2005 in Review: Happy First Birthday, Bcrime!

Two-double-oh-five... we learned so much. I started the blog to try to answer a basic question: how safe are you in Baltimore City? At the end of the project the conclusion is: it depends on who you are.

(Police claim that) 90 percent of murder victims have criminal histories, with an average of eight arrests each. And almost all of the victims are male, and the majority are African-American and young. If you're a female not involved in the drug trade, you don't have much to worry much about, unless you have a jealous spouse, violent boyfriend, stalker friend-of-a-neighbor (see Linda Trinh), or encounter a drunk driver.

If you're a male, don't buy, sell or use the white drugs and stay away from the drink, barfights and other people's wives and girlfriends, stay alert to your surroundings and don't talk to or provoke strangers. And everyone should stay extra observant in mall parking lots (or shop Hampden). These simple rules will keep you safe much of the time. But the thrill of Baltimore living is that there are always roving wild cards of death: the bad babysitter, the serial mugger/rapist, the burglar or nurse who preys on the elderly, the speeding cop car. So while you may be safe most of the time, you're never safe all of the time, no matter what your demographic. And what the hell, sooner or later death comes for all Baltimoreans.

Anyhoo, we kicked off 2005 with a 26 murders in the first 20 days of the year, and Marcus Brown was promoted to Deputy. But it was Baltimorean-cum-Nugget Carmelo Anthony who scored biggest in the 01-05. His cameo in the notorious Stop Snitchin led to endorsements with Nike and Hallmark cards.

In February, Dontee Stokes, represented by Warren Brown, became an international hero for the victims of Catholic-priest-predators when pedophile Maurice Blackwell was convicted. But the victory was short-lived. Judges ruled that a witness' reference to other victims warranted a new trial, Jessamy refused to grant one, and Roussey, now head of the police union, said he believed the state's attorney's office had been looking for a way to avoid prosecuting Blackwell ever since Stokes came forward 13 years ago. The FBI released stats showing that Baltimore has the highest rate of bank robberies in the nation: more than double the rate of the second-most-bank-robbed city, L.A. And the blog got its first regular reader, plucky former Southwestern student (now a Towson U. student, I think,) Chris Bilal!

March kicked off with the start of the drug-kingpin trial of William Nicholson. Nine months later, Nicholson got a three-year sentence. Police officially filed the murder of Hopkins student and South Carolina native Chris Elser, left, under "cold." 50 cent released a song in which "Baltimore" was synonymous with "heroin." The blog added another regular customer, Jay.

And the blog's most searched-for story to date, and certainly the most unusual of the year, broke in March: that's the girl-on-girl psych-doctal-student on psych-doctal-student case of Natasha Bacchus, strangled by her (possibly lesbian) friend Melissa B. Harton after a night of drinking exactly one week before Bacchanalia.

In April an 11-year-old boy was arrested for dealing heroin, revealing the disturbing trend of drug gangs using juveniles for their dirty work. Donta Allen was indicted for murdering Hopkins student Linda Trinh, and two students were grazed with gunfire at Bowie state. O'Malley made Time magazine's "Five Best Mayors" list under the unfortunate banner Wonk N' Roller. The Baltimore police were sued for $30 million for shooting a 30-year-old man in the back. This great site summarizes the year's Maryland police misconduct news. The witness intimidation bill passed. In Annapolis, a midshipman fell from a window --the second incident in three years. Unregistered sex offender Kenneth Barnes was caught in Roland Park, spurring new vows of anti-perv measures from local top brass.

May: Monique Baldwin got 25 years for her role in the beating death of 12-year old Nicole Townes and five years for the abuse of her sister, Brenda Bailey, 11. Kenya Keene, 25, who delayed calling an ambulance, got six years. Former mom Monalisa Mackey pled guilty to killing her 18-month-old daughter Alicia. Ed Norris was working at a soap store in a Florida mall, and six officers were placed on leave after the death of inmate Raymond Smoot. Two policemen were accused of robbing drug dealers and selling the drugs themselves. Says policecrimes.com:

... a federal grand jury indicted Officers William King, 35, of Baltimore, and Antonio Murray, 34, of Abingdon. The five-count indictment alleges that the officers took part in alleged conspiracy to rob drug dealers of their drugs and money beginning last August to the present. Prosecutors said authorities had also bugged the officers' police car. They said that in those recorded conversations, the two officers allegedly asked drug dealers how much money and drugs they had on supply. Miller reported prosecutors' claims that the officers told drug dealers they wouldn't face arrest or prosecution so long as they kept supplying the drugs. In one case, prosecutors said, the officers sold drugs to an FBI agent.

