34-year-old Prince George's County native. Known as "Redrum," he's accused of leading the gang since 2005 from behind bars at the North Branch Correctional Institute in Cumberland, where he is serving a 50-year sentence for second-degree murder.

Here's an article from the Frederick News Post from March in which a county detective told citizens that the South Side Brims were among several active sets there. 

The list of people charged is after the jump:

Posted by Justin Fenton at 9:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: Anne Arundel County, Baltimore County, Crime elsewhere, Gangs, Howard County, Witness intimidation
        

Baltimore Police are seeking a man who they say escaped custody on the way to the Eastern District station house. A police spokesman had no details on how the man got away:

Posted by Peter Hermann at 5:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: East Baltimore
        

A Baltimore County jury on Thursday convicted a man of shooting and wounding the owner of a Catonsville convenience store and killing the lone customer during a robbery nearly two years ago, according to prosecutors.

Braderick Green, 37, faces life without parole when he is sentenced in November. He already is serving 11 life sentences in connection with a shootout with nearly a dozen police officers in Baltimore four days after he held up Yours Convenience Store on Frederick Road.

The 56-year-old store owner, Sudhir Shah, was shot in head during the Nov. 17, 2009 robbery, but managed to dial 911. The native of India recovered and returned to his popular store six months later, with relieved patrons throwing him a welcome home festival.

“It screwed up my life,” Shah said at the time. “And I have bad memories in my mind. I’m going to work. I have to. But I’m not going to own a gun. I don’t believe in that.” Shah could not be reached for comment on Thursday. He's seen above during his reopening, in a photo taken by The Sun's Lloyd Fox.

More details:

Prosecutors said Green walked into the store armed with a .45 caliber handgun and his face concealed with a bandanna. Shah was behind the counter; the only customer, Brian Meise, was shopping.

“The masked Green walked in and almost immediately and without provocation shot and killed Meise,” according to the Baltimore County State’s Attorney’s Office. “Green then proceeded around to the rear of the cashier area and robbed and shot Shah in the head.”

Four days later, a Baltimore police officer pulled over an unlicensed taxi on South Athol Avenue. Police said Green jumped out and began shooting, and continued to fire his gun as he ran down the street.

Nearly a dozen officers engaged in a gun battle with Green, arresting him only after shooting him in the stomach. No officers were injured; prosecutors said Green used the same gun to shoot at the police as he did to shoot Shah and Meise.

A Baltimore City Circuit Court jury in April found Green guilty of multiple counts of attempted murder and other charges and he was sentenced to 11 life terms in prison

Posted by Peter Hermann at 5:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Baltimore County
        

A 13-year-old Romesh Vance (seen at right) sat on a Baltimore carousel eight years ago, spinning slowly as he predicted his future.

"I think all our lives [are] going to be bad now," he said.

The statement was captured on camera by the documentary filmmakers following his journey — and its premature end — at the Baraka boarding school in Kenya, which gave a handful of disadvantaged city boys the chance to study in Africa. The school was unexpectedly closed in 2003.

On Wednesday, a 21-year-old Vance pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to participating in a drug conspiracy involving nearly two dozen people who allegedly sold cocaine and crack out of the Gilmor Homes public housing complex, The Sun's Tricia Bishop reports.

He faces a minimum of five years in prison at his sentencing, set for Feb. 22.

Posted by Justin Fenton at 9:59 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: West Baltimore
        

A man beaten during a possible robbery on a street in Waverly Wednesday afternoon suffered a fractured jaw and other related injuries, but should survive, according to Det. Kevin Brown, a Baltimore police spokesman.

The 28-year-old victim was being treated at an undisclosed hospital. Police have not made any arrests, and didn't disclose other details. The attack, first reported by North Baltimore Patch, occurred in the 700 block of McKewin Ave., about two blocks east of Old York Road.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 8:39 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: North Baltimore
        

The Maryland State trooper was returning from drug training when he stopped to help the driver of a disabled car on I-95 in Cecil County Wednesday night. The trooper left with two people in handcuffs and marijuana worth an estimated $300,000.

The unidentified trooper had pulled over to help the men change a tire on the northbound lanes of the highway, near Route 279 in Elkton. Police said the trooper got suspicious and got consent to search the pickup truck, and found two duffel bags and box with "high-grade marijuana."

Here is the statement from police with more details:

Posted by Peter Hermann at 7:57 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: Crime elsewhere
        

Noting a decline in murders and non-fatal shootings, Police Commissioner Frederick H. Bealefeld III said he is concerned about a rise in overall gun crime this year.

As of Oct. 1, homicides were down 3 percent and shootings were down 5 percent. Overall gun crimes, however, were up 7 percent, fueled by a large spike in home invasions and business robberies involving guns. 

There have been 169 home invasions this year, compared with 113 at this time last year - a 50 percent spike. And business robberies have soared from 174 at this time last year to 283, an increase of 63 percent. Earlier this year, the citywide robbery unit created a web site to help publicize commercial robberies, while a series of home invasions committed by men posting as police officers has garnered headlines.

The gun crimes are "certainly something all of us should be concerned about," Bealefeld told agency heads at a monthly meeting of the Criminal Justice Coordinating Council. "This trend toward increased gun violence is something we should be acutely aware of."

The number of homicides and non-fatal shootings through Oct. 7 - 465 - continues a downward trend since 2007, when there were 773 combined homicides and non-fatal shootings at this time. 

Posted by Justin Fenton at 4:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Coming off revelations by The Sun's Justin Fenton on the lavish lifestyle of a reputed drug dealer, the Maryland U.S. Attorney's Office gives us another example today.

A federal judge sentenced Eric Hellams, 40, to more than 10 years in prison for drug dealing and money laundering. Prosecutors said he distributed heroin in the Baltimore area from 2003 through 2009.

Prosecutors said he hid his drug proceeds by laundering up to $1 million, some of it by refinancing a home in Upper Marlboro, listing an annual income of $178,764. Authorities said that when they searched his home, they found $98,875 hidden in an attic crawl space, a bullet-proof vest, jewelry -- including Rolex, Gucci and Cartier watches -- necklaces and Tiffany bracelets.

The feds also said he had a 2008 Mercedes-Benz coupe -- monthly payments $2,200 -- and a Toyota Truck. Prosecutors said they found $1,220 in an apron pocket. 

Posted by Peter Hermann at 1:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: Courts and the justice system, Crime elsewhere
        

The Sun's Luke Broadwater writes:

The bleach and Pine-Sol fight that temporarily shut down a Baltimore County Walmart over the weekend was the latest dispute in a heated love triangle, according to court documents, witnesses and attorneys involved in the case.

A Baltimore County judge on Tuesday ordered Theresa Monique Jefferson, 33, of Lansdowne held on $350,000 bond on charges that she attacked another woman with bleach at a Lansdowne Walmart on Saturday. The fumes from chemicals caused 19 people to be taken to area hospitals, police said.

Baltimore County Assistant State's Attorney John P. Cox argued that Jefferson is a danger to her former boyfriend, Calvin Pannell, and his current fiance, Ebony Odoms, whom she's accused of attacking.

"We have grave concerns for the safety of the two victims if she should be let out on the streets," Cox said.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 8:14 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Baltimore County, Courts and the justice system
        

Court records show DNA has linked a 50-year-old drifter to a fourth rape.

Carroll Thomas Santos was charged in November 2009 in connection with two separate rapes. As he awaited trial on those charges, police linked him to two additional cases, the latest a 2008 attack that occurred near the Walters Art Gallery, according to court records.

Police said the victim, who was 55 at the time, was walking in the 500 block of Cathedral St. on Sept. 16 at about 12:30 a.m. when a man grabbed her from behind and put her in a chokehold and told her not to scream. She was dragged into an alley and raped, police said. The man looked through her purse and then fled, police said.

Police received the DNA hit for Santos on Nov. 22, 2010 and assigned the case to a detective from the sex offense unit's cold case squad, who showed the woman a photo lineup in September. She said she had not had consensual sex with any of the men pictured, but could not identify her attacker.

Santos is set to go to trial on the other three cases on November 1, court records show. 

Last year, the Sun explored the difficulties prosecutors face even when they have seemingly slam-dunk DNA evidence. That story can be read here.

Santos has a prior record of sex crimes - in 2002 he was convicted of second degree rape and received 20 years in prison, but 15 years of the sentence were suspended. In 2008, he was convicted of indecent exposure, court records show.

Posted by Justin Fenton at 5:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Downtown
        

Baltimore City police are investigating the killing of a 17-year-old boy, who was shot multiple times in the upper body at about 10 p.m. Monday in the 1400 block of Kuper Place near West Pratt Street.

The victim, identified as Devearl Singletary, ran to the home of a friend, who called police from the residence in the 200 block of S. Calhoun St.

Singletary was taken to Maryland Shock Trauma Center, where he was pronounced dead at 11:08 p.m. Police have no information on motives or suspect, but we're told Singletary was a student at Augusta Fells Savage Institute for Visual Arts.

Singletary is the second student from that school killed in the past month. Bruce Benn, 16, was shot in the head on Sept. 14 in the 1900 block of W. Lombard St. That case remains open.

