Beers, babies, brawls and brains

Parents are fighting mad at Chuck E. Bleeds.

Word of advice to school police officers: if your car gets dinged, keep your mouth shut

Warning to FB fans, taking an IQ test may prove costly

"This shit ain't right, yo"

What happened to Anna Ditkoff at Central Booking.
Six years later, bright new idea: "Priority Warrents"

No-knock raid on the wrong house leaves chemist doorless (and with a bulk trash ticket)

Guerrilla profiles, part II: "Uncle Rudy"

There's a "suspicious package" at the Towson District Court

Media blabber: A one-day byline strike at the Sun to protest layoffs (why not strike for real?)

Detectives Suspended

Reports Luke Broadwater, "Baltimore police have suspended two detectives after they allegedly dropped off a city juvenile in Howard County, leaving him stranded Monday night."

Gathering Threats

Insane! Murder defendant threatens a witness -- in front of the jury! Update: unshockingly, Lance was found guilty.

The Ink has last week's four homicides

Justin Fenton reports that Sherman Anderson, 32, accused in the murder of Qonta Waddell, has been arrested 37 times, "never serving significant jail time."

IV: a member of MS-13 credibly threatened the life of a Southeast district officer

Court docs: Youth mentor also a Black Guerrilla Family leader

Officer Tommy Saunders wants his trial moved out of the city

Another Reason to Hate Bank of America

They've always charged the worst fees in the biz and had a rep for stiffing employees, and now the world knows it's the suckiest bank currently sucking.
Now the amoral avatar known as "the bank" "says" it fingered the wrong perp by circulating pix of Hot Topic girl, whose pic was circulated after she was accused of grifting a senior citizen.
Deleting posts now!
Sorry Hot Topic girl!
Note to self: you can't overuse the word "allegedly"

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A 48-year-old man was found shot in a Waverly back yard.

Local hero

WMAR's Pete O'Neal is Baltimore's only overnight videographer, and the only one who works weekends.
Here's his coverage of last night's shooting of a 15-year-old who tried to rob an officer (on the right).

Byers spared!

Story here from Justin Fenton.
Of the TV stations, WJZ has the best coverage of this story, with interviews of Lackl's mom, Rod Rosenstein, and Byers' relatives.
WBAL's John Sherman reports Byers will be shipped to Terre Haute. No other source reports this, though Rod Rosenstein says "before we finish lunch today, Mr. Byers will be gone from Maryland."

Tooth-grinder of the day: Byers "was a loving father, just like Carl Lackl."
Comments from Hermann

Sun archive page of the Byers trial.

Judge: Underpaid Lawyer is No Excuse

"Maryland pays private defense lawyers assigned to capital cases far too little, but that’s no reason to prevent prosecutors from seeking the death penalty, an Anne Arundel County judge has ruled" in the case of one of the men accused of murdering correctional officer David W. McGuinn.

Terry Love's lawyer plans to sue prosecutors for defamation

CP: Live Entertainment Bill Gutted

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Last night's shooting on Milton Ave. proved fatal, the victim was named as William Jones, 26; Sunday morning, a 25-year-old man was shot in the 3300 block of Frederick Ave.

Tweet

Around 8:15-- "SHOOTING: Reported @ 4050 Elmora Ave-Police investigating crime scene, avoid area."

Two women robbed a man and hammered him in the face on Gough St last Thursday

Hermann opines that the Harbor Teen Riot of Saturday before last should have been Twittered.

Tweet, tweet

Tweet, tweet

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SHOOTING: Reported @ 823 N.Milton Ave-Adult male shot multiple times. Police investigating [above]

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STABBING: reported at 1am @ 4700 NAVARRO, 2 juveniles stabbed, suspect arrested by BPD.

Bloodbaths, Real and Imagined

@ 3 p.m. Police tweet "SHOOTING: Reported @ S. MONROE ST."

Jurors are due to begin death penalty deliberations in the Byers case today

CP: "Nathan "Bodie" Barksdale and Kenny Jackson tell their versions of Baltimore's street life in The Baltimore Chronicles: Legends of the Unwired"

Governing Magazine has a not-very-flattering piece on Baltimore's police cameras (from the BPD's own Facebook page, oddly enough)

IV covers HarfCo's homicide, which the victim claims was in self-defense

A knee-slappin* tale from the DOJ of a 40-chugging felon who got 15 years
*(only funny because no one was hurt!)