June brought the death of Samuel Richardson, shot while walking with his girlfriend near the Rendez-Vous.
Ross Talp was convicted of killing his mother.
Allegations of police misconduct were rife: cop Brent Allen Gates was accused of stealing $1,400 from a man during a traffic stop, and Gregory Mussmacher was convicted for assault and miconduct after beating up a handcuffed, shacked juvenile. At the Dept. of Corrections, secretary Mary Ann Saar said everything was going fine, even after officer Sherman Lawrence was charged with conspiring to help prison inmates shank a peer. Employee complaints about foul and unhealthy conditions in the ancient Mitchell Courthouse and problems at Central Booking were met with silence from government officials.

In July the FBI released stats showing violent crime up in Baltimore by 4.2 percent, and the Post published a story called "Maryland reports surplus of $1 billion." Attorney General Joe Curran refused to join in a lawsuit with the City (and his son-in-law) against the state over the conditions at Central Booking, and squarely blamed the police. He also got a threatening note written on a clipped obituray of dead businessman Robert Clay.

The case of the three beheaded Mexican children seemed to point to snakeheads, but DNA pointed to the children's uncle.

In August, Commissioner Hamm's daughter Nicole Sisker was outed as a steetwalking addict. Albert G. Antonelli of Queenstown got just three years for auto manslaughter for a hit-and-run on Route 50 that killed officer Duke G. Aaron III. Trial began for the accused murderers of William Bassett, the St. Paul's dean shot in the Towson Town Center mall parking lot. A man tied up traffic around BWI after he kidnapped a woman in Arbutus. Somebody named "tif" objected to the term Big Black Rapist. On the last day of August, the Espinoza/Canela trial ended in a hung jury.

In September, the State rejected Death Row inmate Vernon Evans Jr.'s claims of racial and geographic bias (a death warrant was recently issued for Feb. 6). Seventy-nine year old Lydia Wingfield was murdered, and CP reported: "Wingfield is the third African-American women to be asphyxiated this year. All three women were over 60 years old and found at home, but the Baltimore Police Department does not believe the homicides are connected." (Turns out they were, of course).

Transit police and federal agents have made 23 arrests of people selling prescription drugs at transit stations.Police dogs started getting sick, and by the end of the year, five had died mysteriously. Two Baltimore judges in separate rulings said they don't believe the police officers who investigated gun cases, prompting prosecutors to dismiss charges. And we were joined by a new Jay... a self-labeled-conservative then going by the nom de blog Publius.

In October, accusations of "ethical breaches" in Ehrlich's officehit the fan. First there was the Joe Steffan "Prince of Darkness" thing. Then, the Sun (and Scott Huffines) reported employees testifying about right-wing thought police firing people who weren't "Republican" enough.

Artist Myron "Terry" Koenig was killed and his house was set on fire in Waverly. Antoine Adams, 32, got life in prison for his third killing, Penelope Medina. Three people escaped from Central Booking in one week, and galt started ranting.

In November, Fletcher Worrell, 58, has been implicated by DNA in at least 24 unsolved rapes in Maryland and New Jersey. A probation officer, Yolanda Johnson, got 18 months in prison for extorting money from the cons she was supposed to be supervising. Ehrlich signed the death warrant for Wesley Baker. In the largest gambling raid in decades, police arrested 80 people at the Owl's Nest near Camden Yards. Authorities seized more than $25,000 in cash and cases of illegal liquor, then dismissed charges (but netted at least one officer from the Southwestern). And Alvin Kotz, 70, got three years for running a gambling operation out of Timpano's Italian Chop House in Rockville. And Liz's husband was arrested for littering-- never mind that Booking and Intake has been operating at 135 % capacity. And we were joined by team member Chuck!

As December began there were still no leads on the murder of Jeryl Singleterry, the kidnapping victim who was found dead after his family paid over $10,000 in ransom. A West Baltimore grandmother was tied up, her son stabbed and her Christmas tree set on fire by three home invaders. The wife of police officer David A. Williamson tried to pawn jewelry stolen from jewelry thieves who had been stopped by her husband. Serial killer Raymond Hopewell was caught, ans so was serial rapist Reginald Williams. Officers Leslie Holiday and Adam Vasquez were shot to death.

And the year ended with an official 269 murders, though only 137 were reported by the preliminary FBI crime stats.