Thursday, September 13, 2007

September 13

Carl Lackl's mom, Marge Shipley, talks to the Sun, and it sounds like the SA's office is confirming (via not exactly denying) her shocking allegations that her son was informed that his life was in danger with a form letter, which Shipley says Lackl never recieved.

Brandon Green, 22, and Jerome Whitaker, 23, were arrested and charged with the murder of Christopher Clarke, killed March 13 in the 3100 block of Cliftmont Ave. Clarke was apparently just walking by when the two black rednecks got into a gunfight. Rodricks deems Clarke's death an example of "generational suicide" (huh?).

Also, two men, ages 19 and 21, were shot about 2 p.m. yesterday in the 4000 block of Franklin St. and a man, 19, was sitting on the front porch of a house in the 600 block of McCabe Ave. about 11:45 p.m. Tuesday when an unknown man standing across the street shot him in the left leg.

Me Want Money Woman!
On September 3, "man asked woman for money after she parked car, then punched her in the face and stole the car."
If I lived in Waverly, I would be PO'd to hear about this 10 days later. Shouldn't the whole point of the local news be to inform residents about random stuff like this so they can be wary? Or should every city resident just get a flier when they move in to keep on the fridge:
Welcome to Baltimore! Thanks for buying here!
Whether your street is lined with trees or rat corpses, there are some risks that all city residents should be aware of:
  • People who approach your car
  • People who knock on your door
  • Testifying in criminal trials
  • Calling police about drug dealing on your street
  • Males who show interest in your children
  • Parking your car on the street
  • Walking or driving near people who are arguing
  • Opening the windows in your car or home
  • Purchasing narcotics
  • You'll find that by simply avoiding these risks, you can have a safe and pleasant Baltimore living experience! Enjoy your new home!
    Arrested Peoples
    A man suspected of an attempted armed robbery at West North Avenue and Ashburton Street about noon yesterday was captured after he fired at least one shot at pursuing police. No officers were hit and none returned fire. And two men were shot in unrelated incidents, one in the first block of N. Ellamont St. at about 2:15 a.m., another in the 2800 block of E. Federal St. in East Baltimore. Their names and conditions are not known.

    More on George Robert Chaney, the murderer who was out enjoying a suspended sentence when he robbed a bank: "Chaney pleaded guilty in April [of what year it doesn't say... this year? 1993?] to second-degree murder for the 1993 killing of Mary Ann Fisher, who was found strangled with a telephone cord under her bed in the Perkins Homes public housing project in Southeast Baltimore."

    Darrell Tyrone Avery, 22, was arrested for murdering Diekia T. Davis, 21, sometime between September 8 -10 in the Comfort Inn in Catonsville. Police are asking anyone who may have seen anything suspicious there to call detectives.

    Perverts:
    "William Edward Wray, II, age 50, of Crespatown, Maryland, pleaded guilty [Sept. 12] to two counts of sexually exploiting a minor to produce child pornography."

    Roderick Gene Parks, age 42, of Berlin, Maryland, was sentenced to 30 years in prison Sept. 12 followed by a lifetime of supervised release for sexually exploiting a minor to produce child pornography. What worse, Parks has AIDS and the boy must now have yearly HIV tests.

    In PGC, Jafet Hernandez got life for raping a woman as she was on her way home from a Riverdale park bus stop.

    31 comments:

    Sean said...

    Rodricks has a very depressing piece about the murder of Christopher Clarke.

    ppatin said...

    The Carl Lackl case makes me want to scream. The murder of a witness should be a death penalty offense, and not just for the triggerman either. Everyone involved in the crime should fry. The state police should also be required to issue a concealed carry permit to anyone who's testifying in a criminal trial and doesn't have a criminal record.

    ppatin said...

    If a rapist infects his victim with HIV he should be charged with first degree murder.

    ppatin said...

    Oh, in case anyone is still following the sad story of Zach Sowers it's been three months since he was beaten, and he's still in a coma. According to the website about him he isn't even well enough to be in rehab right now. I'm pretty sure you can guess what penalty I believe his attackers should face...

    taotechuck said...