Yeow! Why do these pedophiles collect so many images?

Media blabber: more about the Sun "bloodbath" at The Real Muck and The Baltimore Brew

Gun Nut Busted

On Facebook, the BPD reports a major gun seizure:

On April 30, Southest District Drug Unit & BPD SWAT executed a search warrant at 711 Oldham Street.

The following property was recovered:

Norinco SKS (w/ 10 rounds in clip)
Norinco SKS (w/10 rounds in clip)
Norinco AK-47 (w/30 rounds in clip)
Enfield bolt action 303 cal.

Also about 1000 rounds of ammo for the weapons. Suspect arrested was Augustine Tambuvello W/M/9-7-48, he has prior convictions of felony narcotics.

Notes Sebastian Sassi: "Two things: a Norinco is an AK knockoff, it's not a true AK47 which is select fire by definition (ie, semi auto and full auto).

Also, those rifles also have magazines, not clips. Clips are devices that band rounds together leaving them exposed at the dangerous end, whereas magazines (much like the magazines in your duty Glock 22 .40SW sidearm) fully encase the rounds."

Supreme Court Newsflash

Souter is stepping down, just as we were dabbling in Sparklit, begging the question: who is the ... Best! Judge! Ever! (see the sidebar for the poll)

Super fun poll

We all have to go sometime...

Which would you rather? Run over by truck Executed by state Smoking-related illness Stabbed by lover Suicide in course of Jihad heroin OD mauled by dogs First bosses, then self Familicide Current Results

Buz on Drugz

Buz left a brilliant comment a while back that deserves a bump. Buz has changed our minds on decriminalization, at least when it comes to the white drugs. We still think they should sell pot out of washtubs at the farmer's market. Anyway:

"...if drugs were somehow "decriminalized", these groups, would not stop declaring territory, and not stop doing illegal things, including black market selling of the now decriminalized drugs? Why should they stop? Oh, I suppose, depending on how one decriminalizes, the legal market would cut into their sales; Buz remains skeptical. A large factor in gang belonging is protection from the "other"-whoever that is.

I read some about Switzerland's heroin treatment program, and some aspects of it have a certain charm. The Lancet article of 2006 was generally supportive, but it did note that heroin maintenance was long-term, and for those who engaged in the program and stopped, virtually all re-entered the program within 10 years. It did, however, have the effect of heroin being now viewed as a drug for "losers" and "junkies". Who woulda thunk? Oh, and only 1300 of Switzerland's 30K heroin addicts are in the heroin prescription program.

Clearly, young folks like yourself and Abstract and Cham are trying to come to terms with this issue for the future. I did not notice in my short look any reference to other criminal activity or other measures of social health. One article lauded a guy who gets his heroin, goes to work, and plays dad on weekends. I guess that's possible; in fact, I've heard of "working addicts", but have yet to meet an actual one. In my experience as a vocational caseworker, the general rule of thumb is that persons currently using hard drugs will have extreme difficulty getting jobs, and if they do manage to get hired, will rarely keep the job for long ... Of course we know that addiction has been declared a disease by folks more highly educated than I could ever hope to be. And I can understand that it is difficult to stop using some drugs, but you know, they gotta want to. After my law enforcement career, I have worked at 2 non-profits, both seeing a high incidence of drug users of all kinds.

At the one I still work at part-time, 70% are court-ordered. So, I have talked to many addicts, and DWI offenders face-to-face and try to help them find employment. And, I must say: the ones that have been to DOC are much more motivated than those who have learned to game the system. I know it's anecdotal, but there it is: if you want to succeed in treatment, you often can. And, sometimes punishment or the threat of punishment is a motivator.

