February 2

The Court of Special Appeals has reversed the murder and conspiracy convictions of Clayton Damon Colkley and Darnell Fields, charged with the 2003 shooting of James "Buck" Bowens. The lower court had "concluded that the state failed to show that the defendants and their attorneys had been properly informed of the contents of a jury note inquiring about the guns and shell casings used in the shooting."

Ryan L. Holliman, 23, was shot and killed yesterday near Club Mate and Lounge in Brooklyn [29].
The 22-year-old woman killed yesterday on the 800 block of Hilton St. was ID'd as Stephanie Stevens, 22, of Martinsburg, West Virginia.
The Examiner recounts January's 28 homicides plus the shooting of home-invasion suspect Isaac Pitts in tidy, chronological order.

In East Baltimore, a man was shot by police after he fired at officers who were arresting a suspected dealer.

Arrests of an (alleged) murderer and 16-year-old (alleged) armed carjacker in the Blotter, a man stabbed in the stomach after a bump at the bus stop.

Deputy Police Commissioner Col. Frederick Bealefeld: "What kind of society do we have when anyone can decide at their whim who dies?"

Do you work at a community organization in a crappy neighborhood? The Baltimore City Health Department's Office of Youth Violence Prevention wants to give you money.

A Baltimore City jury convicted Dale Fauntleroy, now 22, (not to be confused with Cedric, left) of the 2500 block of Woodbrook Ave. of robbery and conspiracy to commit robbery with a deadly weapon yesterday. The jury deliberated for approximately two hours following two days of testimony from four State's witnesses. Judge John M. Glynn will sentence Fauntleroy on June 4, 2007. He faces a maximum possible prison term of 35 years; 20 for the conspiracy and 15 for the robbery. On January 9, 2006 a City jury acquitted Fauntleroy of armed robbery and handgun counts and hung on the remaining counts that prosecutors retried this week. On October 29, 2004 Fauntleroy attempted to rob an off duty Mass Transit Police Officer with an unknown caliber handgun while they were both inside a carry-out in the 2700 block of Pennsylvania Ave.

Agg. assaults w/ gun

Jan. 14 - Jan. 27th (plus one from the 13th that didn't make the last update)

Northwestern District:

1/15 - 3700 block Park Heights Ave, 21215 (two victims)
1/20 - 3600 block Woodland Ave, 21215 (two victims)
1/27 - 5200 block Florence Ave, 21215

Northern District:

1/23 - 5600 block The Alameda, 21239
1/24 - 3100 block N Calvert St, 21218

Northeastern District:

1/16 - 3100 block Annetta Ave, 21213
1/16 - 2700 block Harford Rd, 21218
1/23 - 5500 block Frankford Ave, 21206
1/24 - 3100 block Erdman Ave, 21213

Western District:

1/16 - 2200 block Braddish Ave, 21216
1/19 - 1900 block W Lafayette Ave, 21217
1/22 - 700 block N Carrollton Ave, 21217
1/22 - 2400 block Druid Hill Ave, 21217
1/25 - 1800 block N Ashburton St, 21216 (two victims)

Central District:

1/23 - 100 block E Fayette St, 21202
1/25 - 400 block Key Hwy, 21230
1/25 - 100 block N Howard St, 21201
1/25 - 700 block Druid Park Lake Dr, 21217

Eastern District:

1/13 - 1400 block N Eden St, 21213
1/19 - 1900 block Harford Rd, 21218
1/20 - 1200 block Greenmount Ave, 21202
1/24 - 1200 block N Luzerne Ave, 21213
1/27 - 1800 block N Wolfe St, 21213
1/27 - 1600 block Cliftview Ave, 21213

Southwestern District:

1/22 - 100 block Diener Pl, 21229
1/27 - 2100 block Chelsea Ter, 21216

Southern District:

1/25 - 800 block Light St, 21230

Southeastern District:

1/15 - 4800 block Eastern Ave, 21224
1/16 - 6300 block Brown Ave, 21224
1/20 - 1400 block Mosander Way, 21224

February 1

An unidentified couple from West Virginia was shot at Gwynns Falls Park while meeting "with a man about money." She [28] was shot repeatedly in the upper body and pronounced dead at Shock Trauma; he was shot in the hand and taken in for questioning.