    Open question to the commentors:

    Can Lackl's family file a civil (or even criminal) suit against any facet of the city government? If not, why not?

    If we can't vote our idiots out of office, can we sue them out?

    burgersub said...

    ppatin, out of curiosity, do you think the 15 year old should get the chair too?

    (i know they don't use the chair anymore, i just think it's a fun phrase to say)

    ppatin said...

    "ppatin, out of curiosity, do you think the 15 year old should get the chair too?"

    If he beat a man so badly that he'll probably be a human vegetable for the rest of his life? Absolutely yes.

    ppatin said...

    "Can Lackl's family file a civil (or even criminal) suit against any facet of the city government? If not, why not?"

    I'm guessing almost certainly not. Doesn't sovereign immunity make it essentially impossible to sue the government over this sort of a case? As for filing a criminal case, only the state's attorney's office (or I suppose the state prosecutor) can do that.

    Emptyman said...

    Given that over 90% of homicide victims in the city have felony arrest records, the No. 1 tip for new arrivals in the city is:

    DON'T BE A FELON, HON.

    By taking that simple step, you vastly decrease the statistical likelihood of being killed. If you add to that precaution the added step of not dating, marrying, or having children with a violent sociopath, you reduce your odds even farther.

    ppatin said...

    Unfortunately that advice wouldn't have been very useful for Christopher Clarke or Zach Sowers.

    badfish said...

    I'm currently living in New York but I grew up and lived in Towson til I graduated college. I have since worked as a paralegal at the Manhattan DA, and from what I know, at least in NYC, First Degree Murder Charges only result from two things: killing a cop or having an aggravated element as part of a second degree charge (although first degree charges are rarely pursued in the latter cases). What is the deal in Baltimore? Also, there are a lot of programs up here where gun charges result in a Federal case and thus upon conviction, federal time/no parole/etc. Again, does this exist in Bmore? Just curious.

    Also, ppatin, i agree on the c.c. permits. They are impossible to get a hold of here, but I wouldn't walk through most of baltimore without something to defend myself.

    ppatin said...

    "Also, there are a lot of programs up here where gun charges result in a Federal case and thus upon conviction, federal time/no parole/etc. Again, does this exist in Bmore? Just curious."

    The Maryland US Attorney's office tries their best with Project Exile, but they don't have the resources to go after every thug with a gun. They try to identify the worst offenders and nail them, but most felon in posession cases don't result in a federal prosecution. Still, Rod Rosenstein seems to be doing a pretty good job, hell of a lot better than his worthless predecessor DiBaggio.

    Dopple said...

    The George Robert Chaney story makes me want to scream! Seven bank robberies a murder in 1979 and another in 1993…of which he was apparently just recently held accountable and judge Welch lets him walk…because he was in a wheelchair and had to use oxygen!

    It’s like a bad movie where a person puts on a neck brace in the hallway outside of court to fein an injury. It’s cartonish…. It's unbelievable.

    ppatin said...

    "at least in NYC, First Degree Murder Charges only result from two things: killing a cop or having an aggravated element as part of a second degree charge (although first degree charges are rarely pursued in the latter cases). What is the deal in Baltimore?"

    According to Wikipedia:
    Maryland Code Criminal Law § 2-201 defines murder in the first degree as:

    * a deliberate, premeditated, and willful killing
    * committed by lying in wait
    * committed by poison
    * committed in the perpetration of or an attempt to perpetrate arson, burglary, carjacking, escape from prison, kidnapping, mayhem, rape, robbery, sexual offense, sodomy, bomb-making
    * if they willfully, deliberately, and with premeditation intended the death of a law enforcement officer

    Of course, limited resources for prosecution mean that many first degree murder cases are later pled down to something less serious, but I would imagine that they initially always charge a murderer with the most serious crime they can.

    ppatin said...

