The Sporting Life

A man was shot inside the Sportsmen's Lounge in the 4700 block of Gwynn Oak Ave, he survived.

Allegations: man charged with firing a gun into the air beaten by a flashlight, forced to sit in barf

Murder Ink has last week's five homicides. #27 was ID'd as Faruq Barakaat.

fatal hit-and-run at 36th and Falls this morning

Search warrants executed by the US Defense Dept.'s inspectors at Berg Recycling. Whatever were they looking for?

DP: "Swing Vote" Senator Alex Mooney not changing his mind

TVs, license plates, frozen foods, cars, construction equiptment and cash stolen and gun- and knife-point in the Messenger crime log

Murder-suicide in Randallstown

33 Years for Fratricide

The State's Attorney's office reports that Eric Jerome Little, 29, was sentenced to 33 years for stabbing his 16-year-old brother to death with a knife. Details:

On July 12, 2008 at approximately 3:30AM police responded to the 3700 block of Liberty Heights Ave. for a stabbing. Upon arrival, police discovered Calvin Ray, 16, suffering from a single stab wound to the heart. Medics transported Ray to Sinai Hospital where he was pronounced dead. During the course of the investigation, police learn that Little and his brother, Calvin Ray, got into an argument inside the house over personal living space and that argument escalated and led to a fight outside and that Little retrieved a knife from the house and stabbed Ray.

The sister of both the defendant and the victim delivered an emotional victim impact statement to the court, telling Judge Rasin that their mother lost two sons that day. The defendant issued a tearful apology to his family before being led from the courtroom.

Two arrested for Monday night's murder of James Flanary/ Flannery

Reports WBAL's Kate Amara, "Currently, the murder rate is on the rise again, but the overall crime rate is down, statistics showed." (Really? What statistics?)
UPDATE, a reader writes,

"to answer your question about the statistics Kate Amara cited: Homicides up 44%, but shootings down 48%, robbery down 19%, aggravated assaults down 19%, larceny down 18%, auto theft down 30%, total vio,ent crime down 18 percent, property crime down 15 percent, and total crime overall down 17 percent. Only thing besides homicide that is up are burglaries, up 5%. According to police stats as of 2/7."

Maybe it's time for another trip to Six Flags!

Hermann has more on Dixon's "day on crime"

The federal agents who arrested 24 Latinos during a 2007 raid at a Southeast Baltimore 7-Eleven felt pressure from supervisors to round up possible illegal immigrants to 'produce statistics.'"

Dixon granted an exclusive interview to JZ hottie Adam May.

A female officer who shall remain nameless shot a man to death after he allegedly attacked her.

Teens going apestuff on a bus led to a juvenile stabbed onboard at 38th and Ellerslie.

Shiteously depressing trial continues in Towson for the couple accused of starving their toddler son to death. The Sun's Nick Madigan reports that the "dad" "acted belligerently," called police officers "a bunch of gorillas"

Also in the county, a man was arrested after he "allegedly stabbed a woman with a steak knife and injured two other people following an argument."

David Anthony Johnson faces 30 years in federal prison and a fine of $1 million after pleading guilty to stealing his dead neighbor's identity

What the?! North Daktoa legislators decree that a fertilized egg = a person

New Blog Alerts

Fraud With Peril: former federal prosecutors blogging about white-collar crime in MD, DC & VA ... saucy headline writers who probably know more secrets than Mata Hari!

Mobtown Media Beat, a photojournalist delivers the lowdown

No Sugar No Sweet, a TU student on the realities of Baltimore living

... new to me anyway, "The Baltimore Brew". Joan Jacobson brilliance deboned by a first-person mom feature and infrequent updating, but potential abounds.

32, 33

James Flannery, 23, was stabbed to death in the 3900 block of S. Hanover St., and a young man was shot to death in the 5600 block of Sagra Road.

"Narrow majority of Md. senators oppose repeal of death penalty, survey reveals"
... reader support for the big D appears to have eroded over time, most recently only 40% of BCrime's readers agreed it should hang around. In 2006, readers seemed to be more conflicted (or maybe our readership has shifted). Poll results from October and December of '06.

A 54-year-old school therapist was arrested for the sexual abuse of a 13-year-old boy after a police officer saw the pair in a parked car together.

Van Smith on the darkening days of the Baltimore enterprising news story.

Meister visits the Criminal Justice Coordinating Council, muses, "It would literally take about ten determined intelligent people to bring down the current regime that controls Baltimore City."
... the Examiner is gone, with the Baltimore site redirecting to DC, but the Examiners remain. Examiner.com is apparently a separate business entity, with quite a different business model.

Web finds: the Newseum has today's front pages from around the U.S. and the world. Fascinating to see what makes it above the fold from town to town!
(thanks, Mom!)

need a job? The Feds are hiring.

The man stabbed to death in the Westfield neighborhood was ID'd as 62-year-old Daniel Lee Hoeck, a former Marine and engineer who had no criminal history and seems to have been beloved by his neighbors.

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Michael Davis, 30, was shot to death near the intersection of Erdman Avenue and East Federal Street.

Three additional nonfatal shootings on Saturday in the blotter: the 2400 block of Belair Road, the 400 block of E. 32nd St., in the stairway of a parking garage in the 1000 block of N. Charles St.

JHU junior drops retainer, gets expelled for .45 in waistband.
(thanks TM)
A different student-with-a-gun story at Steon Hill in PA this weekend; a trooper shot and killed a student after a three-hour standoff (thanks Buz)

RIP Examiner! We'll miss you!
Before Greg Kane was cut loose, free to roam Baltimore's streets, he filed one final scrappy column of unfinished business.

Seriously?! Hermann says that notes left to Baby Blevins on his death Dumpster were a high school art project, and Uncle Ben's billboards are next.

Elsewhere
In Towson, Daniel Ho Coverston, a TU student who was recovering from eye surgery was shot to death in his apartment.

"Anne Arundel County police said they've charged a Brooklyn Park man with attacking another man with a machete."

Int'l: Argentina, Ecuador, Colombia and Mexico have all recently moved to decriminalize small-scale drug possession for personal use

30

A man in his 60's known as "Mr. Dan" was found stabbed to death in the 6100 block of Glenoak Avenue.

A man was shot in the head at Erdman Avenue and East Federal Street after midnight this morning, the Deuce says he's still alive

More details on the circumstances of Eric Pendergrass' death; he "is believed to be connected to a violent drug gang whose feuding with rivals may have been responsible for at least five homicides last summer"

An officer allegedly involved in a bar fight has been suspended

And those are the good schools! Nine students from City and Mervo were arrested last week for fighting

What the?! In PA, "Judges Plead Guilty in Scheme to Jail Youths for Profit"

Media Blabber: "Pay For News Online? Really? Yes, Says U.S. News."