Posted by Justin Fenton at 4:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: South Baltimore
        

In this corner of East Baltimore, where vacant houses outnumber occupied residences, the customers at the nearby methadone clinic buzzed about the police activity down the street. Women hustled up to the crime scene tape blocking off the intersection of North Port and East Lafayette streets, demanding to know if the victim was a relative.

The victim's legs and feet peeked out from underneath a sheet as detectives surveyed the scene. Later, with onlookers still watching from a distance, emergency personnel picked his lifeless body up by the arms and legs and put it on a gurney. "He looks light-skinned," one woman said to a group of people. "I think he had braids."

Official information was scant. A police spokesman said an unidentified man was shot at about 11:30 a.m. and pronounced dead at the scene. That much, anyone could've told you.

Residents shook their heads. "Always something around here,' they say.

Around the corner, 48-year-old Yul Henderson is trying to keep the block looking clean. He constructed a sidewalk garden - a shrine, he calls it - consisting of bricks, tiles and broken pieces of mirror, all gathered from around the neighborhood, with a tiger statue in the middle.

"For all the people around here, I want them to have something nice," he explains. "If I can't have something nice, then there ain't no sense in doing it."

Nearby is a large pile of trash, which he says he collected from around the area. As quickly as he can pick it up, more gathers. But he's pleased that the city will take it from where he piles it up.

"When you see stuff like this, it's not a trash can. This is art. This is gifted," he says. "When the tornado came, it blew down my fence, but it never touched this."

Like so much in the city's troubled neighborhoods, there's a link to crime here: Henderson created the shrine in memory of his son, also named Yul, who was shot and killed in a robbery in 2007. He was 21 years old.

Posted by Justin Fenton at 3:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: East Baltimore
        

Whoever fired into Dave Gilmore's Woodberry home early Sunday morning had the wrong address. But how can the non-profit manager be sure they know that? How does he know that they won't come back?

Shots fired wasn't where Gilmore's mind first went when he heard the loud pop from inside his home early Sunday morning. He lives in Woodberry, on TV Hill where three city television stations broadcast, and in four years there can't recall hearing shots before.

There was no doubt about the bullet hole, the ricochet marks, and the spent round he found inside the home, however. The bullet traveled the length of his rowhome, he said.

"I took out the tape measure [afterwards]. I had been sitting at the computer, and five feet to the right and it's in my head," Gilmore, 28, said.

Gilmore said he called police, who didn't respond for more than 20 minutes. He says the first call was placed at 1:01 a.m., and he had to call back at 1:21 when no one had shown up. An officer cruised by a short time after that, but initially rolled past his house.

Gilmore praises the professionalism of the officer who eventually did come out to his house. She did the right things, including canvassing the area for information. But he wonders what would have happened if the situation had been more urgent. He said he was told that police had been tied up at the Morgan State University Homecoming events.

Police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi confirmed that officers arrived at 1:27 a.m. The case has been classified as destruction of property, and he said the department is looking into what caused the delay in response time. "Of course it's tremendously alarming - but we have to balance a bullet in a doorway with someone who fires into someone else's chest. Depending on the call volume in the district" the response time is affected, he said.

Gilmore and his wife, a graduate student at Johns Hopkins University, spent the night at his parents' house in the suburbs. The next day, they went to the Northern District police station because they wanted to talk to a detective and see what follow-up work police would do. Because he has no reason to think he was targeted, Gilmore assumes the shooter was after someone else on his block.

"I said to him, 'Is there any good reason for us to stay at our house?'" Gilmore said. "To be fair, there's no way he can be sure. There's a million address we can live at - it doesn't have to be one where someone thinks the person they want to kill or hurt lives."

Gilmore said he's a big proponent of the city, and city living. He's not sure what to tell people now. "A drive-by shooting sort of throws it in your face," he said.

[Photos courtesy of Dave Gilmore]

Posted by Justin Fenton at 11:10 AM | Permalink | Comments (10)
        

Baltimore police have issued an arrest warrant for a suspect in last week's shooting on St. Paul Street in Charles Village, which occurred just 50 feet from where Stephen Pitcairn was fatally stabbed last year:

Hello Everyone:

I wanted to let everyone know that Northern District detectives just obtained a warrant for the suspect in the shooting that occurred last week at 2600 St. Paul. The Warrant Apprehension Task Force has the warrant and is going to locate the suspect to make the arrest. We do not want to release the name at this point.  Hopefully an arrest will be made soon. 

Thank you,

Deputy Major Richard Worley
Baltimore Police Department
Northern District

The victim was shot in the leg and treated at an area hospital. Police said the shooting occurred about 5:40 a.m. and was related to a robbery.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 7:19 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: North Baltimore
        

UPDATE, 10 p.m.: The victim has been identified by police as 20-year-old Kevin Pierre. Based on the information given by police, Pierre did not appear to have a criminal record. We're trying to find out more about him, but feel free to post any remembrances in the comments section.

A man was fatally shot Monday afternoon in Southeast Baltimore's McElderry Park neighborhood, police said.

The shooting occurred at about 3:30 p.m., apparently at the intersection of Belnord Ave. and Pulaski Highway, with the unidentified victim running up the street and collapsing on Orleans Street, where the curb was covered in blood.

"I saw the dude laying on the ground, trying to catch his breath," said Shawnte Surles, 37. "After that, he wasn't breathing no more. ... It's hurtful. I wanted to cry. His mother and them came down, and they couldn't get over there .. they had to stay behind [crime scene] tape.

The shooting was the first in the McElderry Park neighborhood, historically plagued by gun violence, since Jan. 1. The Safe Streets violence interrupters program is centered there, with ex-cons and gang members paid to mediate disputes and teach alternates to gun violence. City officials say it has been successful, and are looking to expand it to other areas. The adjacent Ellwood Park community, which once had a Safe Streets post, saw two shootings recently.

Barbara Grant, 54, and Andre Anderson, 38, stood outside as police examined the crime scene. A bullet fired up the street grazed Grant's car and came to rest in the side mirror of Anderson's vehicle. Police told Anderson they would need to remove his mirror to take into evidence. 

Grant said her family moved into their home a year and a half ago, taking advantage of a program to encourage people to move into rehabbed homes in struggling neighborhoods. "You want to come into a neighborhood to bring up the value of the neighborhood ... we had no idea what we were getting into when we bought this house," she said.

"I just happened to have the day off - it's a government holiday," Grant said. "It's the middle of the day. I could've been out walking my dog. There's babies out here playing. There's kids walking home from school. It's crazy."

Posted by Justin Fenton at 5:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)
Categories: Southeast Baltimore
        

A shooting early Sunday in Northwest Baltimore occurred in the parking lot of the Pimlico Race Course, apparently during a private birthday party at the venerable horse track.

An officer was working in the area of the parking lot at about 1:45 a.m. and heard several gunshots, according to police spokesman Jeremy Silbert. The officer saw a number of people leaving the area and located a 25-year-old man who had been shot in the head, chest, and arm, police said. Despite those injuries, police say the unidentified man was expected to survive.

The track closes at 12:30 a.m., but online postings show a private party for a West Baltimore clothing store owner was still going on there at that time. At $30 a head, organizers said the event sold out. Photos show the betting windows being used as a bar.

Maj. Johnny Delgado, the commander of the Northwest District, said the track in recent months has been holding more frequent private events, which has been a "logistical nightmare" for police with crowds sometimes in the hundreds.

"It's like a mobile nightclub disguised as a birthday party," Delgado said.

Officials from the Maryland Jockey Club said they were reviewing the circumstances surrounding the shooting. President Tom Chuckas said the party was only the second time the facility has been rented out for a late night private event.

"We look to generate additional revenues, and we take these events on a case by case basis," Chuckas said. "We vet them, and ensure there is sufficient support from private security, our security, Baltimore city police. This group approached us about having a late night party, and we gave it a try to see what would happen."

Chuckas said there were no incidents inside the track. "This is something that happened as everyone was vacating the building," he said.

Chuckas wasn't sure how, if at all, the shooting might affect his willingness to allow more late night events. "As a good corporate business, we're going to review all aspects of this party and determine if this was a one-time incident, or if it has the potential for more. We'll act accordingly," he said.

Posted by Justin Fenton at 11:38 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: Northwest Baltimore
        

What do millions of dollars in heroin proceeds buy? According to federal prosecutors, for Joy Edison, the wife of a reputed drug kingpin, it brought lavish island trips, hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of luxury accessories, and a spacious house in the suburbs. And she was still receiving public assistance.

Edison was sentenced last month to 70 months in federal prison for her role in laundering anywhere from $400,000 to $1 million in drug proceeds for Steven Blackwell, who is pending trial on heroin conspiracy charges. Federal prosecutors say Blackwell made millions, an operation that came crashing down after his drug organization was linked by police to a spate of retaliatory shootings that left several people dead.

"Her involvement was not just as a money launderer," Assistant U.S. Attorney James Warwick wrote in court papers. "Edison profited handsomely from her relationship with Blackwell," spending "hundreds of thousands of dollars generated from heroin sales on luxury items for her personal benefit."

To drive home the point, prosecutors included images, some posted at right, of some of Edison's $130,000 in Louis Vuitton and Gucci accessories, as well as vacation photos from trips to the Dominican Republic, the Atlantis Resort on Paradise Island, the Bahamas, and Las Vegas, where they rode around in a stretch limo.

