June 25 afternoon

Examiner editor Frank Keegan's assualt trial is scheduled for 8:30 tomorrow morning in courtroom two, Hargrove District Court, Baltimore.

Maurice Crosby and Erica Ammenhauser, both wanted for the murder of Marine reservist Michael Simms, turned themselves in on Friday.

Christopher Clarke's lacrosse team at Patterson High received a donation of new equipment today. Clarke was killed by stray gunfire in March.

File under Smack, Putting Down of

From Lt. Quick of the Southern, sent to Community Leaders:

"The following information is forwarded regarding the conclusion of an investigation into the heroin distribution organization known as "Smackdown." The organization centered around the Pratt and Carey Sts intersection and extended into the Hollins Roundhouse and Union Square communities and quite possibly several others as well.

"None of the addresses where search warrants were executed were in the Southern District, however all the persons arrested conducted most of their drug sales in the listed communities. It should be noted that this is a Federal Case and those arrested are subject to extremely lengthy sentences. Several of those arrested will potentially get life in federal prison. The Federal system has no probation or parole and has a conviction rate of somewhere near 98%. This is a rock solid case and will end the Matthews drug dealing.

"The Southern District will continue to hit the area hard in an effort to prevent other drug organizations form attempting to operate in the area ... On 6/22/07 Sgt. Tom Smith's O.C.D. / D.E.A. / M.E.T. team executed 8 search and seizure warrants relative to the "Smack Down" heroin organization that operates in the Southern District in the area of Pratt and Carey St.

The following evidence was recovered:
2.8 Kilograms of Heroin - Street value in excess of $500,000.00
3 Handguns
Approx. $145,000.00 (Still Counting)

The following locations were raided:
5501 Todd Ave. (NED)
3808 Bayville Rd (Baltimore County)
507 Rose Hill Terr. (N.D.)
3621 Elmley Av. (N.E.D.)
5411 Jamestown Ct. (S.W.D.)
6012 Amberwood Rd. (N.E.D.)
2034 Walbrook Ave. (W.D.)
4304 Seminole Ave. (S.W.D.)

The Following Individuals were arrested:
Calvin Mathews SID#1676517
Jerome Gilbert SID#2123302
Jermaine Gilbert SID#1437715
Lennell Mathews SID#2250043
Michael Goodman SID#2248896
Donita Moore SID#1793142
Jaml Piles SID#3127619
Arthur Snowden SID# 96082
Keith Stevenson SID#2446374

The following persons have open Federal Indictment Warrants and have not yet been arrested:
Lionel Mathews SID#2273084
Bryant Snowden SID#1938277

The pistols recovered were .45 and .9mm.

All persons were transported to S.D. / D.D.U. One individual was debriefed by 2100 Det. Hunter as well in relation to 07H119.

All are expected to be Federally detained, although the detention hearings have not yet occurred.

I would especially like to thank the following:
Sgt. Smith and the D.E.A. / M.E.T. squad for making a great case!!
AUSA Wallner and Weinstein for their tireless efforts
ASA Siemek and Mason for there State side help
Lt. McKnight and QRT for making two of our entries
Balto. Co. SWAT / Narcotics for making a County entry
S.D. Operations, namely officers Creed and Moody who provided vital intelligence.
Deputy Major McDonald for his patience.
I'm sure I missed a few.

Most interesting to me in this is that this Southern District organization lived in 4 different City Districts, and Baltimore County. Not one S.D. location was raided! This shows what a City (and County) wide organization this really is (was)!"

-- Lt. Quick

June 25

An Amber Alert has been cancelled for a 3-year-old boy missing from Baltimore.

There was a gunfight between cops and dealers in the 2300 block of Barclay yesterday afternoon. A BPD officer was shot in the toe, and a 21-year-old suspect was shot in the thigh and ankle.

Robert Edward Speake was arrested in Curtis Bay and charged with murdering Phillip Airey, the man whose body was found in the trunk of his burning car on Rt. 295.

A 15-year-old girl in Baltimore County was charged for assaulting and attempting to rob a 57-year-old neighbor.

A 9-year-old boy allegedly set fire to an apartment in Carroll County on Friday.

Two homemade bombs were set of in Frederick last night, one in someone's lawn and one in a mailbox.

June 24

A body was found floating in the Harbor near Bond St. in Fell's Point, police deemed it "suspicious."