Douchebags Aplenty

... but no actual violence today. (Is that because there hasn't been any, or is this the news void?)

"State senators weigh domestic violence vs. right to guns...
"One bill would give judges the discretion to confiscate guns from the subjects of temporary protective orders ... The other bill would require judges to take guns after a final protective order is granted."

Orchard Mews resident to city officials: "Clean it up. You know what the problems are. You know who the people are who are causing the problems. Clean it up!"

A lot of kvetching but not much substance at the City Council meeting.
A.F. James MacArthur has video and some D2 & Fiona Apple at the Baltimore Spectator blog.

Lava Lounge of Canton was fined & had their liquor permit suspended after third underage-booze violation

D'oh! Drunk driver rear-ends police car in Rogers Forge

Teens furious at proposed new driving & curfew laws: "from what I've seen, teenagers are far more mature than some adults when it comes to driving" (see above)

"Baltimore Sun To Close Bureaus, Cut Staff"

DLA Piper laying off 5 lawyers, 12 other staff members in Baltimore

Lots of drama at the civil litigation firm Lord & Whip!

This just in: the terms "doucebag" and "skank" are not defamatory.
Other fun links at the TDR law blog round-up

Backstories

CP: Eric Pendergrass, found asphixiated in the Patapsco, was possibly abducted whilst delivering a mysterious plastic bag.

Robert M. Simels, pissing off prosecutors since Giuliani, is currently cold chilling in his Westchester crib waiting for his violent-Guyanese-cocaine-conspiracy trial.

Shank you very much

Two days, two teens stabbed at school! Today's victim was at Baltimore Talent Development High (considered a model for other troubled schools)

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CHuM's 3rd murder victim of the year was ID'd as Tracy Kinchen, 34.

The suspicious body found floating in the Patapsco was ID'd as Eric Pendergrass, 26; the ME's office said he died of asphyxiation.

Fox reports that a 16-year-old boy was stabbed at Carver Vo-Tech

Ex-gf of former Oriole Roberto Alomar is suing him for having sex with her even though he had full-blown AIDS(!!)

An AP reporter & photogThe Washington Post's Aaron C. Davis and photographer Marvin Joseph got inside Fowler's freezer.
(The ME is certainly a lot more outgoing than usual lately-- are the FOIA requests and persistent questions about the "undetermineds" getting to him?)

The Goucher French teacher accused of participating in Rwandan genocide has been arrested for a visa offense
(same story at "Exhibit A" if you're not registered on Washpost)

Prosecutor: genius Baltimorean brought $1 million worth of heroin (some of it "inside of MOSES' body") on a plane from Panama to ATL.

LOLz du jour: Like baggy pants on a pit bull, Sen. George W. Della Jr.'s "Effort to ban beer pong quickly abandoned"

10 Years for Marine's Killer

From the SAO:
"Today, Judge Paul Smith sentenced Maurice Crosby, 20, of the 5200 block of Ready Avenue to 10 years in prison for the involuntary manslaughter of Marine Reservist Michael Simms. The State asked for 20 years.

A Baltimore City Jury convicted Crosby November 1, 2008 for involuntary manslaughter second degree assault and possession of a deadly weapon with intent to injure following several days of testimony and eight-hours of deliberations based on the following facts of the case. On June 10, 2007 Maurice Crosby and several other persons became involved in an argument which escalated to a melee in the unit block of S. Chapel Street. During the melee Crosby produced a knife and fatally stabbed Michael Simms, 19. Two other persons were injured with the knife but survived the assault.

A co-defendant, Erica Ammenhauser, 21, of the 200 block of Durham Street pled guilty to conspiracy to commit first-degree assault June 10, 2008. Under terms of the plea agreement, announced in open court, she was required to testify truthfully, if called, in the murder trial of Maurice Crosby. The State did not call Ammenhauser as a witness in the prosecution of Maurice Crosby."

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The Deuce reports a double shooting with one fatality in the 1700 block of E. 32nd Street.

27

An unidentified man in the 1700 block of N. Smallwood St.

The Ink details last week's three murders, all on Feb. 4.
"Three people were murdered on Feb. 4, making it the second-most murderous day so far this year, right behind Jan. 4, on which four people were murdered."

Dixon wants a new law to require bail commissioners to hold convicted gun offenders on a no-bail status if they have a new arrest

A McDonogh student flashing a pellet gun in a case of road rage; 43 pounds of wacky terbacky in a van in the Blotter

Some good news: "Drug overdose deaths in Baltimore City continued to drop last year, reaching the lowest number since 1995." Death by booze &/or nose-candy is down too!

Coke-snortin gun-toting gut-rattling Pikesvillager "could be released within the next few weeks."
"What I did was not the real me," he said

Ugh, I'm so sick of "lack of outrage" outrage.

So the NASA child-porn scientist pleads guilty, gets 5 years probation, and keeps his job (for now).

HoCo Judge to Hear Corruption Cases

Dixon, Holton and Lipscomb will have their corruption cases heard by the same judge, retired Circuit Judge Dennis M. Sweeney.

Less overtime= more murders?

"Baltimore City Council President Stephanie C. Rawlings-Blake introduced resolutions yesterday asking the city's police commissioner to brief the council on the effect of reduced police overtime on Baltimore's homicide rate, a plan to redraw police district lines and the effectiveness of the city's blue-light crime cameras."

Meanwhile, "Baltimore Mayor Sheila Dixon will testify in Annapolis today in favor of a bill that would reduce 'good time' credits for inmates serving sentences for gun convictions"

Update: yesterday's corpse was found near the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Bridge* in South Baltimore. The death is considered "suspicious"
* Apparently, the post-1993 name for the Hanover Street Bridge.

Kennard Pratt, 27, was arrested and charged for the triple shooting on Bond St. last month that killed Antoine Betts.
(Bless their hearts, those Examiner reporters are still on the grind!)

Officer Margaret Duffy, who admitted leaving the scene of an accident in her Canton neighborhood, got one year of unsupervised probation and was ordered to pay $250 in court costs

The Examiner ferrets out Madoff victims in MD.

JZiz! "A young boy was beaten by a school bully so badly that his teeth were knocked out."

Police want to shut down the Executive Inn.

A Court of Appeals decision filed Monday found that a building partnership related to prominent Baltimore attorney Peter G. Angelos has the standing to challenge the city re. the Westside "superblock."

"A trial judge does not weigh evidence before giving a jury instruction on entrapment, but rather decides enough evidence exists for the jury to make a determination, the Court of Special Appeals has held."