And yet, Edison had also applied for government assistance, stating that she earned $13 an hour working at a communications business and was enrolled in school. "Representing that she resided on West Lexington Street and misrepresenting her financial condition, Edison was granted the requested public assistance," authorities wrote in court papers. In fact, the couple lived in a $760,000 home in Elkton, Md.

Edison's attorney, Gary Ticknor, said Edison was not motivated by greed. "She was in love with her husband, and that was a motivating factor. I'm not sure the money was all that important - obviously, some people disagree," Ticknor said.

Ticknor said he presented to the judge 50 letters of support for Edison from family, friends and neighbors, who said she was a "good and generous person" who helped people in her old neighborhood. "The question that the court had of them, and I think this was a major problem, was whether they knew all of the details of the crimes for which she had pled guilty, which most of them did not," Ticknor said.

In order to conceal Blackwell's earnings, Edison admitted in her guilty plea that she helped launder the money by purchasing "winning Maryland Lottery tickets" in the amount of $138,000, and that they gambled the money and reported their "cash-outs," exceeding $184,000.

Edison and another co-conspirator, Tahirah Carter, have pleaded guilty and have been sentenced (though Carter has filed an intent to appeal her sentence). Blackwell is tentatively scheduled to go to trial in early December.

Posted by Justin Fenton at 10:36 AM | Permalink | Comments (14)
Categories: Courts and the justice system
        

The Washington Post's Ruben Castaneda today profiled Maryland U.S. Attorney Rod Rosenstein, one of only three nationwide - out of 93 - appointed by President George W. Bush who have been kept on by the Obama administration.

Rosenstein is lauded in the piece for instilling direction in the federal prosecutors' office, and there's also a peek into his personal life. The piece uses the case against former Prince George's County Executive Jack Johnson as an example of the airtight cases his office has brought:

The investigation was typical Rosenstein, say those who know him well: fair, methodical and detail-oriented. Even courtroom adversaries talk about the career prosecutor as if he were the real-life version of a Jimmy Stewart character.

“He is the poster child for the professional, competent, ethical and fair-minded prosecutor,” said defense lawyer Robert C. Bonsib, a former state and federal prosecutor.

Sun photo by Jed Kirschbaum. 

Posted by Justin Fenton at 10:10 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

[Above, video shot by @Guttermagazine outside Eden's Lounge early Sunday]

Three people were stabbed early Sunday after an altercation inside a popular Mount Vernon club, police confirmed this morning.

Harold Edwards, the club's owner, said "this is not what Eden's Lounge stands for."

"This is not typical at our venue, and we don't know how it got started or why adults still act like this," he said.

According to the police report, officers were outside Eden's Lounge in the first block of W. Eager St. for routine crowd control when a man stumbled out of the club, his back covered in blood. The officer said the victim was "confused and highly intoxicated," and the officer asked him to remove his shirt, revealing five cut wounds to his upper back.

As the officer was assessing the man's injuries, two other men ran out of the club. Both had blood covering the top portion of their t-shirts, and were suffering from wounds to their back and necks. 

All three victims told the officer that they had not seen the person that assaulted them, and did not know what had prompted the stabbing, according to the report. Police haven't reported any arrests or a description of the suspects.

Eden's Lounge is located in the heart of Mount Vernon, and there's typically a strong police presence outside as its crowd along with several other clubs empty out into the intersection of Charles St. and Eager. 

Despite assertions from some residents that the club is a problem, liquor board chairman Steve Fogleman said they've received few complaints. Still, the stabbings will result in an inquiry by the board, he said. "There was a period ending about three or four years ago, where it was a little crowded, and had security issues from time to time. But lately, as far as 311 complaints, it's really not been on our radar. We're all a little surprised," Fogleman said.

Posted by Justin Fenton at 9:51 AM | Permalink | Comments (16)
Categories: Downtown
        

Sun reporter Jacques Kelly recently talked to the owners of Imperial Half Bushel, who were burglarized and lost more than $100,000 in merchandise. We write a lot in this space about violent crime and gun violence, but this is a reminder of the toll of property crime:

The door at 831 N. Howard St. swings open to one of Baltimore's more charming salesrooms. But Friday, when I stopped by the place known as the Imperial Half Bushel, it was a dispiriting and depressing sight.

The 19th-century walnut and oak showcases were empty. Gone were the silver forks and spoons made by Baltimore silversmiths. The water pitchers, the cups, the napkin holders had disappeared. Sometime between Sept. 17 and Sept. 20, thieves looted $100,000 worth of silver from this little shop located on a stretch known as Antiques Row.

Fred and Nancy Duggan and their son, Patrick, opened their silver business in 1976. They operate an old-fashioned Baltimore shop, complete with marble steps and a brass rail and a set of louvered green shutters at the front door. They offered an inventory of estate silver — used and antique pieces — neatly displayed and well-polished in showcases you might encounter in an old museum or a great-aunt's dining room.

Patrick Duggan said that on Saturday, Sept. 17, he locked the front door and turned on the burglar alarm when he closed the shop for the weekend. When he went to reopen it the following Tuesday morning, the alarm did not sound momentarily, as it normally would. He walked in and saw that his showcases were virtually empty. The thieves had entered through a back window and cut the alarm telephone lines. When rifling through the showcases, they left the knives behind, apparently knowing the blades are not silver.

Posted by Justin Fenton at 8:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Downtown
        

In case you were out enjoying the beautiful weather this weekend and missed the crime, here is a bit of what you missed:

A woman poured bleach and Pine-Sol on a Walmart customer in southern Baltimore County, police said, in an incident that closed down the store for several hours Saturday and sent 19 to area hospitals. The two women knew each other and were involved in a continuing dispute, police said.

State police say a traffic stop in Hagerstown led to a major marijuana seizure. A trooper pulled over the driver of a 1979 Cadillac early Friday morning for not having a working light on the rear license plate. State police troopers found a bag with nine pounds of freshly cut marijuana.

Baltimore city police said they were investigating an overnight shooting in Northwest Baltimore that injured a 25-year-old man. The man was found near Park Heights and Belvedere avenues shortly after an officer on patrol heard gunshots around 1:43 a.m. The victim, who was not identified, suffered multiple gunshot wounds, police said, adding that he was taken to a local hospital, where he was in serious but stable condition.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 7:19 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Baltimore County, Crime elsewhere, Northwest Baltimore
        

Baltimore police say a man has died after exchanging gunfire with a police officer responding to a domestic violence call.

Baltimore police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi says police responded to a call Saturday morning around 1:40 a.m. reporting that a man had shot his wife in East Baltimore. When officers arrived in the 1800 block of Hope St. they found the man armed with a gun.

Guglielmi says the man was combative with police and confronted officers. He says it appears several shots were fired from both sides. It was not clear if the man died as a result of a self-inflicted gunshot wound or a shot fired by a police officer.

The condition of the man's wife was not clear. Police expected to have more information Saturday afternoon.

The shooting appears to be the second fatal police-involved incident this week. On Sunday, a 52-year-old musician was fatally shot in Brooklyn after police say he did not comply with officers' orders to put down a weapon. This year, city police have been involved in seven shooting incidents, killing four.

-With AP

Posted by Justin Fenton at 1:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: East Baltimore, Police shootings
        

A woman who had been charged with abducting a baby she was babysitting in Columbia has been freed of all charges after Howard County police determined the suspect had once been a long-time partner of the mother.

Police also said that the woman had participated in raising the child and that she and the mother had shared parental responsibilities. Here is a statement from Howard County Police:

A woman arrested for child abduction yesterday has been released without prosecution at this time
after detectives determined the case appeared to be a domestic situation, not an abduction.

After receiving a report from the child’s mother that the child had been abducted by a friend, police launched a search for the baby and the woman. Detectives have learned that Tiara Monique
Williams, who was accused by the mother, was once the mother’s long-time domestic partner, and
that she had participated in raising the child since birth. The two share regular parental responsibility for the 16-month-old girl.

This information was not fully provided to police by the mother. Police believe Williams went to the mother’s house to stay with the child while the mother went out. She told police that she had notified the mother by text message that she was leaving the residence with the child.

The mother reported the case as an abduction and did not fully divulge to police the nature of
Williams’ relationship with the child. Police launched a search, which resulted in finding the baby
unharmed, and later finding Williams, both at the house of a relative in Suitland, Md.

Williams was taken into custody and interviewed by police. After further investigation based on her
statements, and in consultation with the Howard County State’s Attorney’s Office, she was released
without prosecution at this time However, Williams was wanted in an unrelated arrest warrant in Prince George’s County. She was taken to Howard County booking for processing on that warrant and later released.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 5:43 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)
Categories: Howard County
        

The former Wicomico County state's attorney has been arrested on charges of violating a court order by contacting a woman he had dated, the Salisbury Daily Times reported.

Police said Davis Ruark, who was the top prosecutor for more than 20 years, was taken into custody Thursday in Salisbury after authorities say he violated an order that prohibiting Ruark from coming into contact with the woman by sending text messages and e-mails.

Police said the woman told authorities that Ruark attempted to contact her several times this week. Ruark was released on his own recognizance.