Turns out the "man" shot on Bayville Road Friday in Middle River was a 16-year-old Davon Lopez. Jaquane Gross, 18 and also of Bayville Road, was arrested and charged with first-degree murder.

One of Mustafa Alif's guns, which had been customized with a laser sight, had been seized then returned before it was used to kill Police Officer Troy Chesley in January. Last week, police took seven guns from Alif's house; Alif says the weapons connected with crimes had been stolen from his home in 1999.

If you fight Coast Guard authority, Coast Guard Authority always wins.

Evening Update

A man was shot to death at about 3 a.m. this morning near Pennsylvania Avenue and Mosher Street.

A man was beaten and shot at the Westport Light Rail Station in South Baltimore, his condition's unknown.

In the county, a man was shot to death at about 10 p.m. in the 3900 block of Bayville Road in Middle River.

A drunk suspect tried to run down an officer in the SW, the officer "discharged a weapon," but JZ isn't clear on if discharge actually struck the suspect.

Creepy update on the murder of Phillip Airey Jr., the victim found in the trunk of a Prizm on a 295 off-ramp: the sister of the victim says she helped his ex and her boyfriend dispose of his body.

MoCo police are having their own overtime scandal; there, nine officers have been suspended and the probe of suspected double-dippers is widening.

Thomas Vernon Bartow, 34, of Salisbury drove 150 miles in his teal Camaro to videotape the crotches and rumps of young swimmers at the Woodridge Swim Club in Lititz, PA.
Locally, it was the highest holiday of the pedophile year: "WJZ's Gigi Barnett reports hundredths of kids and adults got a chance to get wet as several city water parks opened."

Only 79 more days of this!
Delegate Carter and Councilperson Mitchell visited the Ed Norris Show Friday; Mitchell suggested holding City Council hearings about the pension schammdal, Carter pointed out that BS City Council Hearings are what got us in this mess today. zing!

But questions do remain about the Brown Pension papers. Who was involved in writing them? Who knew about it? And how did Jayne Miller and the Examiner get copies? And, of course, was there a crime? Who's got the authority to determine such things?

June 23

Moeen Sadiq Raja, 21, was shot to death in Ellicott City at about 11:45 Friday night, "in a parking lot near the county executive center and other government buildings."

Girard Scott Hall Jr. and Frances Theresa Childress were both shot and stabbed in their Hillendale townhouse.

Shots were fired indiscriminately in Remington yesterday afternoon in an apparent homicide attempt that failed miserably.

A 10-year-old girl died after a hit-and-run in West Baltimore yesterday afternoon, and a man was shot in the chest at the Westport light rail station in South Baltimore last night.

In the Blotter: A 16-year-old was shot in the right knee, a 27-year-old was shot in the right hand, a woman was maced by two other women, and people all over the city are either into insurance fraud or leave a lot of valuable stuff in their cars.

Breaking news: teenagers have some mighty creative ways to hide drug use from their parents and teachers.

June 22

The man shot yesterday as he drove on Ellerslie Avenue near Greenmount and 33rd was named as George Wilson, 24.
Two beatings last May have become homicides: a 35-year-old found May 19 in the Executive Inn on Pulaski Highway, and a
40-year-old man "found lying naked and bleeding from multiple injuries in the 1800 block of Presstman St. about 4:30 a.m. May 23."

Corruption:
Snake-eyes Marcus Brown and his pension are still causing a whole lot of trouble for Hamm. Councilman Jack Young has joined Keiffer and the Examiner editorial page in calling for the Commissioner's canning.
And there's more ... Jayne discovered that Brown actually got the pension before it was approved ... though officials say that's not unusual. And Dixon says she's "bothered" and "wants answers," but "Before I make any judgments, I need to get some clarity about it."
Holistic clarity now!

Former Baltimore police offiicer Michael B. Nelson, 26, and his wife, Tierra Spencer Nelson, 24, pled guilty to mail and wire fraud. Michael worked in the Western and in Central Booking for six months; Tierra has two previous convictions.

"City police commander's kin admits 3 robberies" ... and it's not about Nicole Sisker, either!