The above link also provides the first mention of Vernon Dredden's [27] murder in East Baltimore on Saturday night. Dredden was walking on N. Chester St. when another man shot him repeatedly in the chest.

The feds are still looking for Jermarl/Jemarl/Jemaral Jones and they're offering a $5,000 reward. Jones is not currently a suspect in Sintia Mesa's murder.

Officer David Hare Jr. is in good condition after being shot by a fellow BPD officer yesterday.

There was a carjacking/shooting in the Northeast on Monday night, and a double shooting in East Baltimore on Tuesday afternoon.

Looks like a future serial killer is practicing on the Canada Geese at Fort Armistead Park.

The two Rachels are still missing from Montgomery County. Despite no suspicion of foul play, investigators are "concerned about the girls' emotional states."

Olinda Aparicio was sentenced for transporting women, mostly illegal immigrants, to DC for week-long prostitution sprees.

A substitute teacher and two counselors in Germantown are charged with having sex with a 16-year-old boy.

Kevin Clark is fighting to come back to Baltimore.

Is it okay to search for crack in the crack?

Gotta love those "grandiose statements about the meaning of life."

January 31

Police shot a home-invasion suspect on the 2900 block of Rockrose Avenue in Northwest Baltimore.
(Thanks Lurtiss)

"A 20-year prisoner who disemboweled a fellow inmate in gang warfare but maintained he acted in self-defense was sentenced today to life in prison without the possibility of parole."

Anna Ditkoff recounts the murders of Dante Watson, Bonita Madden, Anton Jones, Jr. and an unid'd man [16-20].

ANOTHER police officer has been shot, this time in a "friendly fire" accident. Fortunately, the bullet struck his vest and his injuries are not life-threatening.

After writing a confessional letter to police, state inmate Robert Preston Howard has been charged for the 1994 shooting of James Earl Singleton in Park Heights.

The feds were tracking Sintia Mesa's car because of her boyfriend's alledged drug dealing. Mesa and Jermarl/Jemarl A. Jones were also reportedly storing cash in a storage unit.

Bowling Brook School staff say they thought Isaiah Simmons was pretending to be asleep.

Two Fredneck teens (allegedly) joined Bloods, smoked some crack, then carjacked, robbed and shot minivan driver.

Girls Gone Wild: A 15-year-old girl tried to poison a basketball player on her school's team. And a Calverton Middle School student stabbed two of her classmates with a pen.

January 30 Evening

17 Years in Cold-Case Murder
Judge Martin P. Welch sentenced Dennis James Wallace, 54, of the 3400 block of Leverton Avenue, to 17 years in prison for second- degree murder. Court documents allege that on July 31, 1983, police discovered William Gibson's decomposed body in a trash can which was placed in a wooden clothes locker outside a rear basement apartment located at 2221 Pratt Street. The landlord had complained of a strong foul odor coming from the apartment. Police identified Wallace as a potential suspect but 10 days after the incident he was no longer seen and his whereabouts were unknown until he was located on July 28, 2005.
Assistant State's Attorney Sam Yee prosecuted this case and Cold Case Homicide Detective Tyrone Francis investigated the case.

No more than 20 Years for Murder Gunman, No More Than 10 for Conspirators
Says the SA's office, today, Joshua Mills, age 21, of the 2500 block of Winchester Street, pled guilty to second-degree murder for shooting Antwon Torain, age 35, and co-defendants, Farrakhan Jenkins, age 22, of the 700 block of Payson Street, and Tavon Coleman, age 20, of the 500 block of North Brice Street, pled guilty to Conspiracy to Commit First-Degree Murder for assisting Mills in this murder. They will be sentenced on March 23, 2007. The plea agreement calls for Mills to receive no more than 20 years in prison. Jenkins and Coleman will each receive no more than 10 years in prison. The murder occurred November 27, 2005 in the area of the 700 block of N. Payson Street. The victim had locked himself out of his car and asked the defendants for help in getting into his car. The defendants instead tried to sell the victim drugs. As a result of this conversation, the defendants got into an argument with the victim. Jenkins grabbed the victim and Coleman said something to the effect of "shoot the victim." Mills responded to this request by shooting the victim in the head and the neck. The victim died of these gunshot wounds.