    Dopple, I've said before that judges need to have zero discretion when sentencing violent felons. There should be tough mandatory sentences w/o the chance for parole, and a judge shouldn't be able to suspend a single day of a prison term. If you're sentenced to ten years you should spend the next decade in prison, no exceptions. I don't care how many times you apologize, or if you say you found Jesus/Allah/Buddha while in prison. Deciding that you're sorry AFTER you commit the crime is too damned late.

    Dopple said...

    Judge Welch's term is up in 2009. I think the election will be in 2010...who here has a long memory?

    burgersub said...

    i was talking about the 15 year old that pulled the trigger in the lackl case, but i guess that doesn't change your answer.

    ppatin said...

    Nope, it doesn't.

    Anonymous said...

    Clearly, the people who post to this blog are not part of the solution in baltimore...

    Can't you see? Dixon has it right - we need a holistic approach to crime! Families being rebuilt, good after school programs... crappy statues in front of penn station! all of this will keep crime from happening!

    ... Sorry - I'm still recovering from the results of 9/11/07.

    Unknown said...

    Hey, you can't blame Dixon for that crappy statue! Wasn't that on O'Malley's Watch?

    And God, it is a crappy statue...

    TJ said...

    Well, since the Borofsky "Male/Female" statue was paid for completely by the privately funded Municipal Arts Society of Baltimore, blame them.

    John Galt said...

    I know we don't give the chair anymore, but wqe could hit them with it.

    Or with the crappy statue.

    On minimum sentencing, I have previously posted studies from CA data which show its deterrent effect.

    On the City's liability for Lackl's murder, the Supreme Court has found that police are not responsible for a murder violating an ex parte order unless the hazard is immediate.

    Gor said...

    I am so happy that the senseless murder of Christopher Clarke may see some justice.

    If this city has any shame left in it, it should spent it on it's failure of providing just the basic amount of safety for people like him.

    ppatin said...

    "I know we don't give the chair anymore, but wqe could hit them with it."

    Actually Tennessee fried a guy on Wednesday night.

    Maurice Bradbury said...

    Them southerners'll fry up anything!

    Anonymous said...

    Take that, cruel and unusual punishment!

    I heard about that story on the radio - on the day of the execution, they asked the guy if he had any last words and the guy says, "Yes, I do..." and doesn't say anything...

    ... Eventually, they became aware of his ruse and fried him.

    ppatin said...

    My favorite electric chair story is about a guy whose last name was French. When they asked him if he wanted to make a final statement he said something along the lines of "how's this for tomorrow's headline? French fries." I'll have to check to see if that one's an urban myth.

    kisha said...

    I WANT TO START A WALK TO CITY HALL IN ORDER FOR THEM TO HELP GET THE GUNS OFF THE STREET MY COUSIN MICHEAL FREEMON AND MY FIANCE AND FATHER OF MY 2 SONS WAS MURDERED IN BALTIMORE CITY AND WE NEED TO GET INVOLVED,email me at lakishawaddell@yahoo.com

    kisha said...

    Baltimore is doomed my sons dad WAYNE G WHITE was killed and i am angry at the city the guy who did it had a warrent for his arrest why was he on the streets I want to start A WALK TO CITY HALLIN ORDER FOR HER TO GET OFF HER BUTT AND HELP GET THE GUNS OFF THE STREET IF U WANT TO HELP START IT PLEASE EMAIL ME AT lakishawaddell@yahoo.com

    Anonymous said...

    People make mistakes. Wheather their criminals or what they are human. And the comments affect the family. Let them do their time who are u to say anythang. To kia family my heart goes out to u for your lost. Things never shoulda turned out this way. Darrell is family and never will our backs by turned on him. Wish we could go back and change it. Both families are severly damaged.* missing you relly*

    Anonymous said...

    Miss u kia love u cousin still don't understand why he did that shit to u i miss u we all do....i can just leave it up in god hands but rell will suffer real talk his bitch ass what goes round comes around anyway..s.i.p...kia and stay pretty for us love u