August 24

A teenage boy was shot to death yesterday afternoon in the 1400 block of Riggs Avenue in the Western district.

Police are busy investigating three shootings in three different parts of the city this morning: 1:40 a.m., a man was found shot twice at Sinclair Lane and Frankford Avenue in the Northeast; at 2:30 a.m. a man was shot in the 900 block of N. Rosedale Street in the Southwest; at 5 a.m, a juvenile in the 4100 block of Garrison Blvd.

If we're so worried about all of the juvenile murder victims, why is no one enforcing the Minor Curfew laws?

Waverly Terrorist Attack! Update II:
The firebombing was on McKewin Street, and the "cocktail" actually landed on the wrong porch! The family is now in protective custody (which sounds a lot like jail) and Mary Pat Clarke says "This is the first time I've ever had a firebombing in my district and it will be the last."
Whose district was the McAbier attack in?

City police found that kid who escaped from the Hickey School, Davon Julius. And what's up with this garbled-yet-intriguing piece of a story? "[Troopers] say Julius had not been struck by rounds fired two nights ago by a state trooper police say was being dragged by the Jeep Cherokee Julius was driving. Police found that Jeep Thursday in the 200 block of North Charles Street. They are trying to determine if it was stolen."

Scandalous! A County traffic-ticket quota system in place since May demands that police write at least one traffic citation every day, or they'll be last in line to pick days off, and issuing three or more daily tickets will get a "positive counseling form."
In spite of the straightforward memo, the County police spokesman denies an illegal quota system exists. WBAL's Steve Fermier: Chief James Johnson says "he had no knowledge of it, would not have tolerated it if he had... and it's gone now in any case." He's also stopped beating his wife!

How crazy is crazy Frank Conaway Sr.? He plans to ask Bundley and Carter to drop out of the race to give him a better chance to beat Dixon!

The family of RPEMS mom and fire cadet Racheal Wilson deem her death criminal murder and have hired local windbag Warren Brown to sue. They say Wilson was 'set up' intentionally because she was female.

Terrorist Attack in Waverly! Update: WBAL reports this is actually the second time the house has been firebombed, and the family has now relocated.

You may remember Amara Eden, right, arrested in PGC after her five children were found alone in squalid conditions. She pled guilty to to five counts of leaving a child under the age of 10 unattended (which is odd since the DJS Web site attests that you can leave children alone if they're 8 (!!) or older) and two counts of reckless endangerment and will serve 20 days in jail.

Baltimore's crime on CNN

Here's the CNN "Baltimore" video (baltimore.crime.affl) Cybrarian blogged about yesterday from Hotlanta. Warning: you need Adobe Flash Player 8 (or higher) to view.

(Sorry, embedding doesn't seem to be an option).

Thursday Part Deux

Do you know who Arthur Bremer is? You probably did back in May, 1972 when he shot presidential hopeful George Wallace. "Bremer is to be released under a state program that reduces the prison time for inmates who have a prison job and maintain good behavior."

Maryland drivers and school buses: whaaaatdyamean, I hadda stop? And if you've got kids in Charles County, for god's sake, just drive them yourself.

O'Malley on the Death Penalty: "his administration isn't likely to issue execution procedures until the General Assembly has a chance to consider repealing capital punishment."

Javaughn Adams, whose trial for the Annapolis-mall shooting spree last year is fast approaching, will not be able to "revisit the crime scene to aid in his defense."

See (in the "people are effin' retarded" story), (and this is why I just park far away from wherever I want to go and get myself some exercise walking): "A Silver Spring man is recovering from being stabbed repeatedly with a screwdriver during fight over a parking spot."

A third taser-related death in Baltimore City: "Thomas Campbell, 50, after officers responded to a call on the 1000 block of Payson Street for a man jumping on a utility company truck ... Campbell ran into a nursing home basement and began acting aggressively and resisting arrest."

A juvenile escapee in Baltimore County ... (bullets didn't stop him, maybe a taser would've?)

Homeland InSecurity? Adel Abassi "pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court yesterday to helping immigrants to fraudulently obtain social security cards."

Terrorist Attack in Waverly!

It's Edna McAbier and the Dawsons all over again!
A Waverly family's house was firebombed in retaliation for their complaints about drug dealing on their street.
Mary Pat Clarke: "I talked to the Commissioner, and he says that he will pound down in this area until we clear out this drug disease and this terrible threat to a wonderful neighborhood."
Pounding? How about some security for these people?!

Coincidentally, the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals (which I suppose is the next step up from the MD CSA?) upheld sentences for three of the drug dealers who firebombed Edna McAbier's house in 2005. The cons' lawyers argued that the sentences were too long, showing the jury a clip of the defendant denouncing 'snitching' was prejudicial, and the case shouldn't have been federal in the first place because McAbier didn't phone the DEA directly or some crap.

