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Fenton Twitterations:  "Three women shot in past 24 hours RT @BaltimorePolice Shooting reported in Southwest District. 300 blk S Augusta. Adult female reported shot" ... "[Charles Richardson] 28-yr-old Columbia man serving life for killing 7-11 clerk there, found dead from head trauma in his cell at North Branch ... Cell mate was found outside cell holding bloody clothes" ... "‎25 murders this month; 45 this Aug/Sept compared w 32 last Aug/Sept. Hate to say it but zero chance city's annual downward trend continues"

... the woman shot on the 300 block of Augusta has died.* She was 19, sitting in a car. Police don't know if she was targeted or if it was a random act.

A 35-year-old female sedan service driver was shot in the arm and torso at Reedbird and Potee* Sts, she is alive. Before she died she told police she was shot by an unknown passenger.*

Charles David "Face" Richardson IV, the slain inmate, was serving a life sentence for two first-degree murder convictions, the Sun's Kevin Rector says he was "one of the most violent criminals in recent Howard County memory*"

S.T.F.U!! In spite of being caught driving a stolen, LoJacked car, in spite of his photo being picked out of a pile of photos by the victim, a jury acquitted accused carjacker Sidney Brewer of all charges yesterday.

Matt McDermott, a former teacher who made an appearance in HBO's "Hard Times at Douglass High" (and now working in advertising at idfive) notes that murder victim Audie Mickens* was a "key subject" in the 2008 depressyoumentary

Anthony Anderson

Batts met with the family of Anthony Anderson* who died during an arrest in E. Baltimore. There's a public viewing today for Anderson at the March funeral home at 1101 E. North Ave. from 1 - 7:30 p.m.

The Jizz is shocked, shocked I tell you, that video of last weekend's Towson beatdowns were posted online. So thoroughly offended and repelled that they posted the video online themselves, too, so that you may also clutch your pearls in horror. Meanwhile some Towson businesspeople,* including owners of the Sorry-ass saloon across the street, are coming to the Recher family's defense.

Also horrified: the inspector general re. SRB's $673k phone system,* which found that competitive-bidding protocols were breached, lies were told about the purchases and other deliberate concealment went on: "Top administration officials deliberately tried to conceal from [Joan] Pratt and [Jack] Young their plan to replace the phone system. ... About $673,000 in purchases were for equipment and installation of a new phone system, not the other uses that administration officials have contended." SRB's excuse: the guys who bought them, Rico Singleton and Damien Sharp, don't work for the city any more. And of course the reason Singleton doesn't work there any more is b/c he was canned after his ethical lapses from his previous job* in NY came to light after an audit there. Due diligence on potential hires is not this mayor's strong suit, is it?

And the Brew's Mark Reutter tried to go to a public Baltimore Development Corp meeting this morning, only to find himself mostly staring at a closed door, some very nice chairs and a philodenron in desperate need of sunlight. Somebody please find a window for that poor plant.

What's worse than speed cameras? The city spending $$ to study speed cameras. BTW noticed a new one is up at E. Northern Parkway and Waverly Way (between the 21239 post office and Hillen Rd.)

Way to stay on the case, Jayne Miller, we can all rest a little easier now that the city has admitted to taking down a guy's twinky-mannequin yard art.

And you probably already heard that the flea-market Renoir turned out to be stolen from the BMA.

"Doug Gansler

If you smelled something burning last night, that was just me getting roasted by Massachusetts AG Martha Coakley and Nevada AG Catherine Cortez Masto. They tell me that it was to "welcome" me as the new President of the National Association of Attorneys General."

This just in: booze enemas are 'extremely dangerous'. Especially if you don't take the little umbrella out first.

Free shows

The Fenton Tweets "Confirmation hearing for @BaltimorePolice Commissioner Anthony Batts set for 10/17 at 5 p.m., City Hall..." also "man pulled from harbor last night identified as Gerald Sheeran, 63, who had boat docked at marina"

The man shot in Waverly was ID'd as David Ervin, 41

Adam Meister notes that on Tuesday October 9 Morgan State is hosting a debate on both Question 4 and Question 6. Speaking against question 6 will be one Margaret Gallagher, as in, the founder of NOM (the MD Marriage Alliance confirms it). BTW, interesting that unlike some anti-marriage-rights activists, she doesn't think being gay is a choice. Well, that's refreshing. In case you'll have to miss it, here are her talking points. Ps. Ooo "Maryland Juice" got & scanned the full press kit (complete with cards using gay pride parade photos, above) and official filings for "Jump the Broom for Marriage." They're co-treasured by Raymond Henson, some relative of Julius, and claim to have $2.5 million to spend between now and November 6, so expect to see more. 