"An aggressive federal effort to keep track of sexual offenders is at risk of collapse because of objections from states and legal challenges from sex offenders and others."

100 years on the road to victory!

"This week marks the centennial of a fateful landmark in U.S. history, the nation's first drug prohibition law."
(thanks EP)

Miss Dixon's state of the city speech? Lucky for you, Meister was taking notes while you were smoking behind the gym.
also on the scene, A.F. James MacArthur, who asked about police overtime.
and here's TDR's take
And Annie Linskey's.
Who covered it best?

Real Body, Imaginary Bridge

The body of an adult black male was found under "the Patapsco River Bridge"
(no such bridge... maybe the Hanover Street Bridge?)

A man shot in the neck by four teenagers on a dirt bike, a pizza deliveryman robbed in Hampden in the blotter

Deeply depressing: Peter Hermann chronicles the suicide of former officer Edward William Eldridge Jr.

A man shot while riding his bike south of Greenmount cemetery

In the county, "Same-sex ex loses visitation battle"
Fun fact: between 6 and 14 million children live with at least one gay parent

Weekend

WBAL: murder victim Lemuel Wallace was disabled and living in a group home, was probably killed by someone he knew

Former Air Force senior airman Rico Rodrigus Williams was indicted for second-degree murder and three counts of tampering with a witness in the 2005 beating death of Army sergeant Juwan Johnson in Germany

"Baltimore's crime lab suffers from inadequate funding, spotty recordkeeping and broken equipment, according to an independent audit"

QTD: "All these hundreds of DNA exonerations across the country have demonstrated to anyone who’s paying attention that there are far more innocent people in prison than anybody could imagine"

Dixon's "considering the first major shuffling of police resources throughout the city in decades."

"veteran prosecutors Donald Giblin and Doug Ludwig are being promoted to lead the homicide and police misconduct divisions, respectively."

Facebook & MySpace blocked at the statehouse! "'This is like China,' said Sen. James C. Rosapepe"

Maryland’s largest-ever pharmaceutical-trafficking case was built by Federal intelligence specialists working in a former department store in Johnsontown, PA
(FYI: hydrocodone= Vicodin)

Irony corner: "A state delegate who once proposed special 'DUI' license plates for drunken drivers has been convicted of a drunken driving charge."

MoCo police are asking for the public's help to identify a homicide victim

We'd press two, but bloody puke is on the handset

"Thank you for calling the Kellogg Company. If you would like to share your comments regarding our relationship with Michael Phelps, please press one to speak to a representative. If you're calling about the recent peanut butter recall, please press two now. Otherwise, press three or stay on the line. Thank you."

.. NORML is calling for a boycott.
But Subway, "perhaps realizing its product could serve an entirely new niche of sub eaters — namely, ravenous pot smokers — announced it still supports Phelps"

"Integrity Issues"

Hermann: Detectives Allen Adkins and Deryl Turner, who were serving warrants in Justin Fenton's story yesterday, are on the State's Attorney's "do not call" list due to "integrity issues"

Seriously? "Maryland judges have the authority to order new trials after convictions, an awesome power because their decisions can’t be appealed. So if a judge steps outside the law and orders a new trial for improper reasons, nothing can be done about it."

"hipsters will shed some tears tonight"

"Quite a few hipsters will shed some tears tonight." Lithuanian Hall fined $8k, tonight's show canceled, says Meister

Media blabber: News Corp lost $6.4 BILLION in Q2. Ad revenue at the WSJ is down 20%.

Federal Cracktacular

Four-time offender Deshon Thomas got 11 years for the ready-rock (distributed by an 8-year-old!)

Two guilty pleas from "Tree Top" Bloods

Two MoCo residents were arrested & charged with trafficking underage prostitutes

Homicide Victims Named

Wednesday's three murder victims have been ID'd: Demetrius M. Saulsbury, 22, was killed in Broadway East; Lemuel Wallace, 37, was killed on the Gwynns Falls Trail restroom; David Bryan Wright, 47, was murdered in CHuM.

An officer was hit by an a-hole who fled the scene in a green vehicle.

Federal judge: Pro-life group can sue UMBC for $

Senate bills du jour: one that would raise the statute of limitations for child-abuse litigation from 25 to 50, one that would require health insurers to spend more on actual health care

Essex man gets 63 years in jail for setting house on fire while ex-gf's daughter was inside

Baltimore flipper is MLB snitcher! (Is that a gold chain he's wearing? Of course it is)

"Authorities Not Laughing At Hacked Signs," but I am

25 Years for Murderer of Shanika Pretlow

The SA's office reports that at hearing yesterday Judge John C. Themelis sentenced Brandon Chambers, 25, of the 1300 block of W. North Avenue to life in prison suspend all but 25 years and five years probation. Chambers pled guilty December 8, 2008 to the first-degree murder of Shanika Pretlow, 26. Chambers admitted to shooting Pretlow multiple times on October 18, 2005 after they engaged in unprotected sex and he falsely accused her of having AIDS.

Chambers pleaded guilty to the following statement of facts:

On October 18, 2005 police arrived on the scene in the 1800 block of McKean Avenue where they found Shanika Pretlow suffering from gunshot wounds, including a wound to the head. Medics rushed Ms. Pretlow to Maryland General Hospital where she was pronounced dead. An autopsy by the State’s Medical Examiner revealed that Ms. Pretlow had been shot four times and that all of the entry wounds went from the back to the front and she was negative for the AIDS virus. A .32 caliber bullet was recovered from her body. Her death was ruled a homicide.

On October 22, 2005 detectives received information from sources with information about a shooting advising them that Brandon Chambers was seen in a nightclub bragging about shooting Ms. Pretlow after having sex with her. On November 7, 2005 another witness advised police that he had seen Brandon Chambers leave a local bar with Ms. Pretlow on the day of her death and that he was now bragging that he “had to kill her.” Chambers killed Pretlow believing she was HIV-positive and that he had unprotected sex with her. In 2007 DNA testing of evidence recovered from Ms. Pretlow’s body revealed Brandon Chambers genetic profile as the major and only contributor.

Assistant State’s Attorney Lisa Phelps prosecuted this case.

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It appears there were actually three unrelated murders yesterday. The third was a man shot & killed in the 1600 block of Gorsuch Ave. in CHuM.

"Science Found Wanting in Nation’s Crime Labs"

"Police hope warrant sweep will curb city violence" (beautiful photo!)

