$$urgeFire Committee

Five months ago a $285k consultants' report commissioned by Batts and paid for by you lambasted the BPD for staffing 40% of its shifts with officers working overtime, wasting money, undermining morale and forcing police to operate in a reactive mode while chaos reigns.
    Now, as if that report never was, the department is asking for  $195k to "form a committee" to figure out how to do what Milwaukee is doing, $1.2 million in additional funds to staff even more overtime to fund policing "surges" (ooh, just like Iraq!!) and $418k to start up CeaseFire simultaneously with the Milwaukee plan. And they want $$ for some curfew centers too.

"For abducting a woman in broad daylight, taking her into a vacant, and forcing her to perform sexual acts, and then nearly stabbing her to death when she tried to escape, Kamal Muhammad 42, was convicted yesterday of attempted second-degree murder and fourth-degree sexual offense."

@baltimorepolice say the murder victim last night at 1:15 am at 615 Roundview Road was Najee Thomas of Baltimore, 14 years of age.
— Justin George (@justingeorge) April 22, 2014

Neighbors say 14 yr old Najee Thomas was shot trying to protect his Mother. pic.twitter.com/wkxfHohFdJ
— JoyLepolaStewart (@jlepolastewart) April 22, 2014

David of Halethorpe, alleged Paschall
family patriarch

Remember the Paschall family burglary ring? Carl junior has agreed to a statement of facts with all of the wire-cutting and blowtorching details. Is Carl Junior David's son, brother or nephew?* Shrug.

It's spring, so that means stun guns and drama at the Inner Harbor.

Urine Trouble

Shooting: 1900 block of Clifton Ave. Adult male shot in the chest. District Detectives are investigating. Dispatch time 11:21 am
— Baltimore Police (@BaltimorePolice) April 21, 2014

Police made an arrest in the murder of RaySharde Kevin Sinclair, 18, last Monday.* One Jimy(sp?) James Jackson was charged. According to his obit, Sinclair was from Richmond, VA.

Michael Jefferson Jr, 39, was found shot to death in Windsor Mill/Woodlawn on the county side on Easter. Also in the area, a 54-year-old man was robbed and shot.

Remember alleged murderer/kidnapper Timothy Virts? He's been indicted on nine criminal counts, including first-degree murder.

There was an armed robbery at Lynne's on the Avenue in Hampden, of all places.


"Was the urination and defecation taking place every day?.. You never took a picture of anybody urinating?" Citizens of Pigtown complaining about a liquor store were subject to rigorous questioning by the Liquor Board.

WTF? In AAC a midshipman tried to attack a taxi driver with a butter knife.

Air Force NCO (whatever that is), William S. Gazafi, 44, pleaded guilty to charges related to sexually molesting infants and toddlers. Aieeee

The man from PGC with the face tattoos, Antoine Perry (or is it Petty?) has turned himself in.

The apparent reasons behind Chicago's improving murder rate will sound familiar to long-time BCrime blog readers.

On a happier note, someone in the county vandalized a speed camera on Easter morning.

Smartly Stupid

Michael Mayfield

Michael Mayfield, 17 and a senior at Edmonson High, was shot to death in the 2300 block of Lyndhurst yesterday afternoon in Windsor Hills*. His uncle says he saw the whole thing and that a man in a blue sweatshirt shot him four times and ran to a waiting car up the street; the uncle thinks it was mistaken identity.
    Fenton posted a video of peculiarly evasive police spokesperson at the scene (who is this guy?) and a photo of nine officers standing around while two men are sitting cuffed on the curb.

And a suspiciously dead person on the East side, near Crazy Ray's Auto Parts.

WTF?! A five-year-old had to have neurosurgery after "black juveniles" aged 10-14 threw concrete and rocks through the window of his home and into his skull on Edgecombe Circle. Question: if someone standing on the sidewalk in front of your house throws a rock through your window and fractures your preschooler's skull, is it legal to shoot and kill them from inside your house?

Here's a terrifying helmet cam video of a bicyclist having bottles thrown at him and then attacked by random teenaged hooligans on Guilford Avenue.

Officer Anthony Williams got 45 days in jail for "ratgate," claimed he'd beat up a handcuffed suspect again if he had the chance.

A man shot himself inside the bathroom of the ER at Johns Hopkins,* "days after the medical center held a national symposium on safety inside hospitals."