It seems difficult to follow your logic, at times. While you say that drug use is not an excuse for other crimes (besides possession), you seem to believe/feel that they should "get treatment", and not jail. Well, suppose they refuse to follow through with treatment? And they continue to commit crimes against the rest of us, larceny-from-auto; burglary; shoplifting, etc.? As P points out, the success rate of treatment is highly problematic in many programs; relapse rates for heroin are often 95%.
In my several year experience being around drug programs, two phrases often are heard: "he/she is not ready" or "persons who are SERIOUS can turn their lives around". These phrases are used both in conjunction with treatment and gaining employment. If you're not serious, it ain't gonna work.

So, if they say they are not responsible for committing crimes against the rest of us, yet they don't/can't stop, should we just throw out the laws for them? While I appreciate your compassion, and am not lacking it myself (believe or not), my lack of bleeding-hearted liberalism is tempered by hard-headed compassion of experience.

One experienced therapist, a Vietnam veteran, who works in a treatment program told us: "ain't no addict around here who doesn't know where they need to go for detox." This same program has floor-to-ceiling mirrors in its common areas of the residential treatment facility. When I asked what's the deal with the mirrors, the answer was: "everywhere you look, there's a problem". Many of the folks I talk to who are current, recent, or struggling users are deeply troubled people. The drugs, and as you point out, the illegality of the drugs, just exacerbates their problems. For the most part, if they were just given the drugs, they would still have trouble finding and keeping employment, with relationships, and with keeping out of legal trouble. Treatment is not a pill like an antibiotic; it's a long-term psycho-social process of personal change.

Almost no residential program will allow their patients to use illicit drugs while there; detection usually results in immediate expulsion. And these programs are run by what some might call bleeding heart liberals, and ex-addicts.
Perhaps we should keep Guantanamo Bay open and use it for addicts who claim they can't stop, but also can't succeed in treatment; however, they can't stop/won't stop committing crimes against the rest of us?

And though some folks feel sorry for the addict who presents in court and says the theft was because of addiction, I wonder why don't we feel similarly sorry for the drunk drivers who kill people (usually innocent people), who often are repeat offenders, but can't seem to stop drinking-and driving.

And yes, I think the illegality of heroin and cocaine does deter a fair amount of people from going out and buying it, and trying it, particularly young people.

This problems is a serious one that folks such as yourselves will struggle with to make public policy about. But any wholesale "decriminalization" which may occur, must occur in the context of society agreeing to accept a huge increase of use, addiction, accidents, and other maladies. Perhaps that is better than jail, but life is full of tradeoffs."

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Melody Smith, age 54, dead by blunt force trauma/asphyxiation in the 500 block of Yale Avenue, Tuesday April 21

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Frank Swiston, 48, was beaten to death five days ago in the 2800 block of Erdman Avenue.

Porcine Republican delegate says getting a woman to sign over her Pasadena condo to him was "doing the Lord's work"

County police are ISO a Kevin Federline lookalike who stole a woman's purse at the White Marsh Giant and used her credit cards to go shopping.

Too Dumb to Die?

Patrick Byers' supposed low IQ could save him from the death penalty

IV reports on gang-related harbor melees. (Best gang name ever: the Dirty Slobs)

City code: you can own two sexy massage parlors for the price of one unleashed dog

Media Blabber: The Daily Record reports that the toll of this week's Sun layoffs is 61. "Spokeswoman Renee Mutchnik confirmed that the paper had informed the guild of layoffs .. and added that the cuts would help the newsroom operate in a way that allowed the company to better use the Internet." Huh?

Three Years for Solicitation of Murder

Patrick Byers could get the death penalty for the same crime, so this guy got a pretty good deal. Details:

At a hearing today, George Thompson, 38, of the 1400 block of Shefford Road pled guilty to solicitation to commit murder. Judge Martin P. Welch sentenced Thompson to 15 years in prison suspending all but three years and five years probation. He also ordered Thompson to stay away from the intended victim. The State asked for 20 years in prison suspend all but seven years.

Between June 4 and June 12, 2008 in the area of Belt Street Thompson contacted a witness while he was on a work site in Baltimore City. Thompson asked this witness to kill his wife, offering $20,000 and displaying a bag of cash. Thompson contacted this witness at least two times between the dates to discuss the murder. Thompson supplied money to purchase two prepaid cell phones for the witness and himself. On June 10, 2008 this witness contacted the police. Further investigation was conducted including a tape recording of Thompson making arrangements for the murder and giving specific details on where and when his wife would be home and how to commit the actual murder. An undercover officer was present for some of these meetings. On June 12, 2008 Thompson met with the witness and the undercover officer to complete the details for the murder and he was arrested at that time.