City officials want to speed up the process of civil "nuisance abatement" lawsuits

An arrest for the carjacking and shooting last week of 19-year-old Michael Lewis

A man robbed in the Rotunda parking lot in the Blotter

Study: Meth cost 'society' $23.4 billion in '05

"Watch it, that tickles! Wow, I haven't felt suction like that since the Bush twins were in town! Uh oh, sporty, is that a cell phone camera over there?" Greg Kane imagines what Michael Phelps' bong might say. ... & wouldn't it be refreshing if a busted celebs "took responsibility" by donating to a legal defense fund for pot dealers?

Our favorite Supreme Court Justice, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, has been hospitalized with pancreatic cancer.

25

"This afternoon, police found the victim, who was shot in the back, in the bathroom in a stone shelter at the Winans Meadow [Gwynns Falls] trail head, in the 1500 block of North Franklintown Road."


Domestic assault in the blotter

What the?!

"A Baltimore man filed a $210 million civil lawsuit yesterday ... in connection with a 2006 incident during which he says a band of rogue cops held him at gunpoint in the street, stripped him and searched his rectum in front of about 30 onlookers." Said the victim, "I thought they were going to kill me."
!!!

A Good Question

What happens to all the stuff those car-break-in thieves steal?

24

A 22-year-old man shot to death in the 1700 block of N. Washington St.. No suspects, no motive.

This week's six murders, documented in the Ink

Baltimore's new drug treatment chief, Greg Warren. He's the former director of substance-abuse treatment services for the Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services, collects decorative eggs and is against drug decriminalization.

What's up with Inspector General Hilton Green's annual reports?

Allegation: woman served "McD's Sanitizer" at drive-thru

Media blabber: Pink-slipped crime reporters Janis and Broadwater talk to the CP.

Girl Not Guilty of Teacher Beating

"In Reginald Lewis teacher beating case, girl not guilty of 2 of 3 charges ... Circuit Court Judge Paul A. Smith said that he found both sides credible -- and that both sides acted deplorably. He could not determine who was at fault"

35 Years for Murder of Earl Cornish

The SA's office reports that at a hearing, today Judge Paul Smith sentenced Darryl Halsey, 26, of the 4200 block of Sheldon Avenue to life, suspend all but 30 years for first-degree murder, five years consecutive for use of a handgun in the commission of a crime of violence and three years concurrent for wear/carry a handgun. Details:

On May, 16, 2007 at 517 Chateau Ave. the victim, Earl Cornish, 21, was talking to Denise Davis. During the conversation Cornish slapped Ms. Davis on the buttocks where she had recently had surgery. Ms. Davis called her brother, Darryl Halsey, and informed him of the incident she just had with Cornish. Halsey responded to 517 Chateau Ave. with a silver revolver, approached Cornish and shot him once in the back. Halsey then fled the scene. Cornish was pronounced dead at Sinai Hospital later that night.

Mayor Dixon to be Arraigned

this morning at 9:30 a.m. Her lawyers say she won't be there, though.

The man found stabbed to death on Dickman st. was ID'd as Kendrick L. Daney, 38. A 51-year-old co-worker turned himself in for the killing; he felt that Daney had "disrespected" him.

The Dick Irwin special has a person who fired shots at a car in the southern, a BMW carjacked in the central, a spray-painted swastika in Cockeysville.

Two guilty pleas, 4,500 stolen cell phones in a warehouse on Wilkens Avenue.

What the?! Education edition:
The former principal of the school where Jolita Berry taught testified that Berry actually threw the first punch. The E's Mike Silvestri reports that the fight started because Berry, who was playing 92Q in the classroom, wouldn't turn up the volume. And an earmuffed John Sherman got a sidewalk interview with Berry.

"Goucher College has suspended a visiting professor from Rwanda after being told he stands accused of participating in the 1994 genocide."

"Very Large Data Breach" at Provident Bank

From Provident bank:


In case you can't see it, it says

Dear Cardholder:
We have been advised of a very large data breach impacting millions of credit and debit card numbers. Your card information may have been compromised... the best course of action is to reissue your card... please destroy your old card and begin using this new one immediately... please verify all transactions that post to your account each month by reviewing your statement carefully."

Uh oh.

UPDATE: Liz Kay reports that hackers used software to steal card numbers processed by Heartland Payment Systems Inc., the country's 6th largest credit card payment processor.

New Blog Alert

'Less talk, more action" The Baltimore Spectator interviews FHB III.

23

"Baltimore police found the man at 6:54 a.m. in the 200 block of W. Dickman St."

County police are asking other victims of this stranger with candy to come forward.

Suddenly we like him a lot more

QTD: "He was the gold medal winner of bong hits."

Weekend

A third trial is sounding more likely for Adan Canela and Policarpio Espinoza. Here's JB's guide to the case with related links

NYT: Supreme Court "Justices Step Closer to Repeal of Evidence Ruling"

More on 2009's homicide victim #20 (and juvenile victim #6), Dewayne Lawrence, who was 17 and his mother's third son to be murdered. Pleads the Deuce, "Stop before any more of her children...or yours end up dead."

Fish pirates accused in elaborate black-market rockfish scheme

Remember the Mt. Washington trader John Rusnak, who brought down Allfirst bank? He's out of jail. (Fun fact: Wikipedia names him as the 14th "biggest loser")

The Sun is ending weekday delivery to Prince George’s, Montgomery and Frederick counties and will stop home delivery to Garrett County. (thnx Colin)

The Department of Justice has instructed agency personnel to "immediately begin to apply the presumption of disclosure to all decisions involving the [Freedom of Information Act]" as per Obama's memo from 10 days ago.
Here's a summary of MD's Public Information Act, FYI.

22

Theodore E. Moore, 44, shot at the intersection of North Pulaski Street and Edmondson Avenue Jan. 23, has died from his injuries.

21

A man was shot to death yesterday afternoon in the 900 block of Poplar Grove St.

More on car-break-ins from the Sun

The feds are working to seize "17 Maryland properties and 14 bank accounts they say are the fruits of an $18 million, illegal video slot-machine gambling operation"

Down at the federal courthouse, a guy who tried to "computer bomb" Fannie Mae

More mortgage drama: Gansler's gotten Countrywide to consent to loan modification and $2.1 million in foreclosure relief

Gawker has the memo the poor Examiner staff got yesterday, if you're interested.
Projected synergies were not realized :(
but pizza was free :)
(more media bad news elsewhere... & how about those "Pampered 'A-Holes' at Time Inc.)

A shooting and/or stabbing on East Lexington -- "Unkown perp info or severity!"

Gary Montrell White, age 38, got 151 months in prison for bank robbing

Touché

Unshockingly, Wells Fargo's lawyers have asked that the "predatory lending" lawsuit against the bank be dismissed, pointing out that Baltimore itself has foreclosed on 600 more properties than Wells Fargo in the last eight years for unpaid water bills.

RIP Baltimore Examiner!

