February 29, evening

Bernard Wallace was shot last night in the 1300 block of Bloomingdale Rd. in West Baltimore, and died at about 7:15 this morning.

There was a shooting, possibly fatal and/or involving police, at the corner of Dunmanway and Sollers Point Rd. in Dundalk.

"This is one of those things that just happened. God only knows why." Uh, actually Jerri, if the article is accurate, it's pretty easy to figure out why this happened. The reason involves the words "douchebag" and "huffing."

Pedro Alfonso Orellana, a.k.a. Michael Roy Arnison, a.k.a. alleged perv with a thing for 7-year-old girls.

Jessica Rey really needs to lay off the sauce.

(Officer) Moran had enough time to leap onto his cruiser's roof, police said. He pushed off the oncoming car with his feet as it went by and was not injured. The other driver kept going, though the police cruiser was damaged, said police spokeswoman Sherry Llewellyn.

The third officer chased and stopped the second driver on I-95 near Route 100. Jessica Rey registered a blood alcohol level more than 2.5 times the legal limit of 0.08, police said.

Freakonomics does The Wire, episode 8

The latest take on The Wire from the thugs at Freakonomics. "I hope you suffer; it’s good for you.”

February 29

A man robbing a grocery store was shot to death by an unnamed officer last night.

File under stupidity, astounding: Baltimore City worker Charles Payne allegedly robbed a pedestrian of $296, then fled the scene in his Public Works pickup truck "emblazoned with the Baltimore City emblem."

Armed robberies, thefts and burglaries in the Blotter.

Wow-- a witness alleges that the murder of corrections officer David McGuinn was a "hit" ordered by crooked guards running a contraband-smuggling ring.

Seriously?!

"For the first time in the nation’s history, more than one in 100 American adults is behind bars, according to a new report."

30 Years for Prison Shank

At a hearing Tuesday, February 26, 2008 Brian Medlin, 21, of the 3300 block of Woodland Ave. pleaded guilty to attempted second-degree murder. Judge Timothy J. Doory sentenced Smith to 30 years in prison. Details from SA's office, edited for style:

On March 15, 2007 at 3:45 p.m. Baltimore City Detention Center (BCDC) inmates Medlin and the victim, Michael Reed, 23, were en route from the Mitchell Courthouse to BCDC in a prison van. Medlin, a self-proclaimed Blood member, was able to free himself from restraints. He produced a “shank” (homemade knife) and proceeded to stab Reed, who was in restraints, in head, face, upper torso, hand, chest, and legs. As the van arrived at BCDC, a Division of Correction Swift Response Team observed confrontation in van and immediately stopped the assault and recovered the shank. Reed suffered a collapsed lung. Medlin was being held on a narcotics charge; Reed had pleaded guilty that day to an assault charge and is currently serving a 15-year-suspend-all-but-eight-year prison term.

Assistant State’s Attorney Brandis Marsh prosecuted this case.

February 28

Two people died in the course of a road rage incident in front of MICA, and police are looking for a green Jetta with front-end damage.
More details from Dick and Brent.

Blotter: Murder victim #24 was ID'd as Julius Pressley, 23.
Also, a man was shot multiple times Tuesday in the Western and lived, and a guy was jumped after turning down a North Avenue ho.

In an unusual case, trial began for the murder of Michael Jay Francis, though his body hasn't been found.
QTD from Abraham Dash, UMD law prof: "... if you have someone saying they saw a defendant shooting a victim five times in the chest, that's pretty good stuff."

James Edward "Lil' J" Smoot, a Bloods gang member who at age 14 killed pot dealer Marquel "Marty" Smith, got 20 years. Smoot's accomplices were indicted in the TTP takedown last week.

Crack dealer Richard Morris got 20 years.

Old people were duped by "deception burglars" in the Parkville area

Bobby Wayne Rhodes got 41 months for tainting baby formula.

Two child porn guilty pleas: Frank Pierce Young, age 78, of Annapolis, Maryland, and Harold Leroy Rivers, age 62, of Pikesville.
Meanwhile, the House OK'd child porn (bill making possession a felony)

Groaner of the day: What did "Bowzer" say to the musical imposter bands?