Thursday's arrest was Ruark's latest run-in with the law. In 2008, Ruark was accused of drinking and driving in Ocean City. He was later charged with possession of a handgun while under the influence.

Posted by Justin Fenton at 11:54 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Crime elsewhere
        

Court records show a 36-year-old man has been indicted by federal prosecutors on two counts of drug distribution, charges that may be fallout from his claims that one of his attorneys was involved in the drug trade.

Jose Joaquin Morales was indicted on Sept. 14, and the charges were unsealed this week. The upshot of the case is unclear - the indictment doesn't go into details of his alleged crimes beyond that the drug dealing occurred in Maryland, Pennsylvania and Texas - but according to various accounts in the CityPaper, the case seems to have been building.

Morales was sentenced to 262 months - or about 22 years - in federal prison by a federal judge in Texas after pleading guilty to charges that he was trying to charter a jet to transport drugs to Baltimore from McAllen, Tex. In that case, a woman identified as his girlfriend, Tiffany Frey, admitted to authorities that she helped smuggle cocaine into Baltimore inside a maternity dress.

The CityPaper reported that Morales tried to tie one of his old attorneys, Stanley Needleman, to the drug trade. At his sentencing hearing in March 2010, federal prosecutors said claims regarding Needleman were baseless. "...We spent four days debriefing Mr. Morales, only just basically to realize that he'd been lying almost the entire time."

But in April, federal agents raided Needleman's home and law office, where they found $1 million in cash stuffed into a safe. Needleman was charged through criminal information on Aug. 16, and pleaded guilty to tax evasion on Sept. 1. Morales was indicted two weeks later.

Calls to Morales' attorney were not immediately returned. He is charged in the case along with a woman named Terry L. Sadler, a woman who state court records indicate he has sparred with over child support and paternity.

Posted by Justin Fenton at 11:14 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

It was 2 in the morning, and Craig Bouie and his wife were feeding their month-old son in an upstairs room of their Milford Mill home. Their 11-year-old daughter and 7-year-old son were sleeping. That's when police say Kelly Shird, 28, broke into the home on Western Woods Circle, on Aug. 5, 2010.

Authorities say Bouie confronted Shird, who had gotten in through a rear basement window, and was shot three times. Prosecutors say Shird accidentally shot himself as well. Bouie died at a hospital.

Police captured Shird, of the 800 block of McHenry St. in Baltimore, a week later in Virginia. On Thursday, Baltimore County State's Attorney Scott D. Shellenberger said a jury convicted Shird of first-degree murder, burglary and using a handgun in the commission of a crime of violence.

Shird is scheduled to be sentenced Dec. 20.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 8:50 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Baltimore County, Courts and the justice system
        

The Baltimore Police Department's Mounted Unit needs two horses. Jason Curtis, head of the Mount Vernon-Belvedere Association, is helping to raise the $5,000 needed to buy Vernon, which is already training for his new job, and is in the picture.

Curtis says the police had to retire two horses and needs to replace them. The Mount Vernon board is offering to match any contribution made by an association member and will match a contribution from $100 up to $2,500 from a non-member.

Baltimore police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi confirmed that one horse, on loan, was elderly and had to be put down, and that another horse retired.

You can donate by visiting the Mount Vernon-Belvedere Association.

Says Jason: "I'm working on getting the Mounted Patrols to tour Mt. Vernon one day next week so everyone in the neighborhood can come out and meet all the horses!"

You might remember that two years ago, the Mounted Unit, one of the oldest in the country, was on the chopping block, threatened by budget cuts. Donations poured in to save the cops on horses.

And private sponsorship is not unusual in the world of Mounted Police. Last year, city cops changed the name of Blackie to Slurpie when 7-Eleven donated $5,000 to the unit. Here's that story from January, 2010:

Goodbye, Blackie. Hello, Slurpee.

Like the NASCAR speedsters festooned with ads, the Baltimore Police Department's horse unit is going the way of corporate sponsorship. The 7-Eleven chain donated $5,000 to keep the endangered Mounted Unit running, and the check gave the business naming rights.

And just like that, the purebred Percheron once known as Blackie is now named after the outlet's frozen beverage concoction. Slurpee joins the other horses of patrol: Butch, Buster, Binks, Barny and Bell.

The new name breaks up the symmetry of the Bs, but a department desperate to keep the 121-year-old mounted unit was not about to turn down money. Police solicited funds, and donors came up with $90,000 - enough to keep the horses trotting for another year.

Slurpee will be etched in the horse's saddle and will be on the stall, but the horse won't have to catch criminals wearing a 7-Eleven logo. But this marketing breakthrough has led some to speculate.

"If BGE wants to give us a donation and name a horse Zap, we'll consider it," said the Police Department's chief spokesman, Anthony Guglielmi, only half-joking.

"We talked about putting ads on the sides of police cars and saying, 'This car chase brought to you by Nabisco,' " said Sgt. John Ambrose, who runs the mounted unit, fully joking.

Ambrose said the department had obtained Blackie late last year but had not paid for the horse and nearly had to return it before money started arriving to a nonprofit police foundation. The public can meet the newly minted Slurpee at 11 a.m. Friday at the grand opening of a 7-Eleven at Market Place downtown.

The store announced that there will be special snacks - apples and carrots - for the police horses and food specials for the customers - 11-cent Big Gulps.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 7:28 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)
Categories: Confronting crime
        

After 30 years of drug dealing, Walter Horton realized in early 2010 that he was in over his head. A friend was dead, and he believed he could be next.

He wrote a letter to his family, placed it underneath a television, and told them to read it if anything ever happened to him. "Please forgive me God," it began.

In it, Horton explained how a drug associate, Calvin "Turkey" Wright, had visited him and asked for help moving a vehicle. Days later, the nude body of 25-year-old Sintia Mesa would be found in the trunk.

Horton testified about that letter in Baltimore Circuit Court Thursday as a witness in the murder trial of Johnny Butler. Wright, 39, has already pleaded guilty in the case, and state prosecutors are trying to convince a jury that Butler, who turns 36 next week, should be convicted too.

The case is the last step in an investigation that has spanned several years and already resulted in a life prison term for Butler, who was convicted in federal court last year for running a major heroin and cocaine trafficking organization. Detectives Gregory Boris and Arthur Brummer worked the Mesa case for years, resulting in a wiretap investigation that took down Butler's organization.

Among those convicted in the drug case was Horton, whose testimony defense attorneys say should not be believed. Horton's letter to his family doesn't mention Butler as having any involvement in Mesa's killing, though he now testifies that Butler was there. And defense attorney Natalie Finegar said in opening statements Thursday that they will bring forward a DNA expert to discredit forensic evidence that links Butler to the killing.

Finegar said the prosecution took Horton's testimony "and laid out their foundation, and then took the evidence and tried to fit a square peg into a round hole."

At the center of the case is Mesa, a graduate of Morgan State University who homicide detectives have said was an innocent victim. She was dating a drug dealer and aspiring music mogul named Jemarl Jones, who had ties to Wright and Butler. When Butler fell out of favor with his Dominican drug suppliers, he had to find a way to come up with cash and turned to Mesa to get to Jones' money, the detectives said.

After getting the cash, however, police say Wright and Butler tortured, raped and killed Mesa, whose body was found in the trunk of a car parked in Falstaff. Two years later, federal prosecutors indicted members of Butler's drug organization, and police said they were able to gain additional information - apparently, the testimony of Horton. The then-commander of the homicide unit said the drug case was built with an aim of cracking the murder investigation open.

It's not clear how much of the lurid details will come out in trial. Assistant State's Attorney Rita Wistoff-Ito's opening statement didn't get into Dominican drug lords and record labels, instead indicating that the case will turn on forensic evidence and the testimony of Horton, even though he testified that he has no evidence that Butler was involved in the killing beyond a hunch.

Wisthoff-Ito began the Butler trial the day after securing a guilty verdict from a jury in the killing of a 20-year-old Marine.

Horton, appearing in court in a suit with a pink shirt and a breast cancer awareness ribbon, said he attended college, was enlisted in the military, and earned honest paychecks including working in investments and owning a car wash in Mount Vernon and a trucking business.

Drug dealing was something he did on the side to make money, but violence "ain't a part of the game I was involved in." He's now living out of state, awaiting sentencing in the federal drug case.

"I've been involved in drug organizations my whole life, since I was 16," he testified Thursday afternoon. "To come to this point of my life and see something [like that] happen to a person..." he said, trailing off. After his testimony had concluded, Horton told a reporter he's changed his ways.