January 30

The body of Morgan State alum Sintia Mesa [26] was found in her car's trunk in Northwest Baltimore. Police have determined that she was murdered and her body showed signs of trauma.

They took Kevin Fowlin's [25] paycheck and they shot him anyway.

The boy killed in Owings Mills over the weekend was identified as Kevin Evans Jr., the son of a Baltimore City police officer.

The man killed last week on E. Baltimore St. has been identified as Milan Walker [19]. The same article identifies Jermall K. Ford [24] as the man who was killed on Madison Ave. last Wednesday.

Isaiah Simmons' family is seeking criminal charges against the staff of Bowling Brook.

The car that Terrance Washington stole was found in Alabama, and Washington is suspected of stealing a pickup truck that "had several weapons on board."

Frederick resident James Drew will get 5 years for propositioning what he thought was a 13-year-old girl. Meanwhile, Anne Arundel perv William Villeda admitted to possessing child porn after offering images to an undercover agent online.

"Was the public benefited at all by the resources spent on her arrest and prosecution?"

January 29 afternoon

Brandy Britton, right, the former UMBC professor accused of prostitution, hanged herself in her HoCo home.

Puzzling metaphor of the day:"I'm not saying a black person's a magic bullet ..."

January 29

A 24-year-old man, Kevin A. Fowlin [25], was shot and killed on W. Rogers Avenue in Northwest Baltimore on Saturday night.

A 17-year-old boy was shot and killed on Old Coach Lane in Owings Mills last night.

A 25-year-old man, Darrell Letike R. Hamilton, was beaten and killed on Morris Hill Avenue in Glen Burnie early Saturday morning.

Former community association president and alleged child abuser Michael B. Martin is charged with trying to hire someone to murder a prosecutor in his case.

Students at Bowling Brook Prep say there's more to Isaiah Simmons' death than meets the eye. Meanwhile, school officials want "speculation over the teenager's death to cease."

Ten people were arrested and charged with various crimes after police found Elizabeth Carter alive in a West Baltimore rowhouse. Carter's mother calls this a lesson for kids to "just trust (your parents) that they've got you covered, they're looking out for you." Assuming, of course, your parents aren't holed up in a West Baltimore rowhouse with a 14-year-old girl.

Edward Williams was arrested for robbing an off-duty cop by pointing a gun at her daughter's head.

More on Saturday's anti-crime march at McCulloh Homes. It remains to be seen whether any of the march's participants will do anything else to fight against Baltimore's culture of violence.

A surprising amount of cigar-related crime over the weekend.

January 28

Hoon Seong No, 32, was shot to death during a robbery in PGC.

Jill Carter: "I'm outraged at the violence and outraged by the lack of outrage." Oh yeah? Not only am I outraged, I'm also affronted, angry, annoyed, antagonized, bitter, chafed, choleric, convulsed, cross, displeased, enraged, exacerbated, exasperated, ferocious, fierce, fiery, fuming, furious, galled, hateful, heated, hot, huffy, ill-tempered, impassioned, incensed, indignant, inflamed, infuriated, irascible, irate, ireful, irritable, irritated, maddened, nettled, offended, passionate, piqued, provoked, raging, resentful, riled, sore, splenetic, storming, sulky, sullen and vexed, so there!

The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has reinstated a lawsuit filed by a black man in Prince George's County who was arrested and detained for 19 days for a crime allegedly committed by a white man who shared his name.

Weird! A study found that serial killers are more common in the Western U.S. than the Northeast.

January 27

Just when you thought the lows couldn't get any lower:

WBAL reported that a 80-year-old woman was stabbed repeatedly in the parking lot of a KFC after she refused to give spare change to a pair of panhandlers.

A 14-year-old boy was shot multiple times with a pellet gun while getting off the bus on N. Howard Street.

Roxanne Umphery-Lucas claims that the former head of the PTA, Michael Franklin, stalked her, threatened to burn down her house, stole her mail and slashed her tires.

Speaking of the "troubled North Avenue corridor," that's just Elizabeth Carter was found after a neighbor recognized her from the TV.

"A Lutherville man facing a 13-year prison sentence for sexually abusing a child and harassing witnesses has been charged with soliciting the murder of a Baltimore County prosecutor."

"Youths at a private residential program for juvenile offenders are telling their lawyers about watching staff members sit on [17-year-old Isaiah Simmons] until he died."