Related: talk on the "Stop Snitchin'" Wikipedia entry.

Poor Us!

Forced viewing on CNN in Atlanta, broadcast on every airport television: a CNN "poor Baltimore" story, featuring a foot-tall number "200" behind a blonde reporter ... "with almost a murder a day in Baltimore, the desperate mayor reaches out to a convicted felon for advice." (or some such.) Of course that felon would be the "disgraced Ed Norris, former commissioner turned actor and radio talk show host" (and after he put on a suit for that bitch!)
Cut to mom of a victim saying she just wants to get out of the city.
Also featured: B-roll of "The Wire," police cars, vials crushed underfoot, and a pouty, piteous lead-out suitable for a story on orphaned crack babies.
Sob!

August 22

The dead man at the Keyser Motel has been ID'd as Robert Donte Hemphill, a 26-year-old who lived at the motel. (Like Eloise! --Ed)

50-year-old Thomas Campbell died after being Tasered twice by the BPD over the weekend.

Candice Page, a woman who was reported missing in Cumberland County in March and was found on E. Madison St. in Baltimore with a bullet wound to the back of her head, has been charged with murdering Edwin Matthews. Matthews was shot to death at the same crime scene.

This week's "Murder Ink" covers Frederick Moore, Karen Kutchey, Ramana Bradley, and Darius Cox. There's also an update on the sentencing of Demetries Sturgis.

In the blotter, some thefts and shootings. Re: the shootings (as in the case of 'A man, 42' it's probably just me, but given the choice about where to be shot, the groin is probably the very last place I'd care to be: no, really, double-tap me in the back of my head, just let me die with my lap intact, por favor).

Orlando Yarborough "faces gun charges": 'City prosecutors said yesterday that they have filed 33 "criminal information" complaints', moving the case 'to Circuit Court much like a grand jury indictment or a preliminary hearing. Prosecutors can obtain a criminal information only in a misdemeanor case.'

Police were chasing escaped Hickey "student" Davon Julius this morning, but there's no word on whether they caught him.

In the department of unimportant news that wasn't really covered anywhere but with 53 words on WJZ's site, a juvenile was stabbed at the Wendy's on Old Court and Liberty Rd.

Looks like Oricl's new tag will be Prisn Btch.

Baltimore won't tolerate dog fighting. No word on how we feel about shootings, stabbings, beatings, intimidation, drug dealing, prostitution, rape, arson, or larceny.

Jesse Bane is "borrowing" some crime-fighting tactics from Baltimore City to combat crime on Brookside Dr. in Edgewood. Let's hope those tactics don't include understaffing the police department and suspending all but 1 month of the sentences handed to violent felons.

A couple of geniuses in the Eastern were charged with witness intimidation after they drove a woman to the station house and forced her to recant her testimony.

Is book burning the hot new pastime in HarCo?

The candidates for City Council president held a debate at the library last night.

A minor league team in St. Paul, MN, is giving away Michael Vick dog chew toys.

August 21

Yesterday's "Homicide 200" actually happened August 13, though this is the first anyone's heard of the incident.
The victim was Ramona Bradley, 40, who WBAL reports had worked in the past as a professional comfort lady. Bradley was reported by police yesterday to have been beaten to death about 11 p.m. Aug. 13 in the 1100 block of Harper Way in Armistead Gardens. However, "Police officials note that the pace of homicides and nonfatal shootings has slowed in the past 30 days."

The pace of the bullets wasn't slow enough to keep them from piercing a guy's chest, arm and a leg in the 1800 block of Druid Hill Ave. about 7 p.m. yesterday (possibly the 7 p.m. 'murder' Jeff Barnes was so peppy about?)

Claim to fame of the third possible "Homicide 200," 17-year-old Darius Cox:

"Cox was highlighted two years ago in an article in The Sun that profiled the Upton School, an alternative school for middle and high school students who had been expelled for serious offenses. His hands were shown in a photograph making brownies for victims of the tsunami in South Asia."

The trial of Charles Carroll is underway. He's the convicted murderer and sex offender who raped a student at the Community Initiatives Academy in 2005.

Rodney Rosenstein's people are handing out the years for identity fraud and bank robbery.

A pervading sense of lawlessness has also infected MD's drunkards: booze-fueled highway fatalities are up.

#200 (or, by our count, #207)

E-mail from Cybrarian in the in-box: "Fox just announced official murder #200 on the news with great fanfare (half expected a light to flash and confetti to come out of the ceiling), but it went by too fast for me to hear who or where it was, though I did catch that it was at about 7 p.m. This evening." And that would be (oddly enough, not on Fox's website, this from WBAL:) "a 40-year-old woman with a record of prostitution who was found beaten last week in northeast Baltimore. She died several days later in a hospital."