Posted by Justin Fenton at 5:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Courts and the justice system
        

Baltimore Police had their annual Medal Day ceremony last week, and police this week provided the list of those who were honored. Here they are, in the order they appear in the program:

Others receiving awards included:
Officer Todd Strohman - Medal of Honor
Lt. Scott Mezan - Silver Star, Life Saving Award
Officer Jeffrey Schmitt - Silver Star
Officer Kurt Yourkovik - Life Saving Award

Officer Keith Romans - Medal of Honor, Citation of Valor
Officer Jordan Moore - Silver Star, Citation of Valor
Officer Joseph Wiczulis - Silver Star

Detective Latosha Tinsley - Medal of Honor
Detective Daniel Hersl - Medal of Honor
Detective Michael Rice - Citation of Valor

Deputy Major David Reitz, Sgt. Thomas Schaeffer, Sgt. Mark Ference - Silver Star

Officer Mikel Valerio - Silver Star

Officers Brett Schrack, Chantell Washington, Paul Sinchak, Edward LeMarie - Silver Star

Det. Sgt. William Knorlein, Det. Wayne Jenkins, Det. Craig Jester, Det. Ivo Louvado, Det. Victor Rivera, Det. Keith Gladstone, Det. Paul Geare - Bronze Star

Officers James Howard, Ruganzu Howard, Paul Heffernan - Bronze Star

Officer Daniel Harper - Medal of Valor
Dep. Maj. Dorsey McVicker, Sgt. Kurt Roepcke, Officer Matthew McClenahan - Citation of Valor

Officers Maxwell Anderson, Jonathan Ford, Donald Medtart - Bronze Star

Lt. Gordon Schluderberg - Bronze Star

Sgt. Jeffrey Young, Det. Michael Brinn - Bronze Star

Officer Thomas Robert - Bronze Star

Officer John Potter - Bronze Star

Officer Richard Lyles - Bronze Star

Posted by Justin Fenton at 12:31 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
        

UPDATE NO. 2: Howard County police have apprehended a woman for abducting a friend’s child overnight in Columbia. Tiara Monique-Williams was arrested in Suitland, Md., at the home of a relative around 2 p.m. today, without incident. She will be charged with child abduction.

UPDATE FROM HOWARD COUNTY POLICE: The baby in this case, Kayden King-Gayman, was just located unharmed in Suitland, Md.  She was found at the home of a relative of the suspect, Tiara Monique-Williams. Monique-Williams has not been located, but police are actively searching for her. The relative will not face charges.

Howard County police say a woman watching a 16-month-old baby abducted the child from a Columbia home.

Authorities are searching for the woman, a friend of the baby's mother, who is identified as Tiara Monique-Williams, 23. Police said she was babysitting Kayden King-Gayman, at the mother's house in the 9400 block of Ridge View Drive.

The incident was reported to police around midnight. Howard County police said Monique-Williams, is driving an unknown-type vehicle, and may be in or near Prince George's County, near Washington.

She is described as a black female, 5 feet 2 inches tall and weighing 107 pounds. She has a light brown complexion, long black hair and was last seen wearing it in a pony tail. Police did not have a description of her clothing.

The baby is described as a black female wearing a sleeper garment of unknown color.

Anyone with information should call 911.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 11:32 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)
Categories: Howard County
        

One of the men charged in the fatal stabbing of an active duty Marine at a Northeast Baltimore party was convicted of first-degree murder by a city jury Wednesday, according to a relative of the victim.

Michael Wiggins, 28, had been charged along with two others with killing Pfc. Darius Ray on Jan. 23, 2010 at a house party in the 6900 block of McClean Blvd. Police at the time that Wiggins and Vernon Hadley, also known as Vernon Beverly, and Nicky Woodward were asked to leave the party and a fight broke out. They left and one of them, Wiggins, returned with a knife. 

Ray was only 20 years old, a three-sport athlete at his Montgomery County high school who enlisted in the Marines and became a member of the color guard. He was raised in a foster home, and the Sun wrote a front-page profile of him

"A bittersweet ending," said his sister, Elsie. "Nothing will bring Darius back to us but justice was done. ... Darius was an amazing young man with a beautiful spirit. Mr. Wiggins will never know what he stole from us and the world."

Wiggins' was the last of the three defendants to go to trial. Court records show Hadley pleaded guilty to first-degree assault and was sentenced to 20 years in prison with all but two years suspended, while Woodward pleaded guilty to second-degree assault and will be sentenced in November.

Posted by Justin Fenton at 10:27 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: Northeast Baltimore
        

UPDATE X 2: Police say the shooting was a robbery of a 22-year-old man from Prince George's County who was leaving a friend's house. Follow the link below for more information. 

UPDATE: I just came back from the scene and the shooting actually occurred in the 2600 block of St. Paul St., on the west side of the block and just 50 feet from Stephen Pitcairn was fatally stabbed last year. Someone just put fresh pink and white roses to renew the memorial. Residents reported hearing two gunshots about 5:40 p.m.

Baltimore police were on the scene this morning of a shooting on St. Paul Street in Charles Village. The victim, described as an adult male, was shot once in the leg.

The shooting occurred before 6 a.m. in the 2500 block of St. Paul St., one block south of where Stephen Pitcairn was fatally stabbed in July 2010. The Hopkins researcher had been walking home from Penn Station, talking to his mother on his cell phone, when he was attacked in a robbery.

His killing outraged a city, raised concerns about safety in the neighborhood and helped propel Gregg Bernstein into the top prosecutor's job at the State's Attorney's Office. He used the killing to complain that his predecessor had failed to go after the suspects in previous crimes.

In August, one suspect was found guilty of first-degree murder in Pitcairn's death and faces life in prison when he is sentenced Oct. 21. The Sun's Tricia Bishop reported this past Sunday on the Pitcairn family and how they're coping.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 7:02 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: North Baltimore
        

A top supervisor with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is being reassigned to lead the Baltimore field office as the beleaguered agency attempts to remake itself amid the fallout from a failed gun-tracking operation along the Southwest border called Fast and Furious, the Los Angeles Times reports.

Mark Chait, who ran all of the ATF's field investigations around the country, will take over the Baltimore field office, announced Todd Jones, the U.S. attorney in Minneapolis who was named the acting head of the federal ATF this year. 

Baltimore's Special Agent in Charge, Theresa Stoop, will leave to become assistant director of the Office of Human Resources and Professional Development, the agency said in a news release. Stoop led the Baltimore division since November 2008.

The tactics employed in the Fast and Furious case were part of an evolving change in strategy for the ATF in firearms investigations, according to the Center for Public Integrity, after years of futile efforts to interdict guns from small-time straw buyers with little hope of dismantling major drug trafficking organizations in Mexico. Chait was personally involved in initiating a more aggressive strategy in September 2010 to target cartel networks inside the country and "corrupt" U.S. firearms dealers, but that also involved not intercepting all weapons.

“When we look at the complexities of the organizations working around the border of Mexico, just dealing with the lowest level purchaser, the straw purchaser, doesn’t get you to the organizer, the money people and the key people in that organization to shut that down. We found that if we don’t attack the organization and shut the organization down, they will continue to move guns across the border,” Chait told the Center. “It’s kind of a somewhat common sense approach that if you don’t get to the higher-level folks that are making the calls, then guns will continue to cross the border.”

Chait had also previously led the New Orleans ATF field office for several years, including during Hurricane Katrina, according to news reports. 

Also reassigned was William J. Hoover, the No. 2 man at the ATF, who will become special agent in charge of the agency's Washington field office. Hoover had broad supervision over Fast and Furious, was given routine updates on the "gun walking" operation, and grew concerned over the number of firearms getting into Mexico without any U.S. indictments on this side of the border.

He tried to get it shut down six months after it began in the fall of 2009. But he failed, and the program continued until January of this year. During that time, a U.S. Border Patrol agent was killed in Arizona and two Fast and Furious weapons were recovered at the scene.

Under the program, the ATF allowed the illegal purchase of countless weapons and expected agents to track them to Mexican drug cartels.

Instead, more than 2,000 were lost and many turned up in at least 170 violent crime scenes in Mexico.

The furor has prompted a congressional investigation and a review by the Justice Department's inspector general's office.

Posted by Justin Fenton at 4:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

A Baltimore County police officer was arrested Tuesday night and charged with assaulting his ex-girlfriend and pointing a handgun in her direction, according to authorities and court documents.

Officer Brian Eaton, a 5-year veteran assigned to the Pikesville Precinct, was charged with first and second degree assault, false imprisonment and destruction of property. Police said the alleged attack occurred Sept. 23 in the 1200 block of Halstead Road in Towson.

Police charging documents say that the victim, Shenell Wilkes, arrived at Eaton's house to talk about her new relationship with another man, who a report identifies as another police officer.

Wilkes and Eaton have a daughter together. The report says Wilkes believed the officer had been drinking the night of the attack.

Eaton got into Wilkes car and the two argued, the report says. "Brian grabbed Shenell numerous times by the right arm, causing a large bruise to the front and back," the report says. Police also said the officer squeezed the victim's head into the driver's side window.

The report says the two fought over a cell phone and continued to argue back in the officer's house, where their 13-month-old girl was sleeping. The report says the victim took the child back outside and to her vehicle.

Police said Eaton then drew his handgun from a holster "and pointed the handgun in the direction of Shenell and stated, "Get the ... away from me." The victim got into her car and drove off.

Police said in a statement that Eaton has been suspended and his gun taken away. He has been freed on $50,000 bail.  

Posted by Peter Hermann at 1:26 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: Baltimore County
        

Police today said that a 52-year-old musician was sitting on his bed in his room when he was fatally shot Sunday night by a city patrol officer after refusing to drop a weapon that turned out to be a pellet gun.

The agency identified the officer as Joseph Schanamann, a four year veteran who has been involved in one prior shooting - in 2009, when he shot a police dog that attacked him, according to reports at the time. Schanamann is on routine administrative suspension as detectives investigate the shooting.

