August 12

The Post reports that police searching murdered prison guard David McGuinn's Baltimore apartment discovered copies of incident reports that prison officials claim didn't exist, leading to speculation that fellow guards allowed McGuinn to be killed because he wouldn't turn a blind eye to corrpution.

The Baltimore City Grand Jury indicted Demetri Jamal Greer, 18, of the 2800 block of E. Monument Street on first-degree murder and weapons charges. Court documents allege on July 20 Greer, along with an unknown female, assaulted and engaged in an altercation with the victim. The victim, Dion Williams, 16, was shot at close range. He died a short time later at Johns Hopkins Hospital. He was victim #145 of 2006. Greer had been charged with armed robbery in Towson in 2004 when he was 16, but was released on the condition that he attend Harbor City High and abide by curfews.

Relatives of the victims of serial killer Raymont Hopewell (shown left, photo by Sun's Karl Fenton) have mixed reactions to his guilty plea.

"Do you call it a Romeo and Juliet story?" Charges were dismissed against Shakesperially challenged Senate candidate David "Romeo" Dickerson, accused of assaulting his teen bride Anna. Also off the hook: the Salisbury pastor accused of boning the babysitter.

Police on Ocean City are looking for suspects who kidnapped and raped a 15-year-old girl.

August 11

The Baltimore Police Department Media Unit has embraced YouTube. Did you know? Crime lab supervisor John French is also a writer of "hardboiled" fiction! And Debbie Owens, the Chief of Patrol, once managed six Wendy's® burger franchises!

Results are in: Bcrime readers, certainly the most pissed-off people in the most pissed-off city in America, have spoken. They have no hate for cracker-ass crackers, Koreans or Democrats, but when it comes to Jean Marbella, fergetaboutit-- we'd rather be stuck making conversation with a jailhouse tattletale. Even worse are Suburbanites, who are are tied with Hezbollah. And the most-hated demographic, more detestable than even Vegans, are .... Republicans. Sorry, galt!

The murder trial of Dennis Bowers, 21, and Aaron Scott, 19, is scheduled to begin at 9:30AM Monday, August 14 before Judge Althea Handy. The Baltimore City Grand Jury indicted Bowers and Scott April 18, 2005 for first-degree murder and handgun counts in connection with the shooting death of Jonathan Colbert, 21. Court documents allege Bowers and Scott shot and killed Colbert on the street in the 1400 block of E. Preston St. after attempting to rob Colbert.

At a hearing today, Raymont Hopewell, 34, of the 2800 block of Chelsea Terrace, pled guilty to five counts of first-degree murder, four counts of first-degree rape, and numerous related charges for incidents between February 1999 through August 2005. Under terms of the plea agreement, announced in open court, Judge John M. Glynn will sentence Hopewell to four consecutive life without possibility of parole prison terms at a September 14 sentencing hearing. He also faces numerous other concurrent sentences, including life and several 25 year and 20 year prison terms. To summarize:

On February 20, 1999 Hopewell entered the home of Constance Wills, 61, 1113 North Ellamont Street and burglarized it. He then raped and murdered Ms. Wills.

On November 30, 2002 Hopewell entered the home of Sarah Shannon, 88, 2503 Violet Avenue and burglarized it. He then raped and murdered Ms. Shannon.

On May 27, 2005 Hopewell entered the home of Sadie Mack, 78, 635 North Gilmor Street and burglarized it. He then murdered Ms. Mack.

On August 21, 2005 Hopewell entered the home of Carlton Crawford, 81, 3700 Greenspring Avenue. He then murdered Mr. Crawford.

On August 30, 2005 Hopewell entered the home of Lydia Wingfield, 78, 2701 Mount Holly Avenue and burglarized it. He then raped and murdered Ms. Wingfield.

Hopewell is currently in the Baltimore City Detention Center held without bail.

Hon. Althea Handy: Murder charges against Jason Moody can charge on.

Warren Young got more than 12 years for dealing crack. And an MTA officer was indicted for insurance fraud.

Police officer's son: cops stole $20k.

Two missing Egyptian students were found in Dundalk.

It appears police have found that guy who kept robbing the Family Dollar stores.

Blotter: Dice game robbed; lots of stealing, people arrested for various crimes.