Alleged Child Rapist Indicted

Today the Baltimore City Grand Jury indicted Timothy Price, 31, of Owings Mills, on a 15-count indictment alleging second-degree rape, sex offense and sexual child abuse. Court documents allege Timothy Price had sexual intercourse with a 12 year-old victim on three occasions at different locations between December 2007 and January 2008. He is currently being held on a $1 million bail in the Baltimore City Jail. An arraignment is scheduled for March 20, 2008 before Judge John P. Miller, Room 428 Mitchell Courthouse.

February 27

Holy cow! Someone got shot in Edgewood. I don't think that's ever happened before!

Three murders this week in the Ink: Henry Davis, Murriel Chew and an as-yet-unidentified man. Plus more on the thoroughly WTF?! case of Juanita Robinson.

"Attorney In Bus Beating Wants Case Dismissed" Well, duh!

HoCo slugger Kevin Klink got 13 years. His victim's father didn't know how to take Klink's apology.

In the county, Nicholas Weaver was formally charged in the 2002 murder of David Baskin, Jr. Weaver was returned to Baltimore yesterday from New York after waiving an extradition hearing.

A couple of armed gas station robbers were nailed by police after stealing money from a teenager in the Deener.

The cells in their cells provide "extraordinary telephonic opportunity."

A 16-year-old set off an explosive device in his Millersville high school, and now faces felony charges.

15 Years for Parolee's Assault With Dog

At a hearing today, Charles Smith, 23, of the 3100 block of Belmont Ave., pleaded guilty to two counts of second degree assault. Judge Timothy J. Doory sentenced Smith to 15 years in prison, 10 years for one assault and a consecutive five years in prison for the other. Details from the SA's office:

On April 20, 2006 Agent Kimberly Collins and Lt. Robert Thumma were working in their jobs as members of the parole retake warrant task force when they were attempting to serve the parole retake warrant against Smith at his home, 3117 Belmont Ave. Smith was on parole for attempted murder and was in violation. Upon arrival they were met with Smith’s mother who stated her son was home. He came down the steps along with his pit bull and the dog ran out the open door and started running down the street. Smith told the agents the dog was extremely vicious and would only answer to him. Because there were children playing outside, the agents allowed Smith to attempt to retrieve his dog. Smith ran after the dog with Agt. Collins behind him on foot and Lt. Thumma following in a patrol car.

Smith caught the dog, but as Agt. Collins was about to place him under arrest he threw the pit bull through the open window of Lt. Thumma’s patrol car and directly onto Lt. Thumma’s lap. Lt. Thumma was able to get out of the car uninjured, leaving the dog locked inside. Smith, in an attempt to elude capture, ran at and pushed Agt. Collins with such force that her feet went over her head and her head hit the concrete sidewalk. Smith eluded arrest that day and was eventually arrested in November 2006. Agt. Collins sustained a fractured skull and a large hematoma behind her ear and to this day continues to suffer from headaches.

Assistant State’s Attorney Staci Pipkin prosecuted this case.

UPDATE: A source tells us the dog is fine and living with the defendant's mother.

Who's that cop?

From a Sun article by Annie Linskey and Nick Madigan:

The Baltimore Police Department is considering changing a long-standing practice of quickly releasing names of officers who kill or injure citizens ... Under one plan, the officer's name would be released only after investigations by the department's internal investigation division, homicide and the state's attorney's office ...

The article goes on to say that "police officers involved in departmental shootings could become targets themselves." I wonder how many police officers have become targets, compared to the number of witnesses who have been attacked/killed to keep them from testifying?

Additionally, do police officers deserve more privacy than "normal citizens" who are being investigated for possible criminal actions? Should the names of alleged sex offenders not be released unless the person pleads/is found guilty? Does "innocent until proven guilty" only apply to police officers?

Discuss amongst yourselves.

February 26

The latest murder victim was ID'd as 23-year-old Eric Jones, who was shot to death in the living room of a rowhouse on W. North Ave.

Frank Rodney Jones Jr.'s body was found last week in Davidsonville, but his car and his killer are still missing.

Ryan J. Butler Sr. got 50 years for killing his former girlfriend. From Jennifer McMenamin at the Sun:

When DNA analysts examined blood evidence from the Baltimore County townhouse where Anna Marie Bergman was shot to death, they isolated a genetic profile of not only the 20-year-old murder victim. Mixed with her blood, they also found DNA of her 3-year-old son.

"It was probably tears," prosecutor Michelle Samoryk told a judge yesterday at a plea hearing in the case.

In HoCo, Kevin Klink got 13 years for killing Robert Brazell Jr., 18, with a baseball bat.

Samuel and Donna Merryman of HarCo were accused of starving their 8-year-old adopted son to death; they pleaded guilty yesterday to first-degree child abuse.

Is it just me, or does "Tree Top Piru" sound like some long lost Pokemon? You know, maybe Pikachu's thuggish little cousin or something. (There's more about the bust at the Examiner, along with an interview with Rod and a handy glossary.

The feds are investigating BPD Officer Tommy Sanders' fatal shooting of Edward Lamont Hunt.

There was some hostage action in Cherry Hill yesterday.

"Dennis" is (allegedly) a dirty, dirty man.

Bully Be Gone!

Lamarr Harris needs to take some lessons from Terrance Washington, who is still on the loose and probably not getting skull drunk.

Ew, gang rape in a Federalsburg Junior League baseball dugout.

Dang, That's a Lotta Gang

Here's the DOJ press release about the 28 indicted "Tree Top Piru" gang members. The indictment includes allegations of five murders, witness intimidation, drug trafficking, RICO violations and poor punctuation.

February 25

Feels like old times. We had five shootings last night and this morning, two of which were fatal. A man was killed and a woman was injured in the 700 block of W. North Ave., a 23-year-old man died last night after being shot five times at the beautiful corner of N. Milton Ave. and E. Chase St., a gunman opened fire in a corner grocery on N. Gilmor St. and hit one man, and a 70-year-old man was injured during a home invasion last night in the 3500 block of W. Forest Park Ave.

Julie B. takes a look at some of the realities of dealing with domestic violence in the city. For instance

Shenera Norris told a Baltimore judge that she did not want prosecutors to pursue criminal charges against her boyfriend - a man accused of battering her and threatening to kill her with a butcher knife. ... So last May, the cases against Dale Rodney Jones were suspended. On Feb. 15, police said, Jones stabbed Norris, 31, to death. Still holding the knife after the attack in Norris' apartment building, Jones, 48, was shot to death by a police officer.

When demons talk, S.T. Nelson listens.

In the Southeastern, it's fake cops vs. real cops. Also, a whole bunch of people got stabbed.

If you see a blue '98 Land Rover with Maryland tags 01573M6, the dude driving it might kill you.

The infinitely wise City Council is going after dirt bikes.

The infinitely inept Dept. of Transportation is still being troubled by fake parking tickets.

Somebody is really pissed at mailboxes in HarCo.

Annapolis PD chief Joseph Johnson is interviewed in The Examiner.

All of the young (alleged) sex criminals aren't in the city; some of them were busy raping a 12-year-old girl in Federalsburg.

Weekend

Friday, Governor Martin O'Malley announced yesterday a coordinated federal state and local crime fighting effort ... for Annapolis!

Baltimore City Solicitor George A. Nilson: we want more work!

The MD senate has made it a misdemeanor for educators, human services workers, police officers or health care practitioners who have reason to believe a child has been abused to not report the evidence to authorities.

Barbara Mikulski and Ben Cardin are still against Rod Rosenstein's judgeship. It's a cautionary tale: learn to do a job well, then you'll get stuck with it forever!

What the?! Educators complain of truant preschoolers.

Billy Murphy on Billy Murphy: defending a real Clay Davis would be "in the seven-figure range."