There's been an outpouring of grief among friends of victim Steve Mach, stretching from Baltimore to New York City, where he worked for years as a lighting tech at the famed CBGB's rock club. Before that, he played in a few glam rock bands, including a local group called The Vamps.

"It's a shock to us all," said Jackie Luther, who worked with Mach at CBGB. "He was a very gentle person. I can't see this happening - it's very out of character." 

Luther said Mach had moved back to Baltimore a few years ago after the death of his mother. He was an animal activist who worked with BARCS, the South Baltimore animal rescue shelter, and owned several cats, she said. He did not have a criminal record here. 

Police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said officers were called to Mach's home in the 3600 block of St. Victor St. after his roommate called police to report that Mach was armed and said he was fearful for his own safety. Officers entered the home and went upstairs, where they found Mach sitting on his bed. The officers demanded that he drop a weapon he was holding - police describe it as a pellet gun that resembled a .45 caliber handgun - and fired at least one shot when he refused to comply.

"You have to follow police commands, especially when you're holding a weapon in your hands," Guglielmi said. 

Friends have scheduled a candlelight vigil for Mach tonight (Wednesday) in front of his home. 

Posted by Justin Fenton at 1:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (10)
Categories: Police shootings, South Baltimore
        

People seem to love lists that rank cities - everything from best looking to most caffeinated - and the media love to create them. Forbes is out today with a list ranking the "Most Dangerous Cities in America," and came up with a formula that considers four categories of crime and uses metropolitan areas.

Their findings? Well, Detroit is still No. 1. But some cities that have the top murder rates in the country - New Orleans, St. Louis and Baltimore - which are 1, 3, and 4, ahead of Detroit - aren't so violent using this methodology, which Forbes explains here:

To compile our list of America’s most dangerous cities, we used the FBI’s uniform crime report for 2010, which tallies crime data for each of the country’s metropolitan statistical areas, regions that usually consist of a large city and its suburbs or clusters of closely linked smaller cities, and metropolitan divisions, which are core areas within some of the larger MSAs. Because small fluctuations in crime numbers can produce outsize jumps in rates in smaller metropolitan areas, we looked at MSAs with a population of 200,000 or more. We used the FBI's numbers for four categories of violent crimes: murder and non-negligent manslaughter; forcible rape; robbery; and aggravated assault.

1. Detroit

2. Memphis

3. Springfield, Ill.

4. Flint, Mich.

5. Anchorage, Alaska

6. Lubbock, Tex. 

7. Stockton, Calif.

8. Tallahassee, Fla.

9. Las Vegas

10. Rockford, Ill. 

Posted by Justin Fenton at 12:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Police say a 20-year-old man reported to have been shot in the legs in South Baltimore's Brooklyn neighborhood on Monday afternoon died from his injuries.

Few details were available. Police said the victim, identified as Maricus Kyle Perkins, was found in the 900 block of Herndon Ct. at about 1:45 p.m. suffering from multiple gunshot wounds to his lower body. He was taken to Maryland Shock Trauma Center, where he died at 2:25 p.m. Perkins' last known address was in the 300 block of Orchard Ave. 

Police didn't have a suspect or motives but said Perkins was on probation at the time of his death, and court records show he had been accused of being involved in gun violence, including several counts of attempted murder for which he was found not guilty in 2010.

Perkins' killing is the second in the 900 block of Herndon Ct., which is in the Brooklyn Homes housing development, in the past three months. In late July, 18-year-old Marcus Harvell was fatally shot in the same block where Perkins was discovered Monday. 

Police also identified as the man fatally shot Sept. 28 in the 2200 block of Garrison Blvd. as 45-year-old Dwight Montgomery. That case remains open; the past 17 killings in Baltimore are unsolved.

Posted by Justin Fenton at 7:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (12)
Categories: South Baltimore
        

Members of the Baltimore Police Department and the State's Attorney's Office are being honored tonight in Washington DC by the Anti-Defamation League for their work investigating and prosecuting three people who assaulted a 76-year-old man in a 2009 hate crime.

The defendants - two of them juveniles - were convicted of attacking James Privott with a hammer as he packed up his car after a late-night fishing outing on Aug. 18, 2009 at Fort Armistead Park. Calvin E. Lockner, a self-professed white supremacist, was sentenced to 31 years in prison for his role in the attack; 19-year-old Zachary Watson was sentenced to 85 years in prison with all but 10 years suspended, while Emmanuel Miller, who was 17, was sent to a reform school for juvenile delinquents.

The Anti-Defamation League said in a news release that the city officers and prosecutors will be honored at the group's ADL SHIELD awards, created in 2010 to honor law enforcement "for protecting the American people from hate crimes and domestic and international terrorism." 

Those to be honored were Sgt. Kathleen Jackson and Detective Steven McDonnell, and Assistant State's Attorneys Michelle Martin and Katie O'Hara. 

"Through these awards, we hope to increase public awareness of the dedication and values of the men and women of law enforcement," said Elise Jarvis, ADL's Associate Director for Law Enforcement Outreach. "They transform the principles of our democracy into a reality. They can never be thanked enough for their service."

Posted by Justin Fenton at 6:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

So far, Occupy Baltimore, the Occupy Wall Street knock-off, looks nothing like New York.

Baltimore's so-far tamer version at McKeldin Park at the Inner Harbor attracted up to 50 protesters, not the hundreds or even thousands that have showed in New York. And Baltimore police, at least on the first day, took it all in stride.

A few motorcycle cops sometimes buzzed through the brick plaza, the helicopter circled but didn't hover long, and at most three police commanders stood casually on the other side of the square,  watching but doing nothing much else. The picture above was taken by The Sun's Amy Davis.

Yes, the police commanders in Baltimore wear white shirts (see picture), just like in New York, but we didn't have an incident here like they did there, where a deputy chief used pepper spray on a woman already fenced in by officers.

The New York Times reported Monday that the "white shirts," as they are called there, had taken on the "enforcer role" and were on the front lines instead of in the back supervising. New York police have arrested hundreds, drawing criticism that the cops were trying to prevent instead of protect the demonstrators.

Read how Baltimore police handled the first day:

On Monday in Baltimore, Police Maj. Anthony Brown, head of the tactical unit, met with one of the protest leaders, Mark McGuire. "We're here to make it safe," Brown told him. "Safety is our number one concern. And whatever we can do to help you, we will do."

McGuire told me: "If the police do what they just said, we're going to have a wonderful event."

Brown told me later: "If they stay within the law, everything will be just fine."

Hours later, another protest leader, David Zimmerman, asked Brown whether they could put up tents to stay overnight and erect tables for computers and scanners. Some of the protesters intend to occupy the square through at least the weekend, and they hope to attract hundreds.

Brown seemed cool to the idea and Officer Thomas H. Lovett III, who was standing next to the major, informed Zimmerman that he would need a permit from recreation and parks. Police appeared to be overlooking a rule that requires a permit for protesters with 25 or more people.

Asked whether police would prevent protesters from remaining overnight, Brown said, "We'll play it by ear." The protesters were to have more meetings Monday night and it appeared that neither side knew exactly what they planned to do.

While police and protesters appeared to be on friendly terms, the protest was smaller than expected, and police kept their presence discrete, not wanting to unnecessarily raise tensions. There was no reason to move the protesters, even as they spread bed sheets on the plaza to make signs, as there was plenty of room of others to walk by.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 6:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)
Categories: Downtown
        

Baltimore police are expanding a program aimed at curbing domestic violence, thanks to a $750,000 federal grant, The Sun's Luke Broadwater reported.

The grant will allow a pilot program, called the Domestic Violence Reduction Initiative, in three police districts — Northeastern, Northern and Southern — to be expanded to include the entire city, said Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake.

"It's a problem that can't be solved by City Hall alone," she said.

The grant would also provide overtime pay for the police department's Family Crimes Unit, which serves warrants and high priority protective orders and meets with victims at their homes. It would also fund a portion of the salary of a city employee who coordinates the program and makes sure officers perform a "lethality assessment" on victims. Officers will also begin conducting a Spanish language version of the lethality assessment.

Read Luke's full story here. 

Posted by Justin Fenton at 3:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: City Hall
        

Baltimore police are investigating another incident in which a resident has reported being robbed by suspects posing as police - at least the fifth such incident in recent months.

Anthony Guglielmi, the Police Department's chief spokesman, said police do not believe one group of people are committing the incidents, which have taken place across the city and involve different suspects. He referred to the latest attack as a "copycat" incident, though stressed that residents be alert and report suspicious activity.

The latest robbery took place in Greektown on Monday night. Police said three men knocked on a door in the 300 block of S. Lehigh St. at about 10:20 p.m. and said that they were police officers. According to the police report, at least one of them was wearing a shirt that had the words "Police" on it.

The victim, identified only as a 24-year-old man, was told to put his hands on the wall, and one of the men began to search him. He removed $1,800 in cash from the victim's back pocket, and the three suspects fled on foot.

The suspects were described as three white males, standing about six feet tall and wearing dark pants and blue latex gloves. The first suspect was further described as having a dark beard, wearing a black knit cap, and weighing about 280 pounds.