Ann LoLordo Op-Ed:
"How many more murders will it take before Baltimoreans are fed up enough to do something about it?"
Cybrarian Op-Ed:
Dear Ann, if standing outside and hollering like a renegade Pawnee is what it would take to stop the violence, (or driving through the West Side shaking a finger, or writing irate letters to the editor) we'd be all over that shit. But we all know that 3,000 people could converge on city hall with flaming torches and not a thing would change. The police are understaffed-- that is not my fault. Judges who do have the opportunity to lock people up dole out half-assed "concurrent" sentences-- what am I supposed to do about that, other than not vote for that judge again next time? The city gets grants, and what becomes of them? They're pooped away on one-time worthless projects like cameras, database projects that never get finished and chit-chatting committees. As long as we're blaming "the citizens," the people who are in charge and actually do have the power to change things are off the hook. The violence Baltimoreans are subjected to is bad enough-- to suggest we deserve it because we aren't mad enough is downright offensive. Mkay?

A lot of creeps out there, gals...

Hurrah for the clerk at the County courthouse who thought there was something fishy about one Boaz Immanuel Mohammed Pleasant-Bey and Googled him ... he turned out to be wanted for the rape of a seven-year-old girl.

College Park's got a creep who peeps, sneaks and sleeps.

Elizabeth Carter, 14, of Fallston, fled her overprotective, grammatically challenged parents, probably got abducted.

January 26

Mrs. Patricia C. Jessamy announced today that her office has dismissed first degree rape and misconduct charges against Steven Hatley, 27, and Brian Shaffer, 31, in connection with the alleged rape of a city woman December 27, 2005. The Baltimore City Grand Jury indicted Shaffer and Hatley January 6, 2006 following an independent Grand Jury investigation. Jurors heard evidence and witness testimony during secret proceedings under Maryland law before returning indictments. Prosecutors from the SA's Sex Offense Division conducted a review and evaluation of the evidence in this case following the recent not guilty verdict in the Maryland vs. Jemini Jones.

Brian Witte: Md. lawmakers seek to repeal death penalty.

A 16-year-old was shot in the leg in the Eastern.
And three guys went to a whole lot of trouble to steal a moped.

Terrance Washington appears to have left the state.

Parkville pedestrians are being mugged by four unarmed men.

A jury found Enoch Hill, the former associate pastor of the House of God church, guilty of repeatedly molesting a 12-year-old boy.

Five people were arrested for selling pot.

A PGC cop shot two men in his home under murky circumstances.

HoCo: No wonder Mr. Hartlove was such a peppy teacher.

Wow... I was excited by the picture for a second. It looked like Baltimore had thrown Sheila out with the trash.

January 25

In murder news, an unidentified man [24] was shot to death yesterday morning near Madison Ave. and Bloom St. Tio Floyd [23] was killed in the 1700 block of E. Biddle St. at 10:30 on Tuesday night. At 8:00 Tuesday night, Ronald Lewis [22] was shot to death in McCulloh Homes, which is located nine blocks south of where yesterday's killing occurred. David Thomas [21] was the victim of a shooting on Brighton St. in Rosemont on Monday night.

More on Isaiah Simmons III, the boy who died after a violent outburst at Bowling Brook Prep.

A 16-year-old boy was shot in East Baltimore.

You'd think after two other escapes, they'd know to keep a close eye on Terrence Washington, or Terrance, or whatever his name is.

The carjacking mentioned here a few days ago is in today's Blotter.

The P.G. County Deputy Director of Homeland Security shot two alleged furniture delivery men.

HoCoPoPo are offering a grand to anyone who helps them catch the guy who robbed a Chevy Chase bank in Ellicott City on Monday afternoon.

The Sun reports that Jessamy's high-fivers were "reassigned."

Yikes. WJZ reports that "many young girls are looking up to Baltimore's first ever female mayor for inspiration." And WBAL blows our mind with this shocker: "Jailing Violent Repeat Offenders Key To Safety."

Two bills in Annapolis will replace the Maryland death penalty with life in prison without parole.

January 24 Nite

The Ink catalouges 2007's murders 16-20.

January 24 afternoon

Rumor has it that Mrs. Patricia Coates Jessamy fired two genuises on her protection team who high-fived each other in the courtroom after Jemini Jones' acquittal.
Says the SA's office, "We have NO COMMENT."