Baltimore Circuit Judge John N. Prevas received a public reprimand for, among other things, losing his temper and calling a defendant a jerk.

Paula Johnson Branch, City Council representative for the 13th district, saved the butt of a former campaign worker.

There's 53 fewer Crips in the sticks.

Pervert Roundup:
Three sick perverts have disappeared from a Carroll County city, and several sick pigs have disappeared from a Carroll County farm.
The FBI is looking for victims of a Canuck pedophile.
A teenage babysitter testified against her 30-year-old pastor.

Attorney General candidate Tom Perez is going after manufacturers of lead paint.

The forced marriage of Old Navy and Baltimore DIY punk.

Napping and parking don't mix.

Smoke crack in Baltimore, but don't beat your fetus in DC:
The Court of Appeals held it's not reckless endangerment to smoke crack while pregnant ("'Such ordinary things as skiing or horseback riding could produce criminal liability,' Judge Alan M. Wilner wrote for the court.") The DC Court, on the other hand, decided attacking a pregnant mother = cruelty to children.

August 10

A man was found beaten to death in the stairway of the Executive Inn Motel on Pulaski Highway (#169).

A judge will decide today if murder suspect Jason Moody can be set free because his right to a speedy trial was violated.

The family of drug suspect Cheryl Noel, shot to death during the execution of a warrant, are suing the police department.

Warren Brown: Mark Beckwith may not have acted in self-defense.

"I don't believe [that] individuals that urinate on the street are a threat to our peace."

A rash of robberies in the Sun blotter, many stolen license plates and one purloined teddy bear in the Messenger.

August 9

The Baltimore City Grand Jury indicted Antoine Oliver, 22, for first-degree murder, robbery with a deadly weapon and conspiracy to commit robbery. Court documents allege witnesses saw Kemoni Sterrette and Antoine Oliver moments before a shooting incident at the Unity Hair Salon in the 2200 block of Garrison Boulevard on May 13 in which the victim, Justice Georgie, was shot and killed while trying to stop the robbery. The Baltimore Grand Jury indicted Sterrette July 17 for first-degree murder. Sterrette is held on $250,000 bail at the Baltimore Detention Center. Oliver is held on $750,000 bail.

Six murders this week, plus new information on Gary Shipman. Also, William Gibson's 1983 death on E. Pratt St. has been added to this year's homicide count (#168), and Dennis James Wallace of Highlandtown was arrested for the crime.

Dewayne Blanche Jones Jr., the man who was shot to death in Middle River yesterday morning, was a well-liked middle-school teacher.

A very strange shooting on Liberty Rd. this morning.

Fox 45 reports on a racial attack at the exclusive St. Paul's School in Baltimore County last spring. The two white students who chased a black student with a noose, put it around his neck, and attempted to pull him into the air claimed they were just joking. (Unfortunately, there's not a useable link on Fox's site yet, but for now try this link.)

Interviews with jurors from the Canela/Espinoza trial.

Now is a bad time to be a prison guard.

Donald Gladden was arrested for 19 recent armed robberies.

You mean "full service" means sex???

A man was charged with raping his 67-year-old neighbor nine years ago.

Former school teacher/principal Daniel Harner was convicted for being a perv.

Applications for search warrants are apparently immune from libel.

A former Hagerstown cop admitted to "terrorizing the city he once served."

An Elkton teen was arrested for setting fire to cars in a movie theater parking lot.

Lots of people are helping find Oxter.

ABC2 apparently needs a new proofreader: "Viral Video’s; feature films of the online world"

August 8

Gregory Moore, shot during the course of a robbery in the Northwest, was #167.

The jurors have announced a verdict in the retrial of Policarpio Espoinoza and Adan Canela ... GUILTY!! Judge David Mitchell ordered a pre-sentence investigation and scheduled sentencing for September 21, 2006.
For backstory, Julie Bykowicz has a guide to the case.

In the Western, a man was shot in the head and a teen was stabbed in the back.

Dewayne Blanche Jones Jr. was shot to death in Middle River.

Dennis James Wallace, 52, was arrested for the 1983 murder of William Gibson.