Four Years for Killer of Patrice Marable

.. does not seem like nearly enough.
The details from the SAO:

At a hearing yesterday Judge Timothy J. Doory sentenced Sampson Ashby, 28, of the 3000 block of Fendell Avenue to four years in prison. On February 27, 2009 Ashby pled guilty to one count of automobile manslaughter. The State had asked for a cap of eight years at the time Ashby pled guilty.

On July 6, 2008 at approximately 3:00PM Officers from the Northern District responded to 1123 Gleneagle Road for a reported vehicle fatality. Upon arrival officers discovered the body of Patrice Marable lying on the ground in the alley next to a telephone pole. Investigation revealed that the Marable and Ashby had been engaged in an altercation with Ashby attempting to strike Marable with a tree limb. He then pushed Marable down, causing her to drop her cell phone. Ashby took the cell phone and entered a pick-up truck. Marable proceeded to the driver’s side window and jumped partially through it in attempt to retrieve the phone. Ashby then backed up the truck at a high rate of speed out of the yard and turned the vehicle to his right heading for a telephone pole located in the alley. The victim was pinned between the vehicle and the pole, causing what was later to be determined a massive contusion. Ms. Marable fell lifeless to the ground. Ashby got out of the vehicle, saw Marable, recovered some broken auto parts from the scene, and fled in the vehicle.

Police and prosecutors say they charged the wrong guy in the Chinese Cuisine beating and shooting case from last December

LOLz.. barfing drunks cause Swine Flu panic on flight to BWI

More Bad News @ Sun

Word is 15 .. wait, 21.. of the Sun's mid- and top-level editors were laid off today, with more newsroom cuts to come, possibly as soon as tomorrow. Very sad.

Also, tweet the police: "SHOOTING: Reported @ 2735 Ashland Ave. Police investigating crime scene, avoid area."


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With a Defense Like That...

"The defense attorney for a Baltimore pastor accused of hiring a hit man to kill a blind and mentally disabled man for life insurance money said that at least two other disabled people whose policies listed Pushia as a beneficiary had died"

Teenage Riot

Two men shot in the NE

Due to a massive water main break at Lombard & Gay, all city buildings have closed, including the courts. The leash-fine hearing has been rescheduled to 9 a.m. May 12.

Last Saturday at the Harbor= some kind of teenage riot. WJZ says two teens were stabbed in two separate incidents. Though a reader's friend said there were shots fired in front of M&S Grill, police say that there were no reports of gunfire.

Club Miami on the block has lost its liquor license... for not selling enough hooch!

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A man's body found at Christian and Smallwood streets by Samuel Morse Elementary, two weeks after the body of 30-year-old Russell Day was found close by.

Trial is scheduled to start tomorrow for the three defendants accused in the murder of Ken Harris: Charles Y. McGaney, 20, Gary A. Collins, 20, and Jerome Williams, 16.

Prosecutor: the Black Guerrilla Family pays $10k for hits on correctional officers

Drunken assaults and robbery around JHU (via Spotcrime)

Criminal perpetrators, fashion victims:
Two people assaulted and robbed an MTA bus driver on 33rd street. Police are seeking two suspects, one sporting a fur hat and the other in a hoodie and fuschia knit cap (for the record, it was 91 degrees today)

County police are ISO a woman with a pierced lip and a distinctive wrist tattoo accused of stealing an ATM card from a mentally-challenged sexagenarian to feed her Hot Topic addiction

A Saturday-night stabbing at the Inner Harbor

The new Death Penalty bill could affect existing cases

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Last night's double shooting on Normount killed 17-year-old Maurice Toomer

Sentencing phase for Patrick Byers starts tomorrow, and the Sun's Tricia Bishop has more details of the killing and the sorry characters involved

Brother: killing of Curtis Pounds was an accident

Smash-and-grab addict arrested more than 100 times is going to rehab

What the? "Maryland Man Pleads Guilty to Using a Noose to Assault a Man at the Pentagon"

Another one!