The City Paper helpfully published a guide to the new weed legislation so you can get "smartly stupid ... because, you know, you can really still fuck things up."

The New Yorker's Jeff Toobin hung out at the "gritty" North Avenue McDonald's talking to ex cons for his Tavon White article.

A fatal home invasion in Salisbury.

County firefighter Nicholas Hannigan-- a deputy chief-- claims that lighting random fires at unoccupied homes is a firefighter "rite of passage."Okay then.

Today in bullshit, Fox News is targeting Elijah Cummings and claiming he was involved with the IRS "targeting Conservative groups." Never mind that that claim has been thoroughly debunked and progressive groups such as Occupy and the Coffee Party were targeted also, and never mind that if your group's name is Taxed Enough Already any extra IRS scrutiny you might get is well deserved -- manufactured butthurt is the Fox network's oxygen. When did you stop beating your wife, Elijah Cummings? 

Profiles in Ass-Kissery

A man was stabbed to death in the 1500 block of Pennsylvania Avenue.

Prolific serial robber has hit eight area banks.

So the session has ended, with $19 million going to film credits* (House of Cards alone claims to have spent $155 million in the state). Compare that to the Harbor Point project, an office complex for Excelon which had no choice but to be situated in the state and will net $393 million in taxpayer funds.* 

A crowd of about 200 is now booing the mayor pic.twitter.com/hTmuFRt0On
— Luke Broadwater (@lukebroadwater) April 8, 2014

Old Man Gotten By Big Bear

A woman shot last Wednesday in the Berea neighborhood was ID'd as Jasmine Grimes, 21.*

Two Three people hospitalized over the weekend* after being shot: a man on Cedonia Avenue shot in the back in front of his girlfriend by a masked man and a man in the 1100 block of Hollins St. And police found a victim shot dead behind a house on Kirk Avenue, the ME is trying to figure out when he died. We're up to 47 official murders.

Kasiem Davis

Shooting: 1600 block Hazel Street. Man reported to be shot in the stomach. Southern district detectives investigating.
— Baltimore Police (@BaltimorePolice) April 6, 2014

Police are ISO one Kasiem Davis for attempted murder and violation of probation.

They're also ISO a guy in a red hat who robbed the dollar store.

So the House has voted to decriminalize the marijuanas, which is kind of amazing. Joe Vallario, defense attorney, has stood in the way of reform for ages and was fixing to table the issue yet again, this time for two years. But House Speaker Mike Busch out-weaseled the weasel, assigning the bill to two committees. Well played. ("As Saturday’s events were unfolding, one of Vallario’s colleagues on his committee could be overheard telling him: 'Sometimes you get the big bear, and sometime the big bear gets you.'")
    And here's a funny thing, assuming O'Malley signs the law and makes it a mere ticket to possess the sticky icky icky, drug "paraphernalia" -- papers, bongs, even the baggie the weed rides around in-- would still be a misdemeanor to possess. So you'll have to smoke it by holding a flaming bud between your fingers, I guess.
   But this is still good news. If nothing else it let the local news media give the green light to metaphors about criminalization going up in smoke.
   Oh, and guess who didn't vote? Admiral Drinky Dranky, who spends his weekends in the clink,* no doubt in the company of pot smokers with poor timing.

It sounds like an urban legend and police won't confirm it but neighbors swear that some old fat guy is trying to poison dogs in Hampden with dosed chunks of sausage.

A 33-year-old female science teacher at Archbishop Curley, Lynette Trotta, is facing criminal charges for sexytimes with a 17-year-old student.

City school bus drivers won a $1,250,000 settlement against their bus company employers for unpaid overtime.

So Revenge of the Nerds: cell phone peepers have been creeping and peeping in the women's bathrooms and showers in College Park.

Amy Holland

County alleged serial business robbers Nick Hornberger and Amy Lynn Holland indicted, linked to six robberies.

Police are ISO these robbers who mugged a guy in Owings Mills. Hey, when's the last time the city police released images of someone wanted for robbery of a person?

Not sure where Walkersville is, but their rapist sketcher is much better than our rapist sketcher. Also if you live in Walkersville beware the pointy-headed trail pervert.

Magnificent Seven

Three people shot in four hours Monday* night, one fatally. But hey--

Baltimore Police have reported 6 homicides for the month of March. How rare is that? It's never happened before in 44 years of data
— Justin Fenton (@justin_fenton) April 1, 2014

Update: Per @justingeorge, one of the victims who self-transported to the hospital last night died. Revise March total to 7 victims
— Justin Fenton (@justin_fenton) April 1, 2014

Still! Was it the new crime plan? The horrible weather? Something else?