The last issue will be published February 15.
Sounds like the Examiners will go on, though.

Also, The Sun reports that the state plans to close Baltimore's only public psychiatric hospital.

16-Year-Old Killed

A 16-year-old boy was found shot to death in a white Volvo in the 4900 block of Aberdeen Ave. near Moravia Road in NE Baltimore

Depressing details of the murder of Tian Zin Wang: killers shot him, then ate the food he delivered... and later, leftovers

"Murder-trial witnesses recant" in the case of Tevon Allen, charged with the July 2007 killing of Jordan Brown.

Report: murdered mom Jasmine Harris had "an 'ongoing problem' with members of the Black Guerrilla Family"

Police are ISO three teenage boys for the shooting of a man in the 200 block of S. Broadway yesterday evening

Adan Canela and Policarpio Espinoza want a new trial.

Stock up on Salvia divinorum, it might become "controlled"

$872 million

... an estimate of the value of Baltimore's "informal economy". Also plenty of other enlightening info in this week's CP cover story.
Fascinating fact: "federal prosecutors here have doled out sentence reductions for 'substantial assistance'--that is, snitching--at almost double the national rate."

City's 19th Murder

Jasmine Harris, 23, was shot to death in Walbrook.
UPDATE: Kenneth Warren, 24, was arrested after police followed his footprints in the snow

18-year-old Ronald Gamble was charged in the murder of Tian Zin Wang.

A man shot in the hand and back in CHuM.

The city will be taking its predatory lending case against Wells Fargo to federal court today.

Victim was Father of Three

The cab driver murdered in the city was named as 47-year-old of Stephen Mauk, husband and father of three.

Really? Says some guy on JZ, "Maryland is one of four states where child porn is not a felony."

Four correctional officers have reportedly been suspended for not noticing Kandelario Garcia-Ramos' fence-scaling & absence during head count

A(n alleged) attempted rapist was arrested in Owings Mills

Let's Go Smoke Some Crack

"Crack Babies - The Epidemic that Wasn't"

559 shootings in 2008

Mapped and placed on a timeline by Spotcrime.

Cub Scouts Disillusioned

The man shot by police after stabbing a pregnant woman was ID'd as Brendan J. Singleton, 19. He's dead, mom and baby are alive.

Visiting Cub Scouts got a lesson in Baltimore smash-n-grabbery. Hermann: "in the first 10 days of January, 182 cars were broken into."
(... anyone else surprised that the police said they'd come at all? The last time my car was broken into I just got a report number over the phone.)

Community Service, Anger Management for Threats

From the SA's Office:

Michael Moore, 19, of the 1900 block of Edmondson Avenue and Lamont Davis, 19, of the 1300 block of West North Avenue pleaded guilty to two counts of witness intimidation and two counts of conspiracy to commit witness intimidation on Friday, January 23, 2009.

The two men pled to the following facts of the case. On May 29, 2008 Michael Moore and Lamont Davis Johnson went to the Juvenile Justice Center located at 300 N. Gay Street in Baltimore City with the intent of threatening for the purpose of retaliating against a witness in a second-degree sex offense case. While in the building the two engaged in menacing behavior directed at the victim and her father who is a police officer and had come to Court in his law enforcement uniform. The intimidation occurred prior to the victim’s testimony. The abusive verbal language and body posturing was witnessed by several employees of the Juvenile Justice Center. Sheriffs observed their criminal behavior and escorted them from the building before pressing charges. As they were being escorted from the building the defendants became confrontational and threatened the Sheriffs. Following the hearing, as the victim and her father returned to their vehicle, Moore and Davis reignited their hostile and aggressive threats terrifying the father and child.

Judge Timothy J. Doory sentenced Michael Moore to a five-year suspended sentence and ordered that he serve 80 hours of community service. Davis received a seven-year suspended sentence and was also ordered to serve 80 hours of community service. As a condition of their probation, both men were also ordered to enroll in an anger management course.

...?

The Sun reports that Sean A. Cox, charged with the attempted murder of Officer Dante Arthur, had been arrested by Arthur in December 2007.

Two Murders

A cab driver from Frederick was found shot to death in the 200 block of N. Bond St. shortly after midnight

Juan Johnson, age 14, was shot and died yesterday.

A man was shot in the upper body in the 2000 block of Clifton Ave. yesterday

City lawyer: taxpayers won't foot the bill for Mayor's defen$e. That reimbursement business was all just a silly misunderstanding!

Controversy over a rabbi's failure to notify members of his shul about a sex offender among them.

Did you know? The 4th circuit has four vacancies. Kind of a lot!

Weekend

Officer Dante Arthur was shot twice in the face and survived; three men have been arrested.

Police shot and killed a man who was stabbing a pregnant woman in the 200 block of N. Luzerne Avenue.

A shooting and stabbing reported Friday night at Edmondson Ave. & Pulaski Highway

Did you know? Hermann says boots over power lines mark drug turf

Michael Phillip Hein Sr., 62, was sentenced to five years in jail for kissing and touching a 6-year-old. Ew, ew, ew. And WTF?! The girl's babysitter saw the Old Dirty Bastard molesting her *twice*, but didn't tell her mom. Huh?!

Methadone Mom Back in Jail

From the SAO:
At a violation of probation [hearing] today for Vernice Harris, 31, formerly of the 4800 block of Old Court Road, Judge Timothy J. Doory found Harris guilty of violating the terms of her probation for violating rules imposed by a drug treatment provider [the Sun reports she was writing love notes]. He sentenced her to the balance of the 10-year suspended sentence imposed in August.

On April 22, 2008 Harris pled guilty to manslaughter for the June 5, 2007 death of her daughter, Bryanna Ashley Harris, 2, who died after ingesting a lethal dose of methadone. Judge Doory sentenced Harris on August 15, 2008 to 10 years in prison and 5 years probation but suspended all but time served and then ordered that she attend and successfully complete alcohol and drug screening and treatment and complete a treatment program at Second Genesis. Judge Doory ruled today that Harris failed to comply with the rules of the Second Genesis program as required by the terms of her probation. He then imposed the balance of her sentence.

Assistant State’s Attorney Julie Drake, Chief of the Felony Family Violence Division, and Assistant State’s Attorney Ernie Reitz prosecuted the case.

Oh, dear

"Oh, dear." Clerk of the court arrested for forging Percocet prescriptions

More scams targeting old people

56 years for robbery, from the SAO:

At a hearing yesterday, Judge Timothy J. Doory sentenced Jermaine Southern AKA Jermaine Swilling, 36, of the 400 block of E. Eager Street to 56 years in prison. A Baltimore City jury convicted Southern November 20, 2008 of two counts of armed robbery and two counts of use of a handgun in the commission of a crime of violence.