WMAR reports that another pastor, James Omar Clea, was arrested in Orangeburg, SC for the murder of Lemuel Wallace.

Also, police tweet: "3200 NORMOUNT AVE 2 males shot. Police working crime scene, avoid area."

Pastor, Grifter, Murderer

What the?! The man who has confessed to killing Lemuel Wallace was a "businessman" indeed-- a pastor who allegedly murdered him for the insurance money, a la Olga and Helen in LA. Police say he had taken six policies out on the victim (did he think no one would notice that?)
More from Hermann.

And TG that alleged homicidal alleged rapist Ronnie Winkler = in jail.

Please tell me English is a second language for whoever wrote this story and its homoerotic headline...

Sun: familicidal dad went knife shopping at the mall after killing family in room 1029

Weinstein Goes to Washington

Steven Levin tells us that Jason Weinstein, Chief of the Violent Crime Section in the US Attorney’s Office in the District of Maryland, will leave the MD office to become Deputy Assistant Attorney General in the Criminal Division under Eric "Nation of Cowards" Holder. Weinstein is perhaps best known around town for his work on the case against one Edward T. Norris.

What the?! Businessman arrested in murder of disabled Lemuel Wallace in Leakin Park.
And an arrest for the murder of 19-year-old Kiuna Jackson, found in Herring Run Park.

Three indicted for the robbery and murder of David Bryan Wright

Hopkins Fair starts now!

Guard your cookies!

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The man shot in the stairwell of an apartment building in the 1600 block of East Eager St. is the city's 71st homicide

"A federal judge sentenced Nancy Jean Siegel to 400 months in prison Thursday in the killing of an elderly Reisterstown widower and stuffing his body in a steamer trunk"

Sun: Familicidal William Parente bought knife at Crate & Barrel

Insert band camp joke here

Who better to cover the case against the mayor et al than Laura Vozzella?

IV gives out its first-ever "Common Sense Award" to Judge Hargrove for siding with parking-ticket scofflaws: "if the city is broke and needs the money, as officials claim, try cutting back on catered lunches for City Council members." Burn!

Not these people again! The Westboro Baptist Church is going to be in town, and you won't buh-lieve what they plan to protest in Roland Park!

First Robbin' of Spring

Burglars, stick-up thugs and smash-n-grabowskis hit the Northern in full force.
Don't keep your golf clubs in your car!
Wonder where all of the stolen golf stuff goes?

(At Least) Three Murders Last Tuesday

Two murders overnight: a 54-year-old woman found in her home, and Kenneth Johnson, 23, was killed during the course of a robbery.

A man shot at the Bond Street Apartments, condition unknown

6 1/2 years for murder of Irvin Conley, stabbed to death at the most effed-up family BBQ ever

Ew. School police officer indicted and arrested for groping a 16-year-old student

Drug charges dropped against NAACP official

A "glimmer of judicial rebellion over Baltimore’s penchant for assessing stiff [parking] penalties"

Police Release Findings in Parente Family Murder/Suicide. Firearms were not involved. The children died from blunt-force trauma.
new word: "familicide"

Tweet, tweet, that's the sound of the police

CRIME STATS UPDATE: Total crime down 12%, violent crime down 13%, non-fatal shootings down 20%, homicide up 15%

not if it's your baloney sandwich

Prostituting in the prison kitchen "be cool while it lasted," says a former guard...
more saucy details of the Black Guerrilla Family indictments from the CP's Edward Ericson Jr.

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A 70-something Calvin Hayes and 63-year-old Harold Able Sr., both shot in their cars in separate incidents last week, were apparently hack cab drivers.

It IS a small town! The CP reports that businessman John Zorzit, owner of Club 410, is now "the nexus for three current federal investigations" and the sentence of the day:

"But the Zorzit case--which received attention after a forfeiture action was filed against him in January because for 14 years he used the brother of Baltimore County Councilman John Olszewski (D-6th District) as a runner to collect the money from his illegal slot machines--is perhaps more interesting for the amounts of money involved (the feds seized close to $1.2 million in bank accounts and more than $41,000 in cash--including some above the ceiling tiles in an office bathroom) and for his links to Harris."