Why this isn't front page news is beyond me: an off-duty cop's daughter was held at gunpoint during a robbery outside the girl's day care center on Monday morning.

A fight at the McCulloh Homes in West Baltimore left one unidentified man [22] dead.

A Bowling Brook Prep student died after becoming "enraged for no apparent reason" and threatening school staff.

Typical Baltimore stuff (shootings, robbery, etc.) in the Blotter, including an armed robbery on The Avenue.

Two Annapolis men were wounded in a shooting late last night.

Harford County Detention Center inmate Terrance Kassis Washington escaped while being taken to the emergency room.

A robbery victim in South Baltimore was locked in the trunk of a Jaguar.

Breaking News!!! On October 13, robbers forced their way into a Pikesville house, restrained the family who lived there, and stole $20,000 worth of sports memorabilia. Police are searching for the suspects. Hopefully they fled the scene really, really slowly.

John Gray was sentenced to 90 days for attacking his son's peewee league football coach.

January 24

La Migra: we weren't planning a raid, but the inmigrantes jumped on our cars!

That's one rape trial down, one to go for Jemini Jones. Shouted a friend of the alleged victim, "Police... just proved they can get away with everything."

Cue the violins: The murder of Antwaine Curbeam (14) has made Loyola students nervous about walking to the CVS. Though the Police have never said killing was drug-related, Loyola Director of Public Safety Tim Fox was quick to reassure students: "All indications are that it was drug-related. It was a single shot, so that it kind of tends to look like it was maybe a hit of some sort."

Dear Readers, Does anyone have a CBS radio login they could share? Tried to register unsuccessfully and I kind of miss listening to Ed Norris...

January 23 afternoon

An immigration raid around Broadway resulted in an estimated two dozen arrests. Says our reporter on the scene,

I spoke to representatives from United Workers' Association, including Spanish speaking workers who were in the area of Broadway and Lombard this morning. At 11:30, unmarked cars rolled up to that corner in front of the 7-11 and rounded up Hispanic immigrants waiting for work there. At 10:30 the corner was full of people waiting for offers of work for the day ... Witnesses said the raid was carried out by 'Immigration,' presumably ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement, part of the Department of Homeland Security). There is no word yet if this was an isolated raid or part of a coordinated, multi-city effort.

The Baltimore City Grand Jury has indicted Kevin White, 23, of the 4700 block of Ellison Avenue; Kevin Barnes, 20, of the 900 block of E. Lombard Street and Lennard Jones, 21 of the 900 block of Whitelock Street on first-degree murder and other counts. Court documents allege on December 26, 2006, the victim, Jose Hernandez, along with another male, were approached by three males as they walked away from the corner store in the 3200 block of East Baltimore Street. Two of the males produced knives and the other produced a handgun. Mr. Hernandez and the other man ran, gunshots were fired and the other man witnessed Mr. Hernandez fall to the ground. Mr. Hernandez died as a result of his injuries. The other man escaped without injuries. An arraignment is scheduled February 14, 2007, before Judge Gale E. Rasin.

Judge Allen L. Schwait sentenced Reginald McKever, 21, of the 4700 block of Ellson Avenue, to 50 years in prison today. A City jury convicted McKever November 3, 2006 of attempted first-degree murder, use of a handgun in the crime of violence and attempted robbery deadly weapon. Judge Schwait sentenced him to 30 years for the attempted murder and 20 years for the handgun count with the sentences to run consecutively. Judge Schwait also sentenced McKever to a concurrent 20 year prison term for the attempted robbery deadly weapon count. Say the facts,

On July 18, 2005 Baltimore Police Officer Kevin Simmons was off-duty when McKever and an unknown male approached him. McKever brandished a handgun and demanded money from Simmons. Officer Simmons, fearing what might happen if the defendant got his service weapon, attempted to flea from the defendant while announcing that he was a police officer. McKever shot Officer Simmons one time, striking him in the foot, and then fled the scene.

A jury acquitted Jemini Jones of all charges.

No bail for Brandon Grimes.

Carroll County's one homicide of 2006 was Rylee Emge, age three months, a victim of shaken-baby syndrome. His father has been charged.

Silver Spring has bought itself a $7.7 million bridge that's now "a perfect place for a crime."