In a similar incident reported last week, three men - two white and one black - forced their way into a home in Northwest Baltimore and handcuffed two people while rifling through the home. One the victims was shot in the face.

Posted by Justin Fenton at 3:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)
Categories: Southeast Baltimore
        

Baltimore County police have arrested a man in Monday's shooting near the Social Security Administration headquarters in Woodlawn. The victim was a social security worker on a lunchtime stroll, according to police.

Police said in court charging documents that the victim, Obie Blackmon, was robbed of his cell phone and shot in the arm.

The suspect is identified as Gary Stokes Jr., of the 6700 block of Richardson Road in Gwynn Oak. Police said Stokes has been charged with attempted first-degree murder, first-degree assault, armed robbery and use of a handgun in commission of a felony.
 
He is being held at the Baltimore County Detention Center.

No motive has given by police.

Read more details of the shooting.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 10:31 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)
Categories: Baltimore County
        

Monday evening, a man wanted in a string of burglaries managed to escape from the back of a Baltimore County police car in Towson.

Authorities said he was being returned to the Baltimore County Detention Center when he somehow freed himself of handcuffs and shackles, took off his jumpsuit and broke out the back window of the patrol car.

He jumped out at York and West Roads. It's unclear if the squad car was in traffic or stopped, and whether the officer was inside. Police quickly put out an alert for Vincent Avila, 25. Police found him later on Monday near York and Seminary and got him back in custody.

Police said he is suspected in a string of burglaries. Last week, Baltimore County police put out an alert for residents about a string of burglaries in and around Towson. There have 30 burglaries reported since mid-September in three police precincts. It's unclear whether this suspect is connected to any of them.

Here is that alert from Sgt. Stephen Fink:

Once again we're seeing a spike in our Burglaries particularly in the west & northwest section of Towson along the Falls Rd corridor (Cockeysville & Franklin Pcts are seeing the same trend). 

I'm sending this message out to all of our communities though to once again remind everyone to be vigilant in protecting their neighborhoods. Since mid-September there have been close to thirty (30) burglaries along the Falls Rd area between the three Precincts, in almost all of them entry was made either through an unlocked door or forcing open a locked door and half the time the suspect/s have entered through the front door.

Thus far Burglary Detectives have little information on a possible suspect or vehicle--in one instance someone reported seeing an unknown race Male wearing a blue, puffy jacket and gloves, nothing further--but most have occurred during daylight hours--primarily while residents are at work and school.

What we're asking from our community residents is to once again be sure to always secure your residences, out buildings (sheds, garages, etc), vehicles to best protect your property and please call 9-1-1 anytime you observe a suspicious person, vehicle and/or activity in the area.

If you see an open door or window on a neighbor's house and you know the resident is not presently at home call 9-1-1 immediately so Officers can respond to investigate.  This is not the first time we've called upon the citizenry of Towson to help us eradicate a problem in our community and you've always come through with valuable information that has greatly aided this pursuit, we anticipate great results again as we look to eliminate such behavior once more.

As we get more information I will pass it along but for now we greatly appreciate your support in getting the word out to your residents.

Thank You, Sgt Stephen Fink, PC06 Community Outreach Team

Posted by Peter Hermann at 7:29 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Baltimore County
        

UPDATE: Police have released more details on Sunday's shooting.

Word of the identity of a 52-year-old man shot by city police Sunday night came in an unlikely place - the Facebook page for legendary New York City punk rock venue CBGB's.

On Monday afternoon, the CBGB page displayed a picture (seen at right) accompanied by the caption, "Rest in Peace to Steve Mach. We are so stunned at this tragic loss. You will be missed." Friends said Mach was the man shot by police Sunday night in the Brooklyn neighborhood of South Baltimore.

Police said they had been called to a home in the 3600 block of St. Victor St. for a report of an armed man and saw Mach holding what appeared to be a handgun. When he turned toward the officer, he was shot and wounded. Police later learned he had been holding a pellet gun, and he died at a local hospital.

According to various web sites, Mach was a member of a Baltimore-based glam rock cover band called The Vamps that became popular in the region and did some touring. In the late 80s, he moved to New York City and teamed up with Billy Idol's former drummer, forming a band called Skin N Bones. He also worked at CBGB's, with one site referring to him as "CB's Lighting Magician": "I remember seeing him almost every time I was there," one friend posted on the venue's Facebook page. "He worked at CB's forever. He was a musician, an animal advocate, and a friend," another wrote. The club closed in 2006.

The Vamps had in recent years played reunion shows in the area, including Dec. 10 at the Recher Theater. Mach did not have a criminal record, records show, and police haven't provided additional details on the dispute that led to the shooting.

Posted by Justin Fenton at 12:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (51)
Categories: Police shootings, South Baltimore
        

The "Occupy Wall Street" movement will materialize in Baltimore on Tuesday at the Inner Harbor, according to organizers. In New York, clashes between protesters and police may have helped draw attention to the already well attended event, with top commanders are now under scrutiny for their actions.

Here's what Baltimore Police are saying about Occupy Baltimore, via The Sun's Erik Maza and Jill Rosen:

In Baltimore, police were monitoring social media and news reports for updates on the protest, said spokesman Anthony Guglielmi. He said it wasn't clear if the protesters needed a permit. Police are only concerned that the protesters stay organized and don't disrupt traffic.

He declined to say how many officers would be deployed to the scene. "We will make sure we have resources in place so that it doesn't become a distraction."

We've written in this space before about the tricky free speech restrictions at the Inner Harbor, the subject of an eight-year-old lawsuit:

The American Civil Liberties Union sued the city in federal court in 2003 over what it says are restrictive free-speech rules in what it regards as a public park. Eight years later, the two sides are still engaged in talks meant to clarify how the First Amendment applies to the Inner Harbor.

"We're looking forward to the lawsuit being settled so everyone knows what the rules are," said Laurie Schwartz, the head of the Waterfront Partnership of Baltimore, a group that promotes the harbor, helps to keep it clean and employs security guards.

Posted by Justin Fenton at 10:57 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: Downtown
        

The Supreme Court won’t hear a Maryland man’s argument that the Second Amendment allows him to carry a gun outside of his home for self-defense, the Associated Press reported.

The high court on Monday refused to hear an appeal from Charles F. Williams Jr., who was arrested in 2007 for having his legally-purchased handgun outside his home without a state permit.

The high court has ruled there is a right to keep a gun in the home for protection. But gun advocates say people also have the constitutional right to carry their guns outside the house for self-protection.

Maryland courts say if the Supreme Court agrees with that theory “it will need to say so more plainly.” The high court refused the opportunity on Monday.

The Christian Science Monitor reported that the was being closely followed because it might have set the stage for another potential landmark Second Amendment decision by the high court.

The justices did not explain why they rejected the appeal, but the action does not end the possibility of a gun-rights case reaching the court this term. The Supreme Court is awaiting briefs in at least one other gun case, and several other Second Amendment cases are working their way to the Supreme Court, the Monitor reported.

Posted by Justin Fenton at 9:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

UPDATE: Baltimore police say the victim is 20 years old and that they have the incident classified as an attempted rape. A department spokesman said the man told the victim he had a gun but she didn't see one.

A Johns Hopkins University student was sexually assaulted early Saturday in an alley near campus, according to school officials.

Campus police posted a warning on their website on Monday. They said the attack occurred about 1:20 a.m. in the 3200 block of Lovegrove St., an alley near North Calvert Street in Charles Village.

Few details were available. The school said the student was treated at Union Memorial Hospital and that the attacker was described as a black male between 20 and 30 years old, standing between 6 feet and 6 feet 2 inches tall. He is tall, of a muscular build and was wearing a navy blue or black hoodie.

The incident was first reported on the Baltimore Crime blog. For more information, visit the Johns Hopkins public safety site.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 5:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: North Baltimore
        

A 32-year-old man was found fatally shot early Monday in the Central District's Upton neighborhood, police said.

An officer on routine patrol saw a man lying in the middle of the 500 block of McMechen St at about 12:25 a.m., police said. The man, later identified as that of Anton Ingram, was transported to Maryland Shock Trauma Center, where he was pronounced dead at 3:18 a.m.

Ingram had been shot in the back, and police said they had received no calls to 911 reporting a shooting even though detectives believe that's where the incident occurred.

At right is a picture of Ingram, taken from his Facebook page. 

Posted by Justin Fenton at 3:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: West Baltimore
        

UPDATED 2:14 p.m. Baltimore County police are now saying that the victim works at the Social Security Administration and was taking a stroll on his lunch break when the robbery attempt and shooting occurred.  That new information comes from Det. Cathy Batton, a spokeswoman for the department. Batton said the victim has non-life-threatening injuries.

UPDATED at 1:15 p.m. Police are now saying that the shooting was part of a robbery in the woods near the SSA, and not on the campus. Baltimore County police department spokeswoman Elise Armacost said the victim was shot on Walden Circle, but was able to walk to Parallel Road, where he collapsed. Parallel Road is near the entrance to the SSA campus, but Armacost said, "It has nothing to do with the Social Security Administration."

From Baltimore County Police: 

Baltimore County Police are on the scene of a shooting in the woods near Walden Circle. This is a street robbery and did not occur on the campus of the Social Security Administration. SSA was notified because the suspect has not yet been apprehended.

The call was dispatched at 11:43 a.m. The location was Woodlawn Drive and Parallel Road.

The victim, and adult male, has suffered non life-threatening injuries and will be transported to Sinai.

Earlier post: Baltimore County police have confirmed reports that there has been a shooting on the campus of in the woods near the Social Security Administration in Woodlawn.

Elise Armacost, a spokeswoman for the Baltimore County Police Department, said officials are still trying to determine precisely what happened, where it occurred and whether it had anything to do with Social Security. 

An email sent by Social Security officials to staff said the campus is on lock-down and that the gunman apparently has fled the area "and is some distance away."

We'll update the story as more details become available. 

Posted by Peter Hermann at 1:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)
Categories: Baltimore County, Breaking news
        

Here's video from Friday's charity Police vs. Firefighter mixed martial arts cage fight, shot by The Sun's Kevin Richardson, who writes about mixed martial arts at the Stomping Grounds blog. The city firefighters came out on top in the event, which will donate some of its proceeds to injured police Officer Teresa Rigby.

The highlight had to be the entrance by homicide detective Julian Min, who was rolled out in a glittery suit while standing inside an enormous Chinese food container. Min told me his initial plan was to come out in an egg like Lady Gaga. With an entrance like that, you almost have to win, and Min did, defeating his opponent by submission.

Posted by Justin Fenton at 12:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Baltimore County police are investigating a spate of car thefts and attempted car thefts in in the Wilkens area. Police say the first was reported Aug. 18, and the latest Sept. 27.

The suspects are targeting Doge, Chrysler and Jeeps built between 1994 and 2006. Mos are being taken between 1 a.m. and 4 a.m., and most have been found abandon, damaged or crashed before owners even get a chance to report them stolen.

Here is a map of the incidents provided by the police. Police say they have no suspects. Here are some tips, and a tip line for people with cars:  

Posted by Peter Hermann at 12:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Baltimore County
        

Remember Gerard Mungo Jr.?

He's the 7-year-old who was arrested four years ago while sitting on an idling dirt bike in front of his East Baltimore rowhouse. Police cuffed the child, took him to a station and shackled him to a bench before taking him to juvenile detention.

The case attracted national attention, was debated in the media, earned a rebuke and an apology to the family from the mayor and a hefty lawsuit by the boy's family. A jury last year awarded the parents nothing, even though the judge found two officers had illegally arrested the boy because they didn't witness the incident.

Gerard is at left with his mother in this picture taken by The Sun's Kenneth K. Lam.

The family appealed arguing a Baltimore judge improperly moved the trial out of the city, citing negative publicity against the police officers, and that they couldn't get a fair trial in Howard County because the racial mix is far lower than in the city.

Maryland's second-highest court, the Court of Special Appeals, rejected both arguments in an opinion issued Friday. The court ruled that moving the proceedings to Howard was proper, and that the family got a fair trial.

Read the court's full opinion here.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 11:24 AM | Permalink | Comments (6)
Categories: Courts and the justice system, East Baltimore, Howard County
        

The man charged last week with setting a three-alarm fire at a Northwest Baltimore tire store was a longtime employee who was burned in the incident, court documents show.

Jason Hicks, 35, was charged with first-degree arson after he told investigators that he flicked a lighter near a brush being used by a co-worker and which was covered in tar and gasoline, court records show. That ignited a bucket of gasoline, which Hicks said he tried to take outside until it started to burn him. When he dropped the bucket, the back area of the shop went up in flames, police said.

The fire caused an estimated $170,000 in damage and took more than a day to contain. As of Monday morning, Hicks was being held on $150,000 bond. 

Records show that Hicks and another employee, Derrick Powell, were painting stacks of tires with a mixture of tar and gasoline to "make them look shiny."  Hicks said that Powell took a brush that he had been using, and that he twice told Powell he was using his brush, according to charging documents. He then took a lighter out of his pocket and flicked it at the brush, causing it to ignite, records show.

Hicks initially told police that he had been smoking a cigarette, and later acknowledged that he had not been truthful after detectives spoke to other employees, records show. He was hospitalized with second-degree burns to his right arm from the elbow down to his fingers.

Posted by Justin Fenton at 10:40 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Northwest Baltimore
        

Over the weekend, we reported on how city overtime spending has increased sharply since Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake took office, which officials say coincides with an increase in staffing vacancies.

Efforts to rein in overtime had been a point of pride for police, who contend they have been reducing crime on a leaner budget. Officials projected in January 2010 that they would spend just $14.2 million on overtime, according to figures presented to Rawlings-Blake's transition committee as she prepared to move into mayor's office.

But the department went on to spend $16.7 million that year, a figure that jumped to $23 million the next fiscal year. In the first two months of the current fiscal year, police have spent $5.1 million on overtime, compared with $3.7 million during the same time last year.

City officials said that officers are working more overtime hours because of staffing shortages; the department has nearly 200 vacancies among its sworn strength of about 3,100 officers. In addition to the vacancies, other officers are on medical leave or have been suspended.

"There's a clear correlation between overtime spending and vacancies," Goldstein said.

But even with the increased overtime spending, police officers report that some districts remain short-staffed. And police union President Robert F. Cherry said the rising use of overtime shows the city "doesn't have a long-term plan." He has criticized Rawlings-Blake's proposal to hire hundreds of additional officers, saying he favors a redeployment of existing resources and salary increases for officers already on the payroll.

It was four weeks ago that The Sun asked City Hall for figures on overtime spending for police, after hearing rumblings that spending had increased significantly. I considered this a simple request, given that the city uses an internationally renowned program called "CitiStat" that involves agencies on a biweekly basis feeding in data so officials can monitor spending and efficiency.

The state's Public Information Act technically allows the city to provide data within 30 days, and we were often reminded of this when we called for updates. The Attorney General's Office has this to say on the topic:

"A custodian should not wait the full 30 days to allow or deny access to a record if that amount of time is not needed to respond.  If access is to be granted, the record should be produced for inspection and copying promptly after the written request is evaluated."

Two sources were able to pass along the data within two days, though officials warned me not to use it because it was "not complete" as it included grant funding and reimbursable overtime. That is, the total number being tracked is not city general fund - or taxpayer - spending, but all payroll expenditures in the "overtime" classification, including money that comes from state and federal grants or is paid back by a private or other government agency. They wanted to make sure data that we got was general fund spending only, which is the number we've used when reporting on this topic over the years.

So what did city officials ultimately come up with, 29 days later? Well, the monthly data was the exact same information that they had warned me not to use. They said they were unable to extract out the grant funds and reimbursable money. That's fine, but that's what I had all along. 

What they did come through with was the total general fund overtime spending for fiscal year 2011 and 2010. This was a necessary figure to have, as projections a year earlier had been lower than what it ended up being. In order to compare year over year increases, we needed to compare like data sets. Still, I wasn't able to get a clear response for why the city didn't have annual general fund spending figures offhand and required weeks to get them.

The closest thing to a response was that the CitiStat data, which includes grants and reimbursables, is intended to "provide a thumbnail snapshot of where you are in a given time. With the frequency of our internal meetings, you're watching a barometer, and trying to stay within a range on the barometer."

Meanwhile, the information provided by the sources broke down spending by unit, district and shift:

According to more detailed overtime data provided to The Sun by police sources, each district has spent more than $50,000 in overtime each two-week pay period so far this fiscal year, with the exception of the Southeastern District. The Central, Eastern and Southern have spent in excess of $80,000 in recent pay periods.

In 2007, with police overtime spending soaring and under a directive from Dixon, commanders limited overtime spending for each of the city's nine police districts to $30,000 per pay period.

The Southeastern District spent $165,156 in overtime in July and August, far below the average of the nine districts, which was $268,680.

"The demand in my district for police officers has been increasing exponentially," said Kraft, the Southeast Baltimore councilman.

The records show the department's Violent Crime Impact section, which is composed of plainclothes officers working in the city's most violent areas, has received $570,800 in overtime pay this fiscal year, while the Homeland Security Division has received $310,762. The Detective Division received $1.18 million, including $268,500 to the homicide unit and $41,800 to the citywide robbery unit.

Posted by Justin Fenton at 10:07 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: City Hall, Top brass
        

UPDATE, 12:45 P.M. - Police say the victim, a 52-year-old who has not yet been identified, died from his injuries. Police also say the weapon he was holding was a pellet gun that looked like a .45 caliber handgun.

Baltimore police officers, responding to a call for a man armed with a gun inside a house in Brooklyn, shot and critically wounded the suspect Sunday night. Here is an account from The Sun:

Police received a call shortly before 9 p.m. from a person inside a house in the 3600 block of St. Victor Street in the Southern District, saying that another person in the house was armed, sand police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi. He said patrol officers entered the house and found an armed man between 40 and 50 years old and asked him multiple times to put down his weapon.

"He turned and faced police with a weapon in his hand and was fired upon," said Guglielmi, who said at least one officer fired. He did not know how many officers had responded to the call.

The man was taken to Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center in critical condition, Guglielmi said. Homicide detectives are investigating, a practice that is standard in police-involved shootings, Guglielmi said.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 7:32 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: Police shootings, South Baltimore