And in other nightclub news, in the County former China Room owner John Giorgilli is "keeping Baltimore County prosecutors busy"

Life Sentence in Morgan Murder

The Ink fills in missing names from the toll.
(Still checking on spelling of Ms. Wright's first name)

Supreme Court: cops need a warrant to search your car

Pot-smoking lawyer suspended for trying to expunge himself

At a hearing Monday, Judge John Carroll Byrnes sentenced Jason Allen, 26, to life in prison for the first degree murder of Jeff Payne. A Baltimore Jury convicted Allen of first-degree murder January 15, 2009 after a week-long trial. Details from Jessamy's office:

On February 15, 2008 at approximately, 12:45 AM Allen entered an apartment in the Morgan View Apartments, a Student Housing Complex catering to Morgan State University Students, where he took out a rifle and shot and killed Jeff Payne. Payne suffered a single gunshot wound to the chest and died at the scene. Immediately after the shooting the defendant fled Baltimore for Yonkers, New York, where authorities eventually apprehended and arrested him April 21, 2008. Exactly one year from this arrest, the defendant was sentenced.

During an emotional victim impact statement, Payne’s family told the judge about how the victim survived years of civil war in Liberia, only to be gunned down in the United States. Despite the loss of their eldest son, the family expressed gratitude to the Baltimore City Police Department for their tireless efforts in bringing the defendant to justice.

A co-defendant in this case, Powerful Aguilar pled guilty to accessory after the fact and was sentenced April 7, 2009 to a suspended five year prison term. Assistant State’s Attorney Charles Blomquist of the Homicide Division prosecuted this case.

in Owings Mills, "Chinese food, cigarettes items coveted by thieves"

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Qonta Waddell, on parole, shot in an alley near Windsor Ave. "Police also identified Harold Able Sr., 56, of the 1600 block of Latrobe St. as one of the unlicensed cabdrivers, or "hacks," who was found shot in a vehicle in East Baltimore last week."
hadn't heard about the hack shootings.

Suburbanites Unhinged

insane family murder-suicide at the Towson Sheraton of a NY family... in case you didn't hear. More Sun coverage.
This is the second suburban MD family murder-suicide in two days, and in Carroll County a barricaded man killed himself.
Don't stress, white people! It's just money! The government will print more!

an apartment maintenance man shot in the head in front of children in Pikesville yesterday

No lack of outrage when it comes to ferkakta parking fines

Hermann's pleated trousers walked some nutters from the BBC around the loo that is Belair- Edison

Should we bring back dollar homes?

4 shot and 1 dead overnight

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Police tweet: "3115 WINDSOR AVE. Initial report of adult male shot."
also @ 6 a.m. "SHOOTING: reported @ Sarah Ann /Carrollton around midnight. Scene cleared. Victim in stable condition at hospital"
@ 10 p.m. last night: "SHOOTING: 2900 Blk W.Garrison. A patient claiming gun shot wound to knee walked into area hospital. Police investigating.
@ 9 p.m.: "SHOOTING: Reported @ 1508 W. Saratoga. Police working crime scene, avoid the area."

WTF? 4 Dead in Towson Sheraton

reports WJZ
(maybe they ate at TGI Friday's?)

also in Towson tragedies, the Griffin case ends with parents sentenced to 25 years each.

300 pounds is just more of him to love (child pornography)

... happy 420, stoners!

... and my first name ain't "Baby"

QTD: "You don't know me, and we aren't friends. You do not know me, have never met me, and we are not friends. We've never been friends. You do not address me by my first name - period."
-- Guess who!

65 = Stabbing in Linwood

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Tweet the police: "FATAL STABBING @ Clinton / Fairmont occured around 3am, adult male stabbed in head and chest. 1 Arrest has been made."
That area NE of Patterson Park again... I know it's called Linwood but what do people actually call it?

Byers and Goodman Guilty!

Frank Goodman and Patrick Byers were found guilty by a federal jury for the contract killing of Carl Lackl yesterday, after one day of deliberation. Byers faces the death penalty.

Funeral yesterday for 16-year-old Dominic Baker, whose body was found last week in a vacant rowhome, but not much hand-wringing or sympathy from the chancel: "Dominic could've been the trigger puller."