From Sunday's Post-- "The general public has no idea, and I mean no idea, about the messed-up lives these kids lead until they're dead. The public has no idea about the neglect, the foster homes, the violent acting out, the filth, the mother's boyfriend that abuses them -- the public doesn't know. Doesn't want to know."

Weathered windbag Dan Rodericks blogs about the case in which Judge Schwait accepted a "softie deal" which resulted in 7 months in prison for the pedophile who (allegedly) later stabbed 11-year-old Irvin Harris to death.

A high-school football coach pimped a 15-year-old student to a D.C. police officer, who is now out of jail.

Black widow Josephine Grey, rumored to have used voodoo to intimidate witnesses, was resentenced to 40 years for insurance fraud.

Boozehound Dwayne S. Williams, who killed a woman in a drunk-driving accident, also had a criminal record.

You'll shoot your eye out ... because the gun is just too cute!

WTF? A Forest Hill man assaulted his neighbor with a leaf blower and BB gun.

Former Ehrlich homeslice Joe Steffen, who'd previously agreed to cooperate with investigators, is fighting a subpoena to testify before the legislature. Update-- Judge to Steffen: T.S.

Still into "The Wire"? Cast, writers and crew will be signing copies of the third-season DVD tonight at 7 at Sound Garden.

August 7

Horace Joseph Fauntleroy (#166) was killed yesterday morning in North Baltimore's Parklane neighborhood.

Gerald Edison (#165) was the man whose body was found locked in a Lexus on Evergreen Ave. last Thursday morning. The two men who were found dead in a parked car last week were belatedly ID'd by the Sun as Dante Watson (#153) and Adjeala Graves (#154).

A homeless epileptic man's helper dog is missing from downtown.

Breaking news from the Ministry of the Obvious: Most convicted felons have previous police records.

Beware of scooter thieves!

Getting robbed: a primer

Hi Crimesters, I'm back from France for at least a little while to take care of some business at home.

First of all, dear 'Non, here's some tips about what to do if when you get robbed, and I hope readers will chime in with other helpful suggestions.

• Right this minute, write down all of your credit card numbers (and customer-service phone numbers) somewhere and keep the list in your house, this will make your life much easier after, especially if you get robbed on the weekend. It's also sensible to get a passport and keep that at home so if you lose your license it'll be easier to replace (and in the meantime you'll be able to get into bars and flee the country if necessary). And don't carry checks. If your checkbook gets stolen you have to close out your account and open a new one and that is a huge, huge asspain.


• Get yourself one of those magnet keyboxes that go under the car or wheel well, and keep one housekey and one car key in it so you won't get stranded. (Sounds risky but isn't-- crackheads are smash-and-grabbers and do not have the patience to grope around your wheel wells.)


• Don't stop for anyone on the sidewalk. It's common practice for someone to distract you by asking for the time or a cigarette, then rob you. For walking around downtown, wearing headphones (with the sound turned down low) makes it easier to ignore people trying to distract you. Stay alert and confident-looking and be wary of people walkng in your blind spots. If you think someone in your proximity is acting sketchy, don't hesitate to turn around fully and look them squarely up and down and in the face.


• When you get accosted, first of all, relax, imagine you're dough. Obviously, don't resist-- people get shot that way. You want to project calm, because any panic will increase the robber's stress, and stressed-out robbers are the ones who shoot people. Don't look at the weapon. Take your wallet or purse and gently toss it away from you in the robber's general direction, turn your pockets inside out of you have any. For extra fun, carry a wad of singles in your pocket and fling them into the air like confetti so the robber will be scrambling around on the ground a la "Diving for Dollars."


• A possible execption to the "no resistance" rule: if someone holds a gun to you and tells you to get in a car (especially if you're female and get the perv vibe) it may a better bet to say, "no, shoot me here," and take the chance that they'll get flustered and look for an easier target.


• Don't fall for the bump-and-jump. If a car bumps your bumper, just keep driving and write down their license number if you can. Remember Carl Schoettler?


• At home, get some of them motion-activated lights for your front and back walks. And don't open the door to strangers. There are probably more scam artists in operation around town than robbers anyway-- people coming door-to-door to sell you nonexistent candy, solicit donations for pretend political groups, spin you some yarn about a grandma who needs money for dialysis or yap about their bozo religion. So just leave that door shut!

Any other tips, readers?