Counties:
Two men, Michael Paul Martin, 28, and Robert Edward Speake, 18, have been charged with stabbing and beating Phillip Calvin Airey Jr. to death and leaving him in the trunk of a burning Geo Prizm on a 295 off-ramp.
Police believe Airey was killed during a fight with the suspects in Curtis Bay (South Baltimore).

In Westminster, "An alleged drug dealer learned the folly of calling police to his Westminster home and then admitting that he sold bongs over the Internet."

Today in Sex
William Edward Wray, II, 50, Crespatown was indicted for sexually exploiting a minor to produce child pornography, and receipt and possession of child pornography; for two years he made photos and videos of a minor female "engaged in sexually explicit conduct."

Citizens for a Responsible Curriculum, Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays and Gays, and Family Leader Network filed a petition with the MD Board of Ed. yesterday, demanding no gay talk or condom-on-banana tricks in MoCo middle schools. The groups claim the subjects are off-limits by law as the curriculum is the subject of a legal appeal.
Wonder what their stance is on teaching the kids about all the pedophiles out there?!

June 22

The man killed while driving his Cadillac in the Northern has been ID'd as 24-year-old George Wilson. Also, two men who were beaten to death in May have been added to the year's homicide count. One was a 35-year-old man who was found naked in a motel room on May 19 in the 3600 block of Pulaski Highway. The other was a 40-year-old man who was found naked in the 1800 block of Presstman St. The killings are considered unrelated.

The two people murdered in Hillendale/Parkville have been identified as 22-year-old Girard Scott Hall Jr. and 25-year-old Frances Theresa Childress. Two children were in the house at the time of the killings.

Michael Paul Martin was charged in the death of 36-year-old Phillip Calvin Airey Jr., the man who was found in the trunk of a burning car on the Baltimore-Washington Parkway. Warrants for 18-year-old Robert Edward Speake have also been issued.

It's not just criminals killing more people in 2007; killings by the BPD are tied with the total number from last year.

Elmer H. Warfield pleaded guilty to robbing three local banks. Warfield's brother is a commander in the BPD.

A 19-year-old woman robbed a Popeye's but was turned in by her mother. (Same link as above)

A really smart drug-dealer was arrested after calling police to report a burglary.

A HoCo woman was pulled over by a fake cop in Jessup.

The Sun covers Keiffer's call for Hamm to resign.

June 21 evening

Leeander Blake = guilty.

Five gallons of PCP is worth a million bucks! Who knew?

Politics*

Keiffer Mitchell met with Hamm today: "we talked about the crisis, it was a frank conversation."
Hours later, Mitchell went on WBAL to call for Hamm's resignation: "leadership starts at the top, there's a lack of direction ... people are losing faith, if there is a real direction, that why I've come out and suggested that Commissioner Hamm step down."

Finally, a politician who can turn a phrase! Frank M. Conaway Senior has officially entered the race.Baltimore is turning into a Dodge City, a Deadwood, or more aptly, a Tombstone from the days of the Wild West, where gunfights erupted spontaneously and lawlessness reigned supreme."

*Sorry... with the election coming up you can't avoid them!

June 21

A 24-year-old man was shot and killed right after midnight as he was driving on Ellerslie Avenue in Worser Waverly.

State police found a body in the trunk of a burning car on a BW Parkway off-ramp at about 6:30 last night.

Only in Baltimore folks!
The Police Department is running out of trousers!

A 21-year-old was shot in the foot, and many teenage would-be shoplifters in the Blotter.

A Rodericks reader flees Charles Village after experiencing some of the many burglaries, syringes, stabbings and shootings the neighborhood has to offer.

The city's fifth fatal police shooting of '07 was Devine Moore, 23, in Berea.

June 20

Shooter(s) leaping from cars wounded four in front of 1535 N. Patterson Park Ave.

"Dixon Tells Police Her Crime Plan; Critics Blast It"
No reporters were allowed into the meeting, but union president Paul Blair reassured citizens that they didn't miss much: "She doesn't have a crime plan, it is a PowerPoint presentation." He added that police are still following the O'M "quality of life" strategy, noting that there's an entire squad "ordered to focus on open-container violations." (Seriously?!)
In spite of the ban on reporters, and on police talking to reporters (so Castro*!), Annie Linskey discovered that:
- Det. Robert Cherry Jr. got a standing O when he said that the patrol division lacks leadership.
- Everybody hates Debbie Owens
- ... and neither Owens nor Hamm are going anywhere soon, though Dixon declared that former commissioner Ed Norris' plan (which calls for Hamm's can) "sounds like a duplicate of my plan" and "really was in sync with what I've been saying."

Jonathan Brodie, 25, shot his girlfriend’s stepfather in the head during a dispute over a utility bill. He got 35 years in prison for attempting to murder the stepfather, Dewayne Washington, and pled guilty to robbing five stores, too.

Murder Ink has last week's nine homicides.

Questions remain in the "Redwood Trust" murders of Jason Convertino and Sean Wisniewski.

County: Two bodies were found in a Hillendale townhouse, one on the first and second floors, and two unharmed children.

Defense lawyer: Former Sen. Thomas L. Bromwell's racism, sexism could prejudice jury in bribery trial.

Former investors in Raven Ray Lewis’ barbecue restaurant have filed a $6 million lawsuit, saying the finances were a "leaking ship."

The state of MD has money for "bupe," but addicts are having a hard time gettng any.

June 19

Moments before his scheduled murder trial was to begin today, Tyree White, 24, of the 3000 block of Grantley Avenue, pled guilty to second-degree murder for the death of Trayvon Granger in 2005. Judge John M. Glynn sentenced White to 20 years in prison. A co-defendant, Anthony Eubanks, also known as William Cohen, 21, of the 4100 block of Park Heights Avenue, pled guilty to conspiracy to commit murder. Judge Glynn sentenced Eubanks to five years in prison. Details:

On August 17, 2005 at 1:30 a.m. at the intersection of Pall Mall Rd and Loyola Southway the victim, Trayvon Granger and a friend were walking when the victim saw his first cousin Anthony Eubanks and Tyree White. Granger began speaking to the defendants and the friend got nervous and started to walk away when he heard Granger say, “man, what are you doing?!” Friend then saw White and Eubanks chasing Granger with White firing at, and hitting, him. Investigation revealed the shooting was over $1,500 worth of drug money.

Assistant State’s Attorney Lisa Phelps of the Homicide Division prosecuted the case.

An unidentified man was fatally shot in the street in the 2900 block of Miles Avenue at West 29th Street in Remington (less than 1/3 of a mile from where a cab driver was shot earlier this month).

On Sunday, a body was found in Gwynns Falls Park.
"Also yesterday, police released the names of two men killed over the weekend. Alvis Harris, 40, of the 1200 block of Cherry Hill Road was selling Father's Day baskets outside a bar in the 3300 block of Annapolis Road about 1:30 a.m. Saturday when he was attacked by four men. Harris sustained multiple injuries and was taken by ambulance to Maryland Shock Trauma Center, where he died about 1:30 p.m. Saturday."
and
"Marcarian Grimes, 23, of the 2600 block of Fairview Ave. was outside his apartment about 2 a.m. Sunday when he was forced inside by two gunmen who demanded cash. One of the men shot Grimes before both fled, police said."

An unidentified man was fatally shot at about 9:30 last night in the 3400 block of St. Ambrose Ave. in Pimlico.

In the county, Tyrone Lawrence Mosley, 28, was arrested, passed out, taken to the hospital and then charged with the death of his girlfriend's 7-month-old daughter, Isabella Nacola Bland, in April of last year. In case you were trying to remember that "stepparent" stat it's children under the age of two are at least one hundred times more likely to be killed a stepparent than a biological parent.

In Frederick, the mysterious case of missing Deysi Benitez and her dead husband and children is still a puzzle. The local paper published details of the autopsy reports, including that father Pedro Rodriguez had scratches and bruises.

Olesker on Dixon's cop-love; Sun informs, "City's coordination in fighting crime is called into question"

Blotter: A man was shot in the hand in Parkville, a Durango was set ablaze in the Southern, the Towson Comfort Inn was robbed, a woman in Woodlawn was choked for her purse.

Navid Eghterafi Nanaf Abadi was planning to drive to Ocean City and kill himself and his children, but police in MoCo convinced him to pull over. (!!)

There have been rumors for years that the BPD has a civilian review board. Whaddayaknow, it really exists!

"All I see is a lost of gials and wishes" - Ed Norris as quoted by JZ
UPDATE: Wow, for the first time ever, someone at JZ sobered up and corrected the copy! ... so make your guess below before you click the story link!

... and Ed Norris (who can't run for Mayor) proposed his own seven-point crime plan last night.

What Ed Norris Actually Said to JZ was ...

"All I see is ___ and wishes." lost guiles a lot of vials a loss of files lost girls other Current Results

Everyone's Talking Behind Your Back!

All these closed-door meetings!
President Stephanie is having one now with the police at their union hall in Hampden.
Tomorrow, Dixon is having a meeting with police, but not Hamm nor union leadership: "The president of the police union, Paul Blair, said last week that Dixon also wanted to meet with officers at the union, but that he rebuffed her."

June 18

Today the Baltimore City Grand Jury indicted Trayvon Ramos, 16, of North Decker Street; Arthur Jeter, 18, of the 3700 block of E. Pratt Street; Eric Price, 17, of the 3700 block Claremont Avenue and Wilburt Martin, 19, of the 3900 block of Claremont Avenue for attempted murder, assault and other charges. Court documents allege four suspects are responsible for the June 2, 2007 attack on Zachary Sowers in the 300 block of S. Robinson Street. Mr. Sowers was found on the ground after the alleged assault and robbery and went into a coma following the attack. An arraignment is scheduled for July 18, 2007 before Judge John M. Glynn, Room 236 Mitchell Courthouse. Assistant State’s Attorney Jennifer Sites will prosecute this case.

An unidentified man was fatally shot in an apartment in the 2600 block of Fairview Ave. on Sunday morning. And another un-ID'd man died, possibly from a beating, in the 3300 block of Annapolis Rd. early Saturday morning.

37-year-old Richard Jones was identifed as the man who was murdered on Friday night in the 1900 block of W. Pratt St.

"Marcus Dannon Owens married Kenesha Davis in late July 2003 ... living with the couple were Davis’s two children from a prior relationship: Dacquan Davis, age four; and Kevonte Davis, age 2; as well as the couple’s seven month-old infant, Kemari Owens." ... and then, one day in their Howard County townhouse things took a tragic turn ...

Charges may or may not be filed against the 24-year-old woman who hit and killed HoCo police officer Scott Wheeler.

A shooting and a couple of robberies in the Blotter, along with rewards for info about Maurice Crosby and Erica Ammenhauser.

PDJ: Timothy Debarbora of Edgemere is an alleged dope-smoking perv.

Steven Reeping accused his former neighbor Vicki Edwards of firing a BB gun at his house; she sued him for defamation and won a dollar plus some "unwanted publicity."

It's Fill-in-the-Punchline Day!
A local ho says, "If you're doing the crimes over and over and over again, it ain't doing nothing for nobody."

"Balt.'s murder rate bad but it could be worse"

In Wheaton, a church organist cried tort after he was pink-slipped for telling on a dirty choirmaster.

June 17

An unidentified man was shot to death Friday night at about 10:20 p.m. in the 1900 block of W. Pratt Street.

Also Friday, a teenager was shot near E. Cold Spring and Northwood Street.

Also, Marcus Gordon-Bey was arrested for assaulting a teenager who he believed was involved in his son's death.

JZ's won three Emmys, but not for these stories:
A robbery and attempted rape was caught on camera. Or there weren't cameras. What?
"'There's like a parking lot and there's no cameras. There's no light and no cameras and actually hid behind he [sic] wall and we didn't know what he was doing,' Davis said."
And the next paragraph: "Infrared filters in the cameras allow us to see the woman walking toward him ..."
Actually it makes sense on video.
(Also in yesterday's Blotter.)

And a HoCo police officer was hit while trying to flag down a car in a speed trap on Rt. 32. WJZ provides some ... very JZian prose: "One woman and her husband were stuck in the resulting traffic just yards away from the accident" and "Among the investigators stood several people. It is unclear exactly who they were, but they appeared distraught and upset."

Fighting in the school gym at Meade High School in AAC.

The NYT reports on the East Side "redevelopment." (Did you know? Baltimore's East Side is also known as "the Badlands"!)

June 16

Twice-convicted child killer Erik Stoddard has been granted a THIRD trial. And when you read why, you'll pee yourself as your brain explodes.

Dixon is calling for a closed-door meeting with 180 officers so that she can "tell them directly how she expects them to cut crime," and Hamm is NOT INVITED!
Whatever could that mean?

June 15

Quote of the Weak: "I don't like waking up and reading on the front page of the Sunpapers that we're second in homicide in the country. I don't believe that's really factual." -- Mayor Dixon on FBI crime data (second item)

Police are looking for Maurice Crosby and Erica Ammenhauser for the murder of Marine Reservist Michael Simms on Sunday morning. Police say Crosby stabbed Simms with a knife while Ammenhauser, who has been arrested 11 times, "came down weilding a bat and an ax."

15-year-old Maurice Gordon was pronounced dead after being shot in the 2500 block of Linden Ave while sitting on a porch with some friends. The boy's father told Annie Linsky that Maurice "was not involved with drugs. Random violence. It is past crazy." He then proceeded to slap, beat and kick a boy who he said "set my son up" while photographer Monica Lopossay captured the scene, until Gordon's mother protected the victim with her own body.

Michael H. Wallace, of the 3100 block of Gwynns Falls Parkway in West Baltimore, was charged with first-degree murder in the shooting death of Sterling A. Carr Jr., 28. Wallace "served a brief prison sentence for an armed home invasion" four years ago three weeks after being let out on a suspended sentence for assault by Baltimore City District Court Judge Jamey H. Weitzman.

Should the fetus be deemed "viable" by the ME's office, David Lee Miller, accused of killing the woman pregnant with his child, could be the first person to be charged with fetal homicide under MD's 2005 "Murder and Manslaughter - Viable Fetus" law. (Here's a link to a pdf of the actual law.)

1,591 city parolees must report to the 5th Regiment Armory on June 30 to give a "genetic sample." And get your mind out of the gutter, it's a cheek swab.

Wow, that was quick! Sheila D. and Lenny have changed their stance on homicide detectives being required to walk beats.
Quote of the day #2: "It's amazing how quickly they switched gears with one unit. The plan, if there is one, is just to get [the Dixon administration] through three or four months until the election." -- Robert F. Cherry Jr., a union vice president and homicide detective

Teenagers robbing women in the Blotter.

Charles David Richardson IV was indicted for murdering Alevtina Zhilina and Trae Davon Allen in two separate HoCo incidents.

We never would have guessed: The bones found amongst 80's boobie magazines in an abandoned rowhouse in the Northeastern belong(ed) to a human male.

In Olney, 41-year-old "jimluvsyoungguys" got 10 years in prison for having sex with 13-year-old "twinkieboy."

Jun 14

Murder news:
* An unidentified man was fatally shot Tuesday night in the 2400 block of N. Ellamont St.
* 22-year-old Tyree Williams was fatally shot Wednesday morning in the 3200 block of Phelps Ln.
* 18-year-old Barbara Griffin was identified as the teenager whose body was found outside Bentalou Elementary on Monday morning.
* Curtis Washington was the teenager who died at Hopkins after being shot in the 1600 block of Montpelier St. early Tuesday morning.

15-year-old Maurice Gordon is on life-support after being shot early Wednesday morning in the 2500 block of Linden Ave. (same link as above.)

A 37-year-old man was shot in the head in the 2000 block of E. Hoffman St. on Tuesday morning, but "was unable to tell police who shot him or why."

Three New Yorkers were charged with kidnapping after attempting to forcing an 18-year-old Edgewood woman to go with them to New York.

A white guy with blue bands on his braces is being sought for an assault on a 13-year-old girl who was walking to a Bowleys Quarters bus stop.

Five dead and decomposing animals were found in an Anne Arundel home.

To submit or not to submit to violent criminals, that is the question.

Get Pumped!!! Michael Schlanger, age 48, of Catonsville, Maryland, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to distribute and to possess with the intent to distribute 40,000 units or more of anabolic steroids.

PDJ: Mark Bartles, age 43, of Hagtown, who pled guilty to recieving child pornography after Feds found more than 600 images of prepubescent children being sexually abused on his computer.

$:
Ketan R. Shah tried to scam the IRS out of $1.3 million. And Isaac Ahanmisi, age 46, of Hyattsville, Maryland was found guilty yesterday of 19 counts of aiding and assisting in the preparation of fraudulent tax returns.
And ps, the IRS has announced it's bringing back the random audit.

Media:
The Sun and their union, the Washington-Baltimore Newspaper Guild, have reached a "tentative" contract agreement.