Judge Doory sentenced Southern to two consecutive 18 year prison terms for the two armed robbery counts and two consecutive 10 year prison terms for the handgun counts for a total of 56 years in prison. The first 10 years are to be served without the possibility of parole.

On March 20, 2007 at approximately 9:50PM in the 500 block of Centre St. both victims were walking home from a play at the Baltimore School for the Arts when Southern approached and pointed black revolver at both, ordering them to “give me your bags.” The first victim handed over her bag, which contained her wallet, credit cards, US currency, paperwork, and keys. The second victim threw her bag, which contained her wallet, credit cards, $30-$40 US currency, paycheck, cell phone and keys to the ground and Southern grabbed it. On April 30, 2007, both victims positively identified Jermaine Southern in photo arrays. Further investigation revealed that Southern used the phone within an hour of the robbery to call his sister. No gun was recovered. None of the victims’ effects were ever recovered.

Four Life Sentences

two consecutive, two concurrent, for Nicholas Browning

Conspiracy Conviction in Death of Ricardo Paige

A city jury on Wednesday convicted Trendon Washington, 21, of the 500 block of E 43rd Street, of conspiracy to commit the first-degree murder of Ricardo Paige, 54. Says the SAO:

The jury heard approximately five days of testimony and deliberated two days before reaching its verdict. Judge John A. Howard scheduled sentencing for April 6, 2009 at which time Washington faces a possible life sentence.

The jury hung on the first-degree murder and handgun counts. The State has the option of trying Washington on these charges again and will make that decision at a later date.

On March 20, 2007 at approximately 6:11PM officers were called to the 500 block of E. 43rd street for a shooting. Upon arrival it was learned that Mr. Paige had been fatally shot six times, including a shot into Paige’s mouth. The motive for the murder was that Washington believed that Paige called the police who in turn raided a stash house where Washington kept his drugs. Upon further investigation it was learned that the defendant along with two other persons committed the crime.

Trials are pending against other co-defendants in this case: Jamal Fulton and Kevin Armstead. Assistant State’s Attorney Kevin Wiggins of the Homicide Division prosecuted this case.

The Walbrook Homeland Security Academy is apparently so crappy, schools chief urges students to transfer midyear (P. hermann visited there last October, later noted that "the students heard back from officials that what they said and what I wrote was not appreciated")

A lot of theft in the Blotter, including the thwarted robbery of the York Rd. Dunkin Donuts

Councilman Robert Curran is battling aggressive tow trucks and wants an audit of city parking lots

In the county, Nicholas Browning is to be sentenced today

McDonogh student to plead Guilty

Police say there's a new head of the crime lab in town, one Francis Chiafari

"Lewin C. Powell III, the 16-year-old McDonogh School student who was charged last year with killing his mother with a baseball bat and trying to do the same to his father, intends to plead guilty to a single count of first-degree murder"

Also, 19 guns, Rx pills and cash seized on McHenry st.

Escaped prisoner Kandelario Garcia-Ramos was found, arrested, 6 miles from prison

Six months for Timothy Rhodes, alleged 3rd degree babysitter-sodomizer

35 Years for Murder of Ofc. Perry Brooks

From the SAO:

Judge John Howard sentenced Brandon Wall, 22, of the 2000 block of Hillenwood Road to life in prison suspending all but 35 years today for the first-degree murder of Correctional Officer Perry Brooks. Wall pled guilty November 14, 2008 to felony first-degree murder, use of a handgun in the commission of a crime of violence and robbery deadly weapon. Under terms of the plea agreement, Wall faced a maximum of life suspend all but 35 years.

The State requested life in prison suspend all but 35 years. Assistant State’s Attorney Cynthia Banks advised the court that on May 25, 2007 at approximately 2:30AM Officer Brooks was parking his car in the rear of the 1900 block of Hillenwood Road. Brandon Wall approached Officer Brooks while in his car with the intention to rob. Wall produced a handgun and fatally shot Officer Brooks. Investigators recovered 9mm shell casings from the scene. Those shell casings matched casings found at the robbery scene of a Morgan State University professor a few weeks earlier at Hillen and Hartsdale Roads. The professor reported on May 10, 2007 at approximately 9:30PM while walking to his car a male matching the description of Brandon Wall approached him and announced a robbery. The professor attempted to get to his car and was shot in the right side of his abdomen. He later identified Wall in a photographic array. After his arrest, Wall confessed to the robbery and murder and attempted to minimize his involvement and implicate other unknown persons. No other suspects were arrested.

The family of Lieut. Brooks was present for the sentencing and his daughter gave a victim impact statement. She described her father as the backbone of the family saying life without him has been a struggle. A childhood friend also submitted a written impact statement outlining the heavy heart and empty feeling he has since his friend’s death.

Assistant State’s Attorney Cynthia Banks of the Homicide Division prosecuted this case.

Your Tax $ at Work

Guess who's probably going to get to pay for the Mayor's defense?

We may also get to foot the bill should there be an award in "An attorney’s own wrongful termination case against the Baltimore City Law Department ... Howard B. Hoffman, now 38 and an employment attorney in Rockville, claims he was the victim of racially motivated abuse for nearly two years"

So, do those blinking blue cameras do anything (besides irk residents, stigmatize blocks and make large swaths of the city look festooned for Hannukah)? The mayor's & state's attorney's offices say they believe the cameras may be helpful in certain situations, a report from UC Berkeley casts doubt on cameras' effectiveness at deterring violent crime.

So the city's broke, how is it going to pay for these lawsuits and blue lights?
Time for some "'A' game" "creative" and "newly aggressive pursuit of miscreants"!

Down in Annapolis, the Baltimore delegation has asked for the mayor to have the power to fire the police commissioner at will.

County police are looking for a guy who may have robbed eight(!) banks

Sun: Third Suspect in Ken Harris Killing is 16

A 16-year-old boy is apparently the third suspect in the Ken Harris killing. The Sun's Fenton names him as Jerome "Lil Country" Williams, and reports he appeared in (adult?) court with mysterious, hand-scrawled verbiage on his shirt.

Good news/bad news dept.: car thefts are down, but armed carjackings are up.

Two teens were indicted for murder for killing of 21-year-old Paris Richardson last May 5 at the Jimmy's Chinese Food Carry out on Hoffman and Milton Sts.

Examiner: Killer of Essex grandma Shirley Worcester turned himself in

County police are ISO Sultan Imru Stoute, 31 (also known as “Soo” or “Soo-Tan”) for the attempted murder of a 24-year-old man on January 19 on Barnacle Ct. in Essex.

Murder Conviction in Morgan Case;Arrest for Essex Homicide

Says the SAO: A city jury late Friday afternoon, January 16, 2009 convicted Jason Allen, 25, of the 3200 block of Juneau Avenue of first-degree murder following a four-day trial and approximately one and a half hours of deliberation. Judge John Carroll Byrnes scheduled sentencing for April 21, 2009. Details:

On February 15, 2008 Allen fatally shot Jeff Payne, 20, in the Morgan View Apartment Complex at 1520 Pentridge Road. Mr. Payne was shot while attending a going away gathering for a Morgan State University student. An earlier altercation had carried over to this gathering, resulting in the defendant bringing sawed off rifle in a bag and shooting at Mr. Payne. He died later that day at Good Samaritan Hospital. A co-defendant in this case, Powerful Aguilar, 23, of the 1600 block of Northwick Road, pled guilty November 12, 2008 to accessory after the fact to murder and is scheduled to be sentenced March 20, 2008. Assistant State’s Attorney Charles Blomquist of the Homicide Division prosecuted this case.

"Baltimore County Police have arrested and charged Warren Jerome Yates, 26, ... with the murder of Shirley Worcester ... Detectives determined that Warren Yates fired the shots that killed Shirley Worcester after it was learned that a witness was involved in the drug transaction with Yates. During the transaction, the witness began running away from scene, and Warren Yates fired several shots at the witness as he was running. One of those shots struck Shirley Worcester."
Here's a picture of the suspect

Obit for Mark P. Cohen, who "as Baltimore's top homicide prosecutor helped take many hundreds of killers off the city's streets"

.. a good day, but still ...

City College student James Hodge Jr., 16, is missing

The man killed on Ward and Bayard has been ID'd as Jaiwan C. Jones, 26

The Chinese-assault-rifle-toting man shot to death by police in Waverly was ID'd as Larry Reed, 22

Former Commissioner Leonard Hamm talks to the E's Carolyn Pierce. On the allegations against Dixon: "... if this is in fact true, it's awful."
on his murdered stepdaughter, Nicole Sesker: "My daughter was in that lifestyle for a long time, and I understood the risks of that. You prepare for the worst, hoping that it never comes, and if does, you put your faith in a higher power."

New Blog Alert

Baltimore Slumlord Watch

.. this blog's Doppelganger, Pigtown Design, is also noteworthy

16

A reader reported a fatal shooting Saturday night on Bayard and Ward Sts. in Pigtown.

Efrain Bonilla, 52, was shot in the 200 block of South Broadway at 2:28 a.m.

A West Virginia woman was shot twice in the 2100 block of W. Fairmount Ave., "apparently as she was attempting to buy drugs," her condition in unknown.

A double shooting in Edgewood about 12 hours after Obama's visit

Has Operation Safe Streets' conflict resolution style worked in McElderry Park?

Politics
Councilman Jack Young [D-12]: "I think the homicide rate is not factual"

elsewhere
In Salisbury, 27-year-old Brookes Harmon died after being bound with duct tape during a home invasion.

Guess which

... indicted mayor attended Obama's speech, but went very unmentioned?
(is there even a photo of her there?)

Pro-Life Friday

MD's put 5 people to death since 1978. Shiz, city citizens have put about 7,000 people to death since then! Doesn't the state have more pressing concerns?

A 20-year-old man was shot in the face in the 3600 block of Dolfield Ave. in the NW, he's alive as of two hours ago.

Aqil Mubarak Abdul-Haqq, 32, of Hyattsville, sought in the shooting of a woman in Laurel late Wednesday night, apparently killed himself on the shoulder of 95. The woman's alive.

A man who was shot by a city policeman when he was allegedly and reportedly about to point an SKS Chinese semiautomatic rifle at said officer, has died.

What the?! "Councilman Jack Young (D-12) expressed outrage Thursday afternoon after he was escorted out of a police COMSTAT meeting against his will."

67 percent

of 2008's homicides are still open, says the CP.

And names of last week's six murder victims, and the girl "shot to death in the 5600 block of Loch Raven Boulevard on Jan. 4 has been identified as Mayresa Craft, a 15-year-old African-American girl from Towson."

also, "A Map of Recently Seized Baltimore-Bound Drug Packages"

Perhaps you remember the story of Kerri King from last year? Perhaps the photo will remind you? She got 16 years. In the city no less. Says the SAO:
At a hearing today Kerri J. King, 36, of the 100 block of Danford Drive, Elkton, MD pled guilty to vehicular manslaughter, leaving the scene of a fatal accident and two counts of driving while under the influence of alcohol. Judge Thomas J.S. Waxter sentenced King to 16 years in prison; 10 years for the manslaughter count, five years for the leaving the scene of an accident count and one year for the driving under the influence count. Details:

On December 31, 2007, Kerri King struck and killed Officer Courtney Brooks of the Maryland Transportation Authority Police Department as he directed holiday traffic at the intersection of Exit 53 on northbound Interstate 95. Evidence presented at the hearing today indicated that King had been drinking heavily for 12 hours prior to 11:20PM accident, that the impact of the collision threw Officer Brooks 79 feet through the air and that she fled the scene, actively trying to elude capture by driving home on back roads following the accident.

M1 Conviction for homicide of Alexander Rose

From the SAO: A Baltimore City jury convicted Shawn Dickey, 22, of the 400 block of N. Collington Ave. of first-degree murder, two counts of use of a handgun in the commission of a crime of violence, attempted first-degree murder and first-degree assault today following a one-day trial. Jurors deliberated approximately 45 minutes before reaching its verdict. Judge Thomas J.S. Waxter scheduled sentencing for March 17, 2009. Dickey faces a possible maximum sentence of double life plus 65 years in prison. Details:

On May 22, 2007 at approximately 4:16 PM at the corner of Patterson Park and East Fayette Street Shawn Dickey and an unknown male approached victim Alexander Rose and a second man and began shooting at them. One victim was hit in the leg but managed to run away. Rose fell in the 2300 block of East Fayette Street, where Dickey walked over to him, stood overtop of him, and shot him multiple times as he lay in the street. Medics rushed Rose to Johns Hopkins Hospital where he was pronounced dead shortly thereafter. The second victim survived.

Assistant State’s Attorney Joshua Felsen of the Homicide Division prosecuted this case.

You must wonder what got edited out of this video...

12, 15

#12 = Kipton A. Degree Jr., 23
#15 = Ronald Crosby, 56

Did Liberty Ford's customer service manager knowingly rent his home to drug traffickers? Was 80 pounds of pot mailed to JHU? And did a Pikesville granny hide the money? More fascinating twists in the Milton Tillman Jr. soap opera.

