Three Little Trees

Adan Espinoza Canela

The Espinoza/Canela case has been dragging on for nearly a decade, but is the end near? Adan Espinoza Canela has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit murder,* making him eligible for parole in 2019. We never really found out what happened to make him want to kill his three young cousins, but the prevailing theory is Adan's now-dead stepfather Victor Perez's spurned advances to Adan's mom ChaCha. To paraphrase my attempted summary in March, Adan "Canela is the son of Chacha and Victor, who is father of [former co-defendant] Policarpio. Adan's mom ChaCha was Victor Perez's prior babymom, and Victor and Guadaloupe [alleged mastermind] were the parents of Policarpio Espinoza Perez." Here's a chart.* Said Adan in court yesterday, "I thought that my family knew me, really that they would understand ... but I see that's not it. … They broke my heart."
Said the children's father, Policarpio's uncle, Mimi's husband, Ricardo, "They were three little trees that were growing. They were cut. They will never flower again."

Three people were shot yesterday*

Last year O'Malley's Executive Director of Crime Control told me there was no DNA backlog, now the state is claiming a backlog for 304 days in the city and 542 days in PGC.* But whatever, we'll take the money.

Robbery and burglary plaguing the southeast as per usual.

Ew, a city police officer, Frederick Allen, was indicted on charges related to sex abuse of a minor.*
In sexier news, the entire Towson University cheerleading team was suspended* for an entire year for hazing.. details please.

In goobernatorial news, Gansler wants to raise the minimum wage. In our poll (top right) enthusiasm for him is decidedly meh, with only 18% supporting. Where is our third party candidate?!

Dine dine dash, fap fap knife

Life sentence for James Sweeny,* a former Locust Point resident turned head of Dead Man Inc, who admitted he ordered hits to help raise money for the gang.

Maryland's top court "has eliminated the $1 billion award of punitive damages to Baltimore County residents stemming from a massive 2006 gasoline leak in Jacksonville, and wiped out or ordered new trials on much of the $650 million in compensatory damages as well." WTF? (TDR subscriber link)

The Supreme Court is taking up MD's warrantless-DNA-collection law today

The General Assembly will be taking up a bill that prohibits the shackling of inmates in labor.

A man was stabbed in the shoulder in lower Charles Village as he tried to flee a robbery.

Levy case: police say they've been contacted by more than 2,000 former patients.

Police have released new COMSAT data.

If you want to listen to the General Assembly argue about guns, have at it.

Dine-and-dash artist Andrew Palmer, 46, got 29 days and a year for his seizure-faking routine. He has been arrested more than 80 times.*

Southern district: pot growers busted, plants photographed

WBAL has released photos of Robert Gladden pulling out a rifle in the Perry Hall cafeteria. Gladden got 35 years yesterday.

Out in Towson a couple having sex in a parking garage caught a guy watching them and masturbating, he then chased them with a knife.

"A trip that started out for bird watching in Laurel ended with the discovery of a human skull." Other human remains were also found in Overlea.

In HarfCo a teacher's aide at Bel Air High school was charged with having a sexual relationship with a 16-year-old student.