Examinertorial re. the Robert Clay case: "Every reason given for secrecy [by the police department] is specious."

If you've been groped, assaulted or forced to watch porn with the pervert at left, Fabrice Snowden, please call Baltimore County Police.

January 23

An unidentified man was shot to death at 8 last night on Brighton St. in West Baltimore's Rosemont neighborhood. The 21st murder of the year wasn't reported by WJZ, WBAL radio, WBAL TV, WMAR, or the Examiner.

The grandmother of Bonita Madden, the woman killed in the murder/suicide in West Baltimore last week, is being evicted from a senior living facility for taking in her granddaughter's newly orphaned kids.

Duane Latoye Geiger eluded police for nearly two years, but was finally arrested for the murder of White Marsh resident Ralph Amadi.

"Eggy's become a great man now."

Former Q.A. teacher Chris Tribbitt got 18 months, which is about six months shorter than his "relationship" with a teenage girl.

We steal from the churches, we steal from the outreach centers, we steal from the BK, and we steal from each other.

Funeral home owner Paul Stella is being investigated by the feds for stealing from pre-paid funeral accounts.

The Yorkway complex in Dundalk -- source of 3,800 calls to police in 2005 -- has started to come down.

Two 16-year-old girls are missing in Montgomery County, but foul play is not suspected.

Shut up and drive!

January 22 Evening

The Jemini Jones case has gone to the jury.

This past weekend I decided to finally update my non-fatal shootings map, so I slowly combed through the Baltimore Police Dept. Online Crime Map and counted all the "Agg. Assault - Gun" green triangle icons I could find. I thought the readers of this fine blog would like to see the list of this year's so far. It's a lot less than I expected and I have a feeling it is rather incomplete (where's that kid who got shot on Belnord and who was erroneously reported as dead by ABC?). Also, I don't understand why the person killed in the 300 block of West North Avenue gets to be the victim of both a murder AND an aggravated assault while the rest of this year's murder victims only get to be murder victims, but here it is, Jan. 1st through Jan. 13th:

Northwestern District:

1/1 - 5100 block Elmer Ave, 21215
1/7 - 2900 block Taney Rd, 21209
1/11 - 4100 block Fairview Ave, 21216
1/12 - 3800 block Beehler Ave, 21215
1/13 - 3400 block Paton Ave, 21215

Northern District:

1/5 - 1100 block E Belvedere Ave, 21239 (four victims)
1/5 - 3900 block Roland Ave, 21211 (three victims)
1/6 - 300 block W North Ave, 21217
1/8 - 400 block E 27th St, 21218

Northeastern District:

1/1 - 4900 block Aberdeen Ave, 21206
1/4 - 2600 block Pelham Ave, 21213
1/5 - 1700 block Carswell St, 21218
1/8 - 1800 block E 31st St, 21218
1/9 - 1700 block Abbotston St, 21218
1/11 - 4800 block Harford Rd, 21214

Western District:

1/2 - 1400 block Mountmor Ct, 21217
1/5 - 1900 block Clifton Ave, 21217 (five victims)
1/6 - 1000 block W Saratoga St, 21223
1/8 - 1600 block N Gilmor St, 21217

Central District:

1/4 - 1900 block Pennsylvania Ave, 21217
1/7 - 500 block W Saratoga St, 21201
1/7 - 400 block W Franklin St, 21201

Eastern District:

1/1 - 2400 block E Oliver St, 21213
1/2 - 1300 block N Bradford St, 21213
1/2 - 600 block N Wolfe St, 21205 (Johns Hopkins Hospital)
1/4 - 400 block E 21st St, 21218
1/8 - 1700 block Harford Ave, 21213
1/9 - 600 block N Wolfe St, 21205 (Johns Hopkins Hospital)
1/9 - 1200 block E North Ave, 21202
1/12 - 400 block E 22nd St, 21218

Southwestern District:

1/1 - 3400 block Clifton Ave, 21216 (two victims)
1/8 - 1800 block N Rosedale St, 21216
1/8 - 2700 block Walbrook Ave, 21216
1/9 - 4700 block Dartford Ave, 21229

Southern District:

1/10 - 3600 block S Hanover St, 21225
1/13 - 100 block S Schroeder St, 21223

Southeastern District:

None (!)