Ok, I exaggerate, it wasn't great fanfare, but Jeff Barnes did seem awfully perky about it. -- Ed

Culture Corner

They've scheduled the Real-Deal Live Mayoral debate for Monday August 27, at 7 p.m., featuring all eight candidates AND Jayne Miller on live TV!
Anyone on the internets know of a bar in Baltimore city that has a big screen that's not always tuned to sports, some kind of parking & doesn't smell bad for the Mayoral Debate drinking game?

Tickets are now on sale for "Corpus: Stories about the Body," the premiere Stoop Storytelling Series show at CENTERSTAGE (yes that's how they write it, CENTERSTAGE) on Monday, September 24. Seven storytellers get seven minutes each to tell true, personal tales about the glories, guts, and gross-outs of the human form, and the Storytellers for this episode include Dana Kollmann, forensic scientist and former Baltimore
County Police CSI, Walter Lomax, "wrongfully convicted murderer freed after 39 years,"* and Anna Ditkoff, aka the Best Crime Reporter in Baltimore (according to you guys**).
* This is what the press release says, but the SA's office refutes:

"Despite previous media reports, Lomax was not “wrongfully convicted” his sentence was not “overturned” and he was NOT exonerated of this crime. His guilty conviction stands. On December 13, 2006 Judge Rasin modified the original lawful sentence of life in prison and re-imposed a life sentence and suspended all but time served. Lomax received a guilty verdict for the 1967 murder of Robert Brewer, 56. Judge Rasin MODIFIED the original sentence to time served."

** ...speaking of polls, here's one I made but never got around to posting from a while back, "What Should Matt Jablow Do Next?"

Today, August 20, 2007, Jonathan Brock Everett, 21 of Harlem Avenue was found guilty of 1st degree murder (count 1), use of a handgun in the commission of a crime of violence (count 2), (conspiracy to commit 1st degree murder count 3), and wear, carry, and transporting a handgun (count 4).

The case number is 106292028; ASA Kevin Wiggins prosecuted the case. The victim in this case was Teon L.D. White age 25 of Braddish Avenue. The trial began on August 13 and ended today with closing arguments and the verdict. Margaret Mead was counsel for the defendant. Sentencing will be held on October 12, 2007. The state was not able to present a motive to the jury because no one with first-hand knowledge of the motive came forward. The facts of the case from the SA's office:

On July 28, 2006 at around approximately 11:30 am the defendant contacted a friend and borrowed his car. The defendant and an unknown co-defendant then drove to Clifton Ave wearing bandannas over their faces and shot and killed Teon White in the back as he ran up Ko Ko Lane striking him five times. The defendant then returned the car and fled to St. Louis where he was apprehended by authorities and brought back to Baltimore. The State was able to track him by way of his cell phone calls. A big part of this case was presented through the cell phone expert who testified about the calls made by the defendant. There was no DNA evidence and no fingerprints.

Today the Baltimore City Grand Jury indicted Schvel Mack, 17, of the 200 block of S. Payson Street for first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder and two counts of conspiracy to commit murder on Friday, August 17, 2007. Mack and two other co-defendants were responsible for a double shooting incident on July 15, 2007. The victims were found suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. The first victim Deandre Salmond was found at the intersection of Smallwood and Christian Streets and the second victim in the 2100 block of Christian Street. Both victims were transported to University of Maryland Shock Trauma Hospital, however Salmond died from his injuries, the second victim survived his injuries. Anthony White and Patrick Wilkes were indicted on the same charges. An arraignment is scheduled for September 14, 2007 before Judge Wanda K. Heard, Room 540, Courthouse East. Matt Fraling will prosecute this case.

August 20

17-year-old Darius Cox was fatally shot -- and another boy was wounded -- in the 2400 block of Woodbrook Ave. on Saturday night, less than 90 days after a Circuit Court judge suspended 9 years and 11 months of Cox's 10 year sentence for assault. Cox is the 199th "official" homicide in Baltimore City this year.

A 26-year-old man was killed and left in the Keyser Motel on Rt. 40 in Aberdeen. His is the third homicide in HarCo this year.

Suicidal Parkville resident Adam Benjamin Rothstein was killed by police after pointing a flashlight and a pellet gun at them.

The mourners for Shadow (a.k.a. Samuel Horne, HarCo homicide victim #2) "must have exhausted the malls with these T-shirts."

A purse-snatcher downtown stabbed a 57-year-old woman in the neck.

He may have been a drunk, obnoxious jackass, but shouldn't the cops have helped this guy?

Yeah, Keiffer... like you've done so damned much to make meaningful change in this city.

August 19

Stop what you're doing and go read Annie Linskey's story on Barbara Griffin (#135).