2 Police-involved shootings in 2 weeks

Sheezis! The second police shooting of the year went down last night (1/14) in Worser Waverly-- a man with an assault rifle allegedly pointed it at police and got wounded, police say.
Said the CP last month,

Over the past two years, police-involved shootings in Baltimore have risen sharply: In 2007, Baltimore police officers were involved with 32 shootings, resulting in 19 non-fatal victims and 13 fatalities. So far 2008 has seen 21 police-involved shootings, resulting in 13 fatalities. That's up from 2006, when there were 15 police-involved shootings resulting in five fatalities.

"A 2002 rape case involving a pregnant Pikesville woman has been resolved with the sentencing this week of a construction worker, but his victim" has died of cancer.

Bird Flies, Fotogs Evicted

"City joins 18 jurisdictions across U.S. in fighting foreclosures," and check out that foto, heh heh. Also, her lawyer's name is Weiner.

Guardian Angels "Strider" and "Top Gun" are the city's other men in red

A hostage drama at the 7-11 near Herring Run Park leads to police shooting a suspect

Christopher Williams was arrested for killing his cousin Mario on New Year's Day

More Dixon. Somebody told me Lipscomb and Helen Holton also had an affair. True?
(Obama's coming to town Saturday... I wonder if there'll be a photo op with the mayor?)
And more: Mayor remains upbeat, eats cake, ejects fotogs from luncheon
WJZ: who is employee number one?

From the Sun

"you can un-strikethrough mr. dickey hill road

he died friday night, as it turns out. the sun didnt goof, as chuck put it, but the police told us in the morning that he was dead and then took it back later in the day. but like three hours after they took it back, he did die, and they didnt tell us till today."

Boy stabbed in front of City College

"A 17-year-old boy was fatally stabbed last night across the street from City College high school in Northeast Baltimore ... [at] About 7:35 p.m., police officers found the boy suffering from stab wounds to his chest at the intersection of The Alameda and East 32nd Street"

Nathaniel "Stinker" Wallace, 37, of Baltimore was gunned down in a bar-parking-lot fight at Dietrich's Tavern in Glen Burnie.

David Talmage Barnes, 49, was found floating near Annapolis Yacht Club.

The Weiner that roared

PGC's first murder of the year is a 19-year-old shot while riding/driving in a car

What the?! "Math Error To Cost Maryland $31 Million"

Stealing from the poor? So what!

She's accused of taking money from needy families to pay for furs and video games, but "City leaders back mayor".
Of local politicians, only Mikulski seems to have acknowledged the charges.
Olesker: it's the gift cards
Rodricks: it's the sense of entitlement
Vozzella: it's the money laundering, stupid!

William Devereux Zantzinger died-- a S.Md tobacco farmer best known for his role in the death of Hattie Carroll-- you might remember the story from two years ago?

From Chuck

"Seems the Sun goofed on #12. The guy on Dickey Hill is on life support,
and #12 was actually a guy in the 3600 block of Lombard St. on Friday
afternoon.

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/baltimore_city/bal-lombard0109,0,2128542.story

or

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/baltimore_city/bal-md.ci.accident10jan10,0,2640153.story

Of course, the guy on Dickey Hill is on life support, so he'll probably
be #13."

Weekend

The top cop says police have solid leads in many of this year's murders.

BPD: it's not in the public interest to release details about problems in the DNA lab

Tree Top Piru Kevin Gary pled guilty to federal racketeering charges

Burning man

"A man died yesterday after catching fire behind a Fells Point building where scenes of Homicide: Life on the Street used to be filmed."

Shooting around 9 o'clock last night in the 2000 block of Braddish st. (near Coppin State)

Holy Crap! Mayor Indicted!

Crazy!
Even by Baltimore standards!
An extramarital affair with a big fat developer .. furs and gift cards... not classy!
The timeline does seem to establish a pattern...
Says Madam mayor, "I am confident that I will be found innocent of these charges."
(Check out these two newspaper front pages. Will be interesting to see how various outlets go about covering this major story.)

And "Killing in Southwest Baltimore brings homicide count to 12"

15 people shot this week

Mapped by Spotcrime

War on the East Side

The commissioner held a press conference at 11 this morning to talk about it. And another East side shooting reported in the blotter, a man shot in the chest on Rutland Ave (thanks gmd).

The woman who was shot in Middle River last night has died, county police ID'd her as Shirley Elizabeth Worcester, 58, and believe it may be a case of mistaken identity.

Hermann: "Trust us, the police say. The problem is that many city residents don't ..."

Charles McGaney and Gary Collins, suspects in the murder of Ken Harris, are due in court for arraignment hearing today; the Deuce has video of the alleged perps perp-walking.
UPDATE: the hearing was postponed.

Zander Richardson has been charged with the first-degree murder of Travis Makofski, killed during a home invasion in Mt. Vernon last month.

11

Triple shooting leaves at least one person dead on North Bond and East Eager. Hermann notes that 6 of 11 of this year's murders have been in East Baltimore

A woman has been shot and is unconscious in Middle River, there may be a second victim

Indicted!

Not the mayor, but Helen Holton and that developer guy!
Holton was previously best known as the city council member who wanted to pass a resolution against baggy pants.

10

David Falkinburg, 45, was found stabbed to death in his home yesterday in Parkville (right by the city line); a 16-year-old was arrested and charged.

Ink: "As 2008 ended and 2009 began, Baltimore City continued its backslide. Though the city's 2008 homicide total was its lowest since 1988, there was an uptick in murders during the last two months of the year. The trend continues into the new year..."

More details on the life and murder of Tian Zin Wang

Read this story right now: the most preventable murders in the city.
You can help by coming out this Friday to show support.

"In policy change, city police will not identify officers who kill, injure"

Shannon Yearby, 30, (a dude) pleaded guilty Tuesday to second-degree assault for choking a prostitute and was sentenced to time served after his victim didn't show up for court. So he's back out there. Watch out Pigtown!

Apocalypse soonish: via the CP, Abandoned Places: what remains of the soundstage of the Wire

Rueful laff du jour: "Man accidentally leaves crack cocaine at store"

8, 9

Two more murders, the 51-year-old owner of a carryout restaurant, Tian Zin Wang, 51, who was killed while delivering food, and 21-year-old Joshua Harris, reportedly shot near the intersection of Reisterstown Road and Violet Avenue.

In Rosedale in the county, the death of a woman struck by a pickup truck has been ruled a homicide; she was involved in a Judge-Judyesque dispute over truck payments with her alleged killer.

Nate Chapman's in the hoosegow, but his defense attorneys are still slugging it out over fee$.

Another murder over a cigarette, this time in Upper Marlboro (ok, Bladensburg, but that lacks the ironic panache!)