Five years for Devin Jarmal Smith, aka Sean Jones, the alleged ringleader of an identity-theft conspiracy that stole identifying information from more than 35 seriously ill patients at UMMC and forged checks and took out credit cards in their names. Co-conspirators Wendy Hinton, William White and Kenneth McDowell have all already plead guilty.

Scary daytime front-door bust-in robberies in HoCo

Police say Patina Morehead of AAC tried to run over her husband w a pickup truck

Ah, young love.

Neighbors say two weeks ago a SWAT team was called to the house of the four-year-old and his mother who were shot last night; there will be a Waverly community meeting at 6:30 tonight at JHU at Eastern, 1101 E. 33rd tonight. UPDATE: Police Tweeted: "UPDATE-detectives and patrol worked tirelessly over the night and arrested 26 year old Eric Ford Sr. For last nights double shooting."

Down in TX, James Sweeney, who some sources have claimed was co-founder of Dead Man Inc. with Perry "Rocky" Roark, pleaded guilty for his involvement in the gang's murder and drug-dealing conspiracies* in exchange for avoiding the death penalty. Twenty-one other members of the gang were indicted on 27 assorted  racketeering, drug dealing and gun charges by RR's office last year (and a 23rd, Kevin Bales, was indicted this year*). DMI is a whites-only offshoot of the Black Guerrilla Family, founded because apparently you have to be black to be a Black Guerrilla. El Fenton Tweeted yesterday, "Court records show sentencing in federal court for Perry Roark, who's pleaded guilty to leading DMI gang, has been cancelled. No explanation." Last I heard, Roark was being held in AAC on a murder charge. How modern: DMI has a Facebook page. (though James Sweeney's letter pledging to rescind his plea deal is not on it).

Two teenagers, a 17-year-old boy and a 14-year-old-girl, led PA and MD state troopers on a wackadoodle chase all the way from York County to Charles and Cold Spring, where their wild ride ended with the teens wrecking their Dodge pickup against a pole then attempting to flee on foot. Oh you crazy kids!

Fifteen federal years for Dallas Williams, a felon w/a gun and ammo

After two murders in two months at TeeBee's Place in Parkville (right over the city line), neighbors, state and local officials are pressuring the liquor board to take the bar's booze license. There's a hearing Monday at 1 in Towson, if you happen to be in town please drop by to lend these poor tormented neighbors some moral support.

The Sun's "Dark Room" feature reveals that Old Town Mall wasn't always a notorious heck-hole: once, many moons ago, men in wide collars rode bicycles by its fountains.* Also see Baltimore History: Block by Block on Tumblr

Thanks, Susan Jenkins, I was just wondering about that. Still no charges for blowhard bigot Don Dwyer, whose reckless boat-boozing sent seven to the hospital.

Burglary, robbery, burglary, robbery, theft from auto, mace in the face in the N. Baltimore Patch blotter

Wow, Baltimore city schools used to teach kids local history?! With crime statistics, no less. Amazeballs. 

@FOP3 Tweeted double "domestic related" shooting on Gorsuch, @Baltospectator reports it's a mom & 4-year-old. Update: both are expected to survive. Christian Shaffer reported it's the 900 block in Waverly, just south of what used to be Memorial Stadium

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Man found shot in a house at 3623 Old York Rd; crime has spiked in the Northern 

Oh my, remember the suspicious body of Eric Pendergrass, found floating in the middle branch of the Patapsco? There was talk of ties to the Blackwell brothers, but no one was charged. Now three people, including the original suspect Darryl Nichols plus Sherell Ferguson and a Donta Vaughn have been charged*.

Fenton Tweets that recently-retired Jesse Odom is unretiring at Batts' request*

a floater in Canton

ps. Occupy Baltimore says it's rallying tonight at 6 p.m. at E Biddle & N. Montfort

Instead of getting all Jayne Millery down at Julius Henson's broom-jumping HQ like she does in my dreams, Jayne Miller instead involved herself in a neighborly dispute involving nude mannequins. 

What's that aboot eh?

So Batts' first move as presumptive commissioner was to hire Judy Pal, right, as his communications pro.* Pal was born in Canada and has held jobs with a bunch of police agencies, as well as with Madison Square Garden and the Labatt Brewery of Ontario. Fenton and LinkedIn report that most of her jobs she stayed in for only about a year (and between the time that I started this post until I finished, the security was changed on her LinkedIn profile-- I saved it from the cache and uploaded screenshots here). According to her bio with the Public Agency Training Council, she has "extensive communications experience dealing with sensitive and image-threatening issues such as criminal conduct of police officers, international scandal, fractured community and media relations..." which will no doot come in handy. According to a speaker bio she is also "credited with re-tooling the image of the largest police department in Atlantic Canada." Yesterday Batts was also quietly sworn in as an officer-- the only photo appears to be from somebody's cell phone. He'll officially be be commissioner after the City Council confirms him. Sounds like there's no question that that'll happen, though I think there are some quality reasons to have questions about this guy, eh?

Rage on the East Side after the death of Anthony Anderson,* 46, the guy who police at first said choked on drugs he was swallowing to avoid arrest, then amended to say "its not clear whether he OD'd or died another way." According to witnesses, the "other way" was Anderson was run up on from behind by officers, who lifted him "as high as a basketball hoop" and slammed him to the ground and kicked him. Police acknowledge he had at least one broken bone; autopsy results are pending. Fox has video of citizens and the Baltimore Peoples {sic} Assembly protesting yesterday.

The Ink has details on last week's seven murders

Stephen Gerwitz is back in court for the trial of Sydney Brewer-- sounds like the car Brewer allegedly stole was equipped with LoJack, hyuk

The Justice Policy Institute has a new report out on the various fucktifications of our city's fucktified bail system

The man shot by an officer in Dundalk near Merritt Point Park was ID'd as 22-year-old Joshua Lopez of La Marque, Texas.

Your usual burglaries and violent boyfriends and husbands in the SE Baltimore Guide Blotter, and eww, a woman on Eastern Avenue got pee in her house due to seepage after a drunk guy took a leak on her door.

Ed Ericsson reviews Michael A. Wood Jr.'s Eliot

The trial of Tom Kiefaber has been delayed til November; Kiefaber reportedly told the court he needs more time to arrange for a public defender because he's "basically homeless" 

Er... Kevin Kamenetz is blaming Brian Recher, owner of the Recher Theater, for the bad behavior of his patrons outside. (What would they have him do?) And bad news, ass-humping white girls, Recher responded by postponing the "Barstool Blackout" event that was scheduled for tonight "until this whole thing blows over." 

Interesting poll numbers this morning from Gonzales: 58 percent of MDers willing to opine to strangers on the telephone support the Dream Act (surprisingly high), expanded gambling is at a a virtual tie, and what WBAL is calling "same gender marriage" is favored by a mere 51 percent of poll-takers (which should be worrying to supporters, as people have a way of telling pollsters they support same-sex marriage then voting against it in the booth, aka the Bradley effect). Also the poll margin of error is 3.5 points, so, meh.

'My mommy is my daddy!'

An unidenified man was shot to death next to a minivan on Mosher St. *

Anthony Batts started work today,* after Barksdale left for medial leave and head of criminal investigations Col. Jesse Odon retired, leaving only Deputy Commissioner John Skinner to drive the bus.

A beating victim from 1997 has been added to this years' toll, the Chesterfield Ave victim was ID'd as a former murder suspect*

Police are ISO these two homicide suspects (left & right) for the murder of Clarence Ross on Pulaski St on Sept 16

"Officials Acknowledge Roosevelt Park Drug Dealing."

Hack cabbie to passenger: “I’m not taking you all the way to Columbia. Give me all your money or I’m gonna shank you.”

WJZ has pictures of the Towson disorderlies (though the TJ's-lot-hand-shooter has yet to be found)

New laws for motor-scooter drivers, and starting October 1 kids under 8 all have to be in booster seats. I'm all pro-safety and anti-internal decapitation and such, but the evidence isn't exactly conclusive on the safety advantages of booster seats. If 80% of parents can't install car seats right, wouldn't it make more sense to require cars be equipped with adjustable-height seat belts? But then car companies would have to spend an extra $10 per car, so you know that'll never happen.

El Deuce's Christian Shaeffer tracked down the "Jump The Broom For Marriage" group to their lair. Oh, and lookie look who's behind it: awesome human being Julius Henson. Sounds about right.

Chronic ideopathic asspainitis

Anthony Barksdale is now out on indefinate medical leave*. Fenton Tweets 2/4 of the top command has left

Charles Village's intrepid courtwatcher Steve was on the scene of the robbery/carjacking trial of one Sidney Brewer

Seven years after the suspicious death of Robert Clay, "supporters" want Eric Holder to investigate. (Steve Janis, formerly of the Examiner and Investigative Voice, is now a producer at Fox 45.)

"Bloody Pi"

Four murdered this weekend, including a man killed at 3008 Chesterfield Ave. in what the commander of the NE called a "drug deal gone bad" two blocks from where Dr. Peter Marvit was killed six days ago; Antoine Sellers was found shot to death in the 600 block of Dumbarton Ave; Nabil Epps was stabbed to death on W. North Ave Friday, a man was found shot to death in the basement of a house in the 2700 block of Mura St. on the East side near Kennedy Krieger. And a man shot Thurs was ID'd as Audie Mickens*

City police shot a robbery suspect this morning; county police shot and killed a guy in Dundalk yesterday

Fenton reTweeted a pic of twentysomethings swarming the Recher Saturday night; "que" = Omega Psi Chi (ΩΨΦ) which has chapters at both Towson ("Iota Epsilon") and Morgan ("Bloody Pi") -- though of course note that it's unknown if any of the frat boys had anything to do with the rioting or shooting

Police say a man died after swallowing a bunch of drugs to avoid arrest, Fenton added via Twitter "Clarification/correction on last tweet: they initially believed he choked on drugs,but say its not clear whether he OD'd or died another way"

A couple of bank robbers got Rosensteined

A JZ story on the Aug 6 murder of Anthony Cureton in front of his mom's house in Cherry Hill makes it sound like a murder w/no arrests and no clues from a nearby crime camera is some kind of exception

Security upgrades to social services offices* five months after Pretty Diamond was stabbed by her mother and saved by a social worker who whacked Pretty's mom in the head with a chair; Kenisha Thomas goes on trial next month.

Meister finds a Zen koan of a 'No on 6' flier on Eutaw while out for a run: “My Mommy is my Daddy & my Daddy is my Mommy. So, who is my Aunt?” Urhm, Maggie Gallagher? ... Word on the street is the "Jumping the Broom" group was also out canvassing in Charles Village this weekend, which I'm sure went over like poop in a shoe. Here's their hideously offensive page, or if you have outrage fatigue, the concise summary from the "Holy Bullies" blog: "Maryland online store exploits African-Americans, babies, and slavery to promote homophobia." And is peddling some surprisingly expensive items, like $46 meals for poll workers ... and surprise, surprise, can't find a single "Dr. Sharon Jones" from Maryland on the Internets. 

Requiescat in Prosecutor

A profile of Jason Weinstein in the Sun reads like an obituary.* Remembered about Itchy* but had forgotten about his role prosecuting old Ed. Three Valentine's Day underpants gifts for three different ladies, those were the days.

Anthony Batts' Black-Eyed Past

Goodness. According to the Long Beach Beachcomber, our soon-to-be police chief Anthony Batts was been the subject of five domestic violence complaints in three different CA cities from different women, including two from his then-wife. He was also accused of covering up these complaints by altering police documents, going soft on Long Beach port security officers engaging in illegal lobster diving in order to keep the reports secret, then committing perjury while testifying about "Lobstergate" in court for the same reason. Retired LBPD Lieutenant Joe Rabe wrote to the paper, "“We all knew of his domestic violence issues, but Tony was Teflon coated; the rules didn’t apply to him, both in his mind and unfortunately in the minds of his superiors.” 

And wait, there's more-- when Batts left the Oakland PD, it was on the verge of being put into federal receivership due to noncompliance of a 2003 consent decree.  (Thanks for the links, Cham & disgruntled Patch commentor)

Fenton says he didn't mention the domestic violence/blackmail accusations in his story Sunday* because they couldn't be corroborated. But I do so hope someone will ask Batts about them during his confirmation hearing.

Hampden Attempted Rapist

Police released a flier-- kind of looks like a lot of sexually offensive Hampenites on the registry. As well as a few from the '18, Ernest Rice (right) and Frank Calabrese (left), don't you think?

Another Towson Town Center shooting?!

Freakin rilly? @BaltoSpectator Tweeted @2:23 a.m. "*SHOOTING* Towson Town Center. Confirmed reports of victim shot multiple times in parking lot. Also reports of numerous fights #Homecoming" "one  shooting victim confirmed so far. Possibly separate stabbing & several fights too" "Hearing incidents may have initiated at a party sposored by a fraternithy at Recher Theater. Note this is unconfirmed at this point." "York Rd remains completely shut down in both directions through downtown Towson due to earlier incidents." Update 9/23, wmar has a story up, guy was shot in the hand in the parking lot of Trader Joe's

Fenton delves into the lonely, tormented, redemption-seeking soul of Californian divorcee Anthony Batts* (as surmised from the photo; haven't read the article yet).

A man shot in Pen Lucy*