Everyone at Stevenson University freaked the fuck out* yesterday after reports of man with a gun-- turns out it was a couple of guys hunting in the nearby woods.

And old Joan Carter Conway is at it again, trying to keep booze bars in Belvedere.* Carter is the wife of city liquor inspector Vernon Conway* and has a history of supporting wack hooch laws and praying to decide how to vote.

Did the Sun ax the City Paper's April Fools issue, or is that the joke? In other Sun news, a chicken on a toilet.

A silver alert has been issued for 92-year-old Grant Brucker, last seen on Joppa Road in Towson.

Also in Towson, a turned-over dump truck full of dirt.

Stolen deaf puppy returned to Timonium couple.

Fifty guns found in Cecil Co home.

The Bold and the Stupidful

Police say they are increasing police presence around the 3400 block of Mary Ave in #BPDNED after 2 sexual assaults in the past 15 months
— Justin Fenton (@justin_fenton) March 28, 2014

Sketchy rapist

.. this is the fat rapist in the Northeast with Jocelyn Wildenstein lips who has broken into (at least) two women's homes* and assaulted them (left). Is it too judgy of me, or is it okay to say that the sketches coming out of the police department in the past year or so have just not been very good?

Another DUI* for 98 Rock DJ Stephen "Stash" Smith.

"Federal fake-pot crackdown continues"

Palmer?
Damn nearly killed 'er!

Blargh, Janay Palmer, the woman who was cold-clocked by Ray Rice in an Atlantic City elevator, married him on Friday. In case you were wondering, NJ's marital-privilege law doesn't apply to domestic abuse and wouldn't apply to an incident that happened before they were married. And the incident was caught on video anyway. So I guess she did it for love. Or money. Or stupid. Barf. Gag.

Senator Jamie Raskin and Delegate Sandy Rosenburg have introduced measures to require a warrant for drone tracking but nobody's going for it.

Passage of trans-rights bill has reportedly riled the crazies. But the bathrooms! Won't someone please think of the bathrooms?! Come quickly Lord Jesus!!  /s

Larence Godfrey

Dayum, in AAC an inmate scaled razor wire.* He put a blanket over it, but still, that's pretty hardcore there Larence.

Booze Cruise

Police now confirming a stabbing homicide in the 2100 block of Aliceanna St in Fells Point this morning at 2:30 a.m.
— Justin Fenton (@justin_fenton) March 27, 2014

Update, there's someone in custody* for the above stabbing.

Johniece Sheppard, 21, was killed and two others, a 17-year-old girl and man, were shot in a brutal home invasion* Tuesday night in the 3800 block of 8th street in Brooklyn. An alleged BGF member, one Laser Womack, has been arrested and charged.

Oh, and there were *no* shootings last weekend.

Ian Duncan explores how accused cop-shooter Gregg Thomas (and a bazillion other perps) got out of jail after serving less than 10 years for murder on account of his "good behavior."* 

Just because some guy's last name is Humbert does not make it okay to trump up charges against him and nickname him the "Charles Village Rapist." Quarles' ruling has some interesting details about the case, and wait a minute, does this mean that the Charles Village Rapist is still out there?

Down in Lothian a helpful neighbor whacked his neighbor's stalker with a pipe-- and is now facing attempted murder charges.

Edwin Lamont Fletcher

Police are ISO one Edwin Fletcher, 31, who allegedly assaulted cops and rammed a car in Salisbury while trying to escape arrest on felony drug charges. Probably he's in Baltimore city, because everyone loves to flee to Baltimore city.

With the Nikita Levy case closed we're learning that dude had more than 1,200 images and videos* in his collection.

It's about time! Ozzy Osbourne Inc. has sent a cease-and-desist to the Brewer's Art for their Ozzy ale, which rather shamelessly features an image of his hand on the damn can.

Some enterprising boozehounds stole half a million buck$ worth of Hennessey cognac from FP Winner LTD. That 2,142 cases.

Letters for AJ

How much does it cost a developer to wheedle $400 million worth of goodies out of city hall? Oh, just guess. Lower... lower... ok, $21,750. Apparently a lobbyist is a mere $1500.

A fatal police-involved shooting in Parkville*, the deceased was ID'd as Ryan Charles Deitrich, 21. A man was also shot and killed by police in Salisbury.

Surprising but true: after a deadly January, homicides are actually down for the moment.*

Vernan Lee Cowan got 30 years tacked onto his sentence for killing cellmate Ricky Bailey. Not to be confused with homicide victim Ricky Bailey who died last December 8.

City officer Charles Hagee, who was on Jessamy's "do not call" list, was arrested after calling a call girl* (who was 14. Wonder if she really exists?).

Maryland men's motorcycle meth club conspiracy case comes to close. Also the Outlaws have an app on Facebook.

His mom says he's innocent, but it's not looking good for accused cop killer Gregg Thomas,* what with the gun being found in his house. Oh, and he served 10 years for murder.

Old but notable news:
WBAL apologized for their reporter John Patti's sloppy-azz Columbia mall shooting coverage,* in which it was claimed that the victims were involved in a love triangle. In fact, there's no evidence that the victims and the shooter had ever even met. Whoops!

Anthony "AJ" Jones

80's kids will remember:* Wergy Tergy puddin' pie, his brother snitched so he made him die*? He's been in solitary for sixteen years and completely isolated from jailhouse peers. But the lawyer says he's not the drug lord he used to be, so now Anthony Jones can call his family.
    Other memorable moments from AJ and his friends: trying to kill a rival with Drano in a syringe* and dressing up like BGE workers to try to kill him again. Putting on Ronald Reagan and George Bush masks with his pal Mookie,* his lieutenant who escaped out of Judge Prevas' bathroom window* to play hooky. It took more than 100 witnesses to take down his businesses.* But he bought children ice cream on hot days* so neighbors turned a blind eye when he set witnesses ablaze. Also, he threatened to kill their mothers, and from jail tried to kill his own stepbrother. It might make a good movie or a miniseries-type show, but if you weren't from Baltimore would you believe it? Probably no.

Horse, Meet Hen

Update from police: Teen shot on Feb. 10 in the 2900 block of Eager St. has died from his injuries: Gregory Ware Jr, 18
— Justin Fenton (@justin_fenton) March 17, 2014

Gregg Thomas

Danyae Robinson, 31, and Derrick Brown, 20, were convicted of the shooting that killed 12-year-old Sean Johnson.

There's an impressive interview-- WJZ hottie Rochelle Richie interviewed Baltimore's Most Wanted Gregg Thomas on his way to turn himself in-- Richie then flagged down officers in case Thomas changed his mind. Thomas' mom says he didn't do it. The officer is in critical-but-stable condition.*

A woman was attacked by a pack of teenagers in Canton. And the Southeast got through a week with only two reported robberies, wow!

A day before the Board of Estimates is set to approve repayment of $3.7 million in missing or misspent federal funds for the homeless, accusations of no-show jobs in the mayor's IT department.* Council VP Ed Reisinger: "Who's watching the hen's house? We can't wait until the horse gets out of the gate."

Aggravating Salience

Antwain Eccles, 33, was convicted of first-degree murder after killing an unnamed victim after an argument at a party.

Two teenagers were assaulted on the #15 bus near Ensor and Madison Streets.

A man was shot around 1:30 a.m. in the 5800 block of Belair Road.

Police are ISO this cranky-looking aggravating assailant who assaulted someone at a Reistertown BP station.

@JohnsHopkinsSPH live-Tweeted @DavidMKennedy1 's comments.

"If you are a black man who does not graduate high school, your lifetime chance of serving felony time is now 70%." – @DavidMKennedy1
— JHU Public Health (@JohnsHopkinsSPH) March 12, 2014

And Fenton in live-Tweeting SRB's Douglass High meeting on the West side.

The BPD wants $700,000 more taxpayer dollars for more CCTVs.

#BPDCrimeLab: 11 DNA hits were recorded in Jan resulting in leads for 4 B&Es, 1 Homicide, 5 Sex Offenses & 1 Robbery. #ASaferBaltimore
— Baltimore Police (@BaltimorePolice) March 12, 2014

SRB got odd with reporters trying to confirm that she's running for re-election in 2015, possibly because she already confirmed that three years ago.* Or maybe she was being funny?

U of MD running back Wes Brown found with loaded gun, drugs, ammo in dorm room.*

HoCo police confirmed that the Columbia Mall shooter had mental health issues and no connection to his victims.

The NSA has been spying on people via a Facebook server.

The Weekend That Was

Homicide: 2833 Presbury Court. This morning an incident that had originated as a questionable death on 03/07 has been ruled a homicide.
— Baltimore Police (@BaltimorePolice) March 10, 2014

Police say the homicide they just tweeted was a man found inside a home in a state of decomposition. He had been shot multiple times
— Justin Fenton (@justin_fenton) March 10, 2014

Jowan Louis Henry, 17, was stabbed to death on Mura Street Saturday night.

Charles Dante Patterson and Kenneth Alexander Brooks II of the 21206 have been charged in the shooting that led to a 2-year-old being struck with shrapnel in Overlea.

A department directive that's been in place for more than a year* and the $250k settlement the BPD just agreed to pay to Christopher Sharp* has apparently had zero apparent effect on the officers on the street, as evinced by this officer bullying, harassing and shoving Sun reporter Christopher Assaf.

BALT CITY | SHOOTING | 2400 BLK DRUID HILL AVE | 28 Y/O M WITH MULTIPLE GUNSHOT WOUNDS,
— Baltimore Metro News (@BaltMetroNews) March 9, 2014

In case you didn't hear, missing 11-year-old Caitlyn Virts and her father were found at the Colonial Inn in Florence, SC after the motel owner recognized them from Facebook. Also, rooms at the Colonial Inn are $36 night.*

Liars, liars, pants afire: The Sun's Luke Broadwater and Scott Calvert obtained more city documents re. Brekford's speed cameras,* proving yet again that officials were lying liars when they said Brekford's contact was ended because of problems with one camera and a misprint of the company's mailing address. In other news, the Brew reports that after 14 years Scott Calvert is leaving the Sun for the Wall Street Journal.

Those Ravens just can't stay out of trouble! Now an offensive lineman, Jah Reid, was arrested for being offensive at a Florida strip club.

In HarfCo, "Teen Stabs Friend During Sleepover"

Not Baltimore but a riveting read: CT shooter Adam Lanza's father talked to Andrew Solomon of the New Yorker.

Imminent Danger

 This is all very bad. A woman was found dead, homicide is suspected and 11-year-old Caitlin Virts has disappeared* with her non-custodial parent Timothy from Dundalk. An Amber Alert was issued, plz be ISO a black 1999 Dodge Durango with Maryland license plates 5AJ4458, call 911 if u see. Authorities say she is "not supposed to be with her father."

In the NW, 14 people, one nicknamed "Bubbles," arrested for selling "Hellraiser" and "Rick Ross"- brand heroin.

In less urgent news, interesting developments in the case of one David Shimon/ Shimony, a counterfeit currency case with links to Israel and South Ossetia, Georgia that we first blogged about way back in 2007. The story might have been forgettable but then a few years later we got a letter from a Towson law firm requesting to take the post down citing "imminent danger," to their client, so we took the post down, even the tidbit about a Dial-A-Porn connection. Then few months later we got an email and phone call from someone claiming to have been scammed by this person, requesting that we put the info back up. So we did. We just do what people tell us to do, basically.
    Then, until 2012, no contact. But then the lawyer letters returned to our inboxes, from one Charles J. Bishow at Friedman & Friedman LLP. And then we got a tip from someone in CA who runs a blog about timeshare properties, of all things, who had been alerted by a reader about a sketchy-sounding timeshare company called SmartLifeSolutions.com on Clarks Lane with a defunct web site. The timeshare blogger did a little digging, and here's what he found: 21 aliases or companies, and as court documents show, Hayim Sharon is one, and more than $12 million in judgements against him and also a sentence modification for crack use.
   A different tipster also found that he is now claiming to be a home inspector, though no home inspector is registered in the state by that name. Since his release David Shimon/Shimony's been involved with the companies Azimot, LLC, Innovative Products, We Show Talent LLC and Capital Property Consulting ("Unwanted Inheritance? Together we can find a solution."), which claims to be in the Legg Mason Tower yet, strangely, doesn't have a web site. The company claims an 8 1/4-15% ROI and is also selling very cheap properties in Florida and renovating properties in Canton. Capital Property is in turned owned by Green Shift Energy LLC., which this guy also claims he owns.
   The 2007 court documents also connect Shimony to JLR Development LTD, a $17 million ponzi scheme/money laundering operation busted in 2008.
    And here he is with Bob and Kendall Ehrlich. Small world, small town!

COINTELPRO GIP - BLACK HATE

After 44 years, Marshall "Eddie" Conway, now 67, has been released from prison* under the Unger ruling. Conway was on "Democracy Now" this morning (at the 10-minute mark). The Baltimore branch of the Black Panther Party was apparently actually founded by officers in the Baltimore Police Department at the order of the NSA/FBI as part of a counterintelligence program called the COINTELPRO Ghetto Informant Program (GIP) operation BLACK HATE, which sought to "neutralize" local political activists after the Baltimore Riots. GIP employed about 7,000 agents between 1968 and July 1973. Conway claims an unknown member of the BPD framed him for officer Donald Sager's murder and for wounding another officer; prosecutors claim that the detail of a stolen watch tied Conway to the case. In 2001 the Baltimore City Council passed a resolution urging then-gov Glendening to pardon Conway,* a notion police and prosecutors fought vigorously.

Monday night in Overlea a two-year-old in a van was struck by shrapnel after someone shot at the van.

City officer Alec Taylor was arrested on animal cruelty charges in MoCo after beating a 7-month-old puppy to death.

The man who died of a heart attack after an altercation with MTA officers was identified as Antonio Moreno, 67.*

Short-fingered vulgarian Sam Zell of Tribune Company fame is is #8 on Salon's list of the 1%'s most stunning narcissists for his money quote "The 1 percent work harder, the 1 percent are much bigger factors in all forms of our society."

County police are ISO alleged Towson Target robber Razino Brooks.

Grumpy Old Men

William Brown

One Andre Hill, 50, was stabbed to death in the 3600 block of Seven Mile Lane,* and "person of interest" is in custody, 53-year-old William Brown.

Kevin Carroll

Kevin Barnell Caroll, 34, was charged for the murder of MTA driver Craig Ray Jr.  Ray was shot in the back in what his family* and police say was an ongoing argument about loud music.*

Back in the old BCrime archives, a commenter noted that the case of Zukael Stephens, accused of beating transgender activist Marcus Rogers to death and setting his apartment on fire in 2006, has become an episode of "Forensics: You Decide." Spoiler alert, Stephens was mistakenly released by prosecutors who mistakenly dropped all charges* somehow then was later found not guilty by a jury.*

Police say the murder of Sean Johnson, 12, in 2011,* was the result of the BGF's Danyae Robinson, 31, and Derrick Brown, 20, going on a random rampage to send a message.

Someone set a Cadillac SUV on fire in Brooklyn, police are looking for a suspect who possibly has "burned hands."

Reason 5,364 why I will miss the City Paper so, so much: stories such as "Money-laundering case sheds light on Maryland's grease-theft economy." Apparently selling used grease is a way to launder money. TIL. 

WTF, you guys? A woman in labor and her partner were robbed at gunpoint * allegedly by the two guys at right, 24-year-old Devery Kelley of Annapolis and 44-year-old Cornell Robinson of Washington, D.C. Now that is cold. Meanwhile Del. Mary Washington has introduced a bill to stop the shackling of inmates during labor, birth and recovery, the House Judiciary Committee has passed an amended bill and tomorrow there's a Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee hearing. ... Starting to think that men don't really get what labor is about, if they think it's necessary to be all with the shackling and the guns and such.

Corrections lieutenant Jason Weicht was acquitted of civil-rights and obstruction-of-justice conspiracy charges-- the only one of the 15 charged in the beating death of Kenneth Davis to not be convicted of something.

Shots were fired at McDaniel College in sleepy Westminster, and Sunday morning someone tried to rob a student with a knife.

But... gangs!

Craig Ray Jr.

The family of the MTA bus driver Craig Ray Jr. says he was shot to death in the back because he asked his neighbor to turn down loud music.

And for two recent homicides there is a person in custody,* victims Terry Davis, the 48-year-old nurse on the Alameda, and Ina Jenkins. Police are terming both of these as "domestic," whatever that exactly means (I think it now just means "not about drugs."). The person arrested for Davis' death, Donathan Booth, claimed to have been in a long-term relationship with him before killing him for his BMW. But Jenkins lived in Curtis Bay, quite far from where she was found, and police aren't saying what the connection is between her and her suspected killer Robert Lee Copes Jr., who has a criminal record that includes burglary and assault.

A 27-year-old man was shot to death last night* in the 700 block of N. Augusta Avenue.

June Stansbury was convicted of two counts of attempted murder, three counts of robbery with a deadly weapon, five counts of use of a handgun in the commission of a felony or crime of violence, burglary, and related conspiracy charges. He shot two people during the course of an armed robbery, one victim was 19 and one stabbed June in the neck while it was all going down. The case was covered by Charles Village courtwatcher Steve Gewirtz.

oo boy, Anne Arundel Chief of Police Mike Pristoop will never live down repeating information* from satyrical web site the Daily Current ("Ann Coulter Refuses to Board Plane With Black Pilot," "Obamacare Death Panel Orders First Execution") as part of his anti-pot-legalization testimony in Annapolis. The story has gone from 45 to 100+ reports in a few hours and has been picked up by sites such as BuzzFeed, Forbes and the Huffington Post.

SRB doesn't want to be like Schmoke, but just like Schmoke her administration's been busted playing it fast and loose with HUD money and will have to pay back $3.7 million.*

Facts to store for future reference: GBMC is the only hospital in Baltimore County certified to administer rape kits, and Mercy hospital is the only hospital in the city.

"You have no rights." A county officer was put on administrative leave after getting lippy and using double negatives with a student who was legally recording an arrest in Towson outside of the Greene Turtle.

Chronicle of Rogues

An MTA bus driver, Craig Ray Jr., was shot to death* in South Baltimore, killed on the block where he lived.

A homeless man with a pellet gun is in critical condition after being shot by police* outside of the city homeless shelter on Fallsway.

Two parents were arrested for child abuse after their teenage boys were rescued from their filthy, unheated boat.

On the heels of the state being given a D- for integrity, Jill Carter and friends have sponsored a bill that would create a state Public Information Act Compliance Board. There's already an Open Meetings Compliance Board,* FWIW, though the most they can apparently do is fine $100-$1000.

Bernstein has filed for re-election and his campaign manager is Chad Kinney, former CitiStat director. And he shares a PR/media relations specialist with the Rusty Scupper and the Prime Rib.

Sabein C. Burgess was cleared on murder charges, 19 years after he went to jail.*

Have you seen an unknown black man in a black hoodie with an unknown handgun in black shorts? You could be eligible for $$!

So they're all grandstanding about pot legalization and taxation in Annapolis. Two-thirds of gubernatorial candidates and 53 percent of MDers support it, but if you think it has a prayer of passing you haven't hung around long enough. Maryland arrests 23,000 pot users a year at the cost of more than $100 million to taxpayers, not to mention fines, fees and lost wages for the arrested. That's a lot of fingers in the .. pot. Still, it's Mizeur's time to shine!
And oh lawd, the AAC police chief's testimony against the pot has spread like wildfire and made national news! If you didn't hear, Chief Michael Pristoop cited a story from the Daily Currant, a satyrical web site (another headline: "Obama Appoints Oprah As Ambassador to Russia"). "Everyone in the room dropped their laptops," Sen. Raskin told the WaPo (wait, literally?) Later Tuesday afternoon Pristoop apologized* for repeating an "urban legend."

A Glen Burnie man arrested for a parking-lot stabbing has a really weird beard.*

Our favorite Criminal Justice Lawyer Page Croyder is running against Judge Alfred Nance, on account of his well-known inappropriateness. But does she have a full platform, or is she just a protest candidate? Meanwhile the gov has appointed 23 judges.*

Short, Rich and Gone

El Chapo

Didja read this one? Didja hear about it? Sinaloa Cartel capo "El Chapo" (which translates to "corn pudding" or "shorty") aka Joaquín Archivaldo Guzmán Loera, was arrested at a Mexican beach resort. At some point the cartel had/has tendrils that stretched to Baltimore, with eight locals (one of whom had a tie to city comptroller Joan Pratt ) arrested on assorted drug charges during "Operation Xcellerator" from 2006-2008. In addition to his shortness, Chapo is famous for escaping prison in the laundry like Little Orphan Annie, being named Chicago's Most Wanted in spite of never setting foot in Chicago, looking kind of like a cross-eyed John Ritter at a young age and for his decades-younger mistress boldly birthing their little twin chapos at an L.A. hospital.

Speaking of cash crops, marijuana bills are on the Senate's agenda this week.

Overnight Shooting: 2400 Block of Wilgrey Ct. Adult male shot in the back. Homicide Detectives investigating. Dispatched time: 12:06 AM
— Baltimore Police (@BaltimorePolice) February 24, 2014

Shooting: 5100 Block of Cordelia Ave. A male is reported to be shot in the head. Homicide Detectives responding. Dispatched time: 8:11 PM
— Baltimore Police (@BaltimorePolice) February 24, 2014

Shooting: 2100 block of Koko Lane. Adult male reported to be shot in the leg.  District Detectives investigating. Dispatched time: 5:51 PM
— Baltimore Police (@BaltimorePolice) February 23, 2014

In what may be the last Van Smith story for the City Paper, coverage about the beating death of inmate Kenneth Davis in state custody.

May be second-to-last: how drug dealer Richard Anthony "Richie Rich" Wolford played himself by pissing off his own lawyer. .
.. Q for anyone: Is there any way to download the City Paper archives before the Sun assumes ownership? Also, how is the Tribune Co. able to buy anything just a year after getting out of bankruptcy?

And another dumb Raven, this time Deonte Thompson, got his dumb self arrested for poking smot in a car on public roads. Meanwhile police say they have video of Ray Rice knocking his fiancee out in a NJ elevator. And O'Malley himself was on TMZ, expressing his "tremendous amount of disappointment." Disappointment, really? I guess after having drug dealers burn a family to death it takes a lot to achieve "horrifying." 

The Waste of Your Pants

Sixteen months ago Tammy Brown, director of O'Malley's office of Crime Control and Prevention, told me there was no DNA backlog.* Now apparently the backlog is a year long.

Jason Bulmer, one of a pair who allegedly killed HoCo blogger Dennis Lane, has pleaded guilty.*

The Daily Mail of the UK explored Baltimore's "people of the woods."

Ugh, these twits. Starve-a-me Galling-Flake is "appalled" by the "disproportionate high" arrest rates for black pot possessors, but refuses to offer an explanation for why police are arresting so many people, a plan or support for decriminalization or lower penalties.
     Meanwhile Anthony Brown has clawed back his announced support for decriminalization.  "He said he is advocating a 'slow-as-we-go" approach.' 'I'm at the red light checking the intersection.'" Could that man have any less personality or backbone?
   And Bernstein has been focusing on diversion,* so good on him for that. But how do we arrest fewer people?
    Can you imagine how much we'd make if it was a $100 ticket? Well, you don't have to, 1,800 people arrested a year = $18,000. Hellz, make it a $1,000 ticket. But it would still pale in how much we'd get from the feds for treatment centers, for the extra inmates at the jail ($40,000 an inmate), not to mention all the lobbying $ the house and senate get from defense attorneys and the like, I guess.

Read more here: http://www.bellinghamherald.com/2014/02/21/3490655/brown-discusses-measures-on-marijuana.html#storylink=cpy

disproportionate high

Read More at: http://foxbaltimore.com/news/features/top-stories/stories/baltimore-mayor-appalled-at-disproportionate-marijuana-arrest-rates-african-americans-25690.shtml#.Uwf0BV7UVAJ arrest rate   

No good, very bad and horrible: The Tribune Company vis a vis the Baltimore Sun Media Group has bought the City Paper, the city's last non-niche independent newspaper and the last indie to be unloaded by Times-Shamrock of Scranton, PA. Everyone will be fired and the re-hires will be decamped to Calvert Street, and if they don't rehire Van Smith I will cut a bitch. Forecast calls for layoffs, shrinkage and lame attempts as being BuzzFeed.

@CTAssaaf

Wow, we haven't had a shooting in a week! Oh wait, here's a police-involved shooting. And, wait,

Shooting: 400 block E. Patterson Park Avenue. Man reported to be shot. Homicide Detectives called to the scene. PIO responding.
— Baltimore Police (@BaltimorePolice) February 21, 2014

Bystanders say victim is a homeless man known as "CJ." (The shelter is right here) They say 4-6 shots were fired
— Justin Fenton (@justin_fenton) February 21, 2014

Another update; Victim from N Patterson Park Ave shooting has died; no name, age provided yet
— Justin Fenton (@justin_fenton) February 21, 2014

A Digital Harbor nee Southern High School student was pistol-whipped, robbed by classmates.

Anthony Hopkins convicted in August 2012 Light Rail shooting of an unidentified "target." A witness said: "it appeared Hopkins had a handgun tucked into the waste of his pants"