November 3

A Baltimore City jury convicted Martinez Brown, 26, for the first-degree murder of Kelvin Knight, 18. The jury also convicted Brown of use of a handgun in the commission of a crime of violence. In the early morning hours of December 7, 2003 the victim, Kelvin Knight, was ordering take-out from New Land Chinese Carry Out at the corner of Montford and Biddle Streets in East Baltimore when he observed Brown arguing with a woman. Upon hearing the victim laugh, Brown turned to the victim and said, "Do you think I am playing?" He then pulled out a handgun, put it to the victim's forehead, and shot him three times in the head and once in the chest. As Brown ran from the scene after the murder, an eyewitness disabled him by striking him with his car, thereby allowing police to arrest him at the scene. Another eyewitness identified him at the scene.The jury returned its verdicts late yesterday after deliberating for approximately 90 minutes and hearing three days of testimony. Judge Wanda K. Heard ordered a pre-sentencing investigation and scheduled sentencing for January 18, 2006.

An unidentified man in his 20's was shot in the Park Heights area last night.

In Towson, 21-year-old T.U. student Benjamin R. Birch was arrested for stabbing 19-year-old Basha Jordan outside of a Halloween party.

The trial of Joseph DiAngelo, 51, for first-degree assault, witness intimidation and conspiracy to commit first-degree assault is scheduled to begin at 9:30 tomorrow morning before Judge Shirley M. Watts. The Baltimore City Grand Jury indicted DiAngelo April 5. Court documents allege DiAngelo hired two individuals to conduct a home invasion/assault on a witness in a pending assault case. The hired individuals entered the home armed with table legs to assault the victim/witness, who killed one of the individuals. The other, surviving home-invading assaulter, William Morton, pled guilty in September to burglary.

More on the first-day murder mistrial of Frank Rainey Jr.: apparently a police witness testified that Rainey said he had killed three other people (which is considered evidence of previous crimes and is, thus, inadmissible).

City Officers Angela Choi and Michael Maurice were assaulted during a car stop in the Western and treated at Shock Trauma for a broken arm apiece. Also at Shock Trauma last night was Frederick officer Nicole Swailes, injured when a traffic accident when a perp sped through a red light.

Gary Mitchell, 34, got nine years and two months for robbing a Wachovia bank branch in Catonsville.

The attempted murder, armed robbery trials of Dale Fauntleroy, 21, is scheduled to begin 9:30 tomorrow morning before Judge Watts, 406 Mitchell Courthouse. Fauntleroy's claim to fame is being shot twice by police in one year. Said Police Spokesman Matt Jablow to the Sun last year: "For any other city and for any other criminal justice system, this would be unbelievable. For ours, unfortunately, it's not."

As Governor Ehrlich goes to Capitol Hill to crow about Maryland's treatment for non-violent drug offenders, there's a two-year wait list for treatment. Says a judge, "most judges have come to the conclusion that ordering the [state health] department to obtain treatment is an exercise in futility." Adds a puzzled public defender, "I'm not sure if [Ehrlich] is aware that a program in his administration is not working."

Just before his scheduled trial was to begin, Darryll Purefoy, 34, of Liberty Road in Randallstown, pled guilty to sexual child abuse, second-degree rape and second-degree sexual child abuse. Judge Shirley M. Watts sentenced Purefoy to 15 years in prison, consecutive to a prison term he is already serving from a conviction in Baltimore County.

At a hearing today Stanley Short, 46, pled guilty to sexual abuse of a minor and third-degree sex offense before Judge Watts.
Watts sentenced Short to 15 years suspend all but five years for sexual abuse of minor and five years for a third-degree sex offense, concurrent. Short also received five years' probation. On July 16 Short sexually abused a nine-year-old child.

In Allegheny County, Steve Garrison, 53, was arrested for more than 40 counts of possessing child pornography.

Care for Some Torts? Dept.:
At least nine people have been charged with accounting fraud at U.S. Foodservice.

Judge Motz: if you own a bar and your bouncer kicks out some drunk chick and she sues you, your insurance company doesn't have to pay for it.