August 18

51-year-old Karen Kutchey was the woman who was found by a postal carrier on Thursday. She was stabbed to death outside the well-kept Brooklyn house where she'd grown up and still lived with her elderly mother. In an impressive display of sentimentality, BPD spokesman Troy Harris was quoted as saying, "Right now it's too early to know if she was targeted or if this was a crime of opportunity or whatever."

Frederick Moore had a mouthful of crack and a pocketful of cash when he was shot to death on Wednesday night in the 700 block of Brune St. in the Western.

In the Kitty Genovese department: A 71-year-old man was beaten with his own cane in Baltimore County on Wednesday night, but none of the Stoneleigh residents bothered to call 911 when they heard a commotion.

The failed Molotov cocktail attack against the home of Cecil County Sheriff's Cpl. Don Alexander doesn't appear to have been directed specifically towards Alexander. So is it more or less comforting to know that some shit-for-brains in Cecil County thinks it's fun to randomly lob Molotov cocktails at people's houses?

Some jackass (who happens to be the senior VP of a data security firm) thought it would be a good idea to behave suspiciously while carrying a concealed Glock at BWI. Meanwhile, our protectors at the TSA didn't bother to tell anyone what happened for nearly three weeks.

Your HIPAA at work: A 25-year-old former worker at Harbor Hospital got two years in federal prison for using a patient's personal information to buy $60K worth of goodies. She also has to pay $123,000 in restitution, so she might want to get busy fudging her résumé so she can get another hospital job.

Local cops have "adopted" 27 of the most troubled blocks of the city, in hopes their work will have a long-term positive effect with the community's perception of police. Really, though, the article just demonstrates that every police strategy on the table right now is a political tool for someone to get elected. We'll see what strategies stick around after November.

An e-mail hoax? Why, I never...

Gregory Kane got some misadressed mail, investigated, and learned that the state sells a list of "traffic scofflaws" to lawyers, who then send ads to prospective clients.

August The 17th Of This Year, 2007

There still may be questions about what number of homicide we're at (The Sun's count, our count), but if this blog is correct, number two-oh-four was discovered yesterday morning by a US Postal Carrier in Brooklyn.

Her sister's on her campaign payroll? Isn't this the sort of thing that got Sheila Dixon in hot water a couple of years ago?

Serial Killer Alexander Wayne Watson Jr. met with the families of his victims but "never apologized, and never dropped eye contact with [Jennifer Shereika Scott] as he answered questions about killing Elaine Shereika in 1988." Can you say "creepy"?

A fight at Metropolitan Transition Center sent seven prisoners to the hospital with stab wounds.

Going to the Reservoir anytime soon? Keep your eyes open for rabid wildlife.

A woman in her 50's was found beaten to death in the 4000 block of Fifth St. in Brooklyn, South Baltimore.

August 16

The Examiner has new & different details in the story of the freaky near-kidnapping in Govans. Bobby Ray Stanberry's previous victims may not have been prostitutes-- in fact, no one knows exactly who they were because they disappeared.
And, in addition to a knife and rope, he also had some black-girl-focused porn.
Also freaky: no other news outlets have covered this story, even the tv stations that reliably go apeshit over less. Wonder why?

In AAC, serial killer Alexander Wayne Watson Jr. pled guity today to killing Boontem Andersen in 1986, Mary Elaine Shereika in 1988, and 14-year-old Kathleen Haenel in 1993, and will spend life in prison without parole.

Blotter bits: "John Hinton, 32, remained in critical condition at Johns Hopkins Hospital after he was stabbed in the stomach Tuesday. Hinton drove to the 300 block of E. 24th St. about noon, where he fell to the pavement. He was unable to tell police who stabbed him or where the attack occurred. Police said he had $4,000 in his pockets."
Also an arrest for the murder of Tarik Tynes, a teenager mugged at gunpoint in Bolton Hill, a gunshot through a car window on E. Belvedere Avenue, and a stolen tractor, Lexus, Toyota and a Ford pickup.

Eight years for pedophile pastor Gerald F. Griffith, whose victims testified even though some were shunned by family members and had faithful congregants mumbling during their testimony.

A police chase ended in a car crash at the intersection of Pratt and Smallwood streets in Southwest Baltimore yesterday.

FYI, MD schools are getting worse.

August 15

This Ink has murders from August 7-12, and news of arrests for some of this years' murders, good news we so rarely hear about ... and Did You Know? Perry Costley's murder in July made the third occassion this year in which a murder was closed because the suspect himself was murdered.

Yike! A 14-year-old girl was harassed by a man in a tan Kia while walking in Govans. She ran home, called the police, and... "A short time later, police found the car and a man in the 800 block of Woodbourne Ave. and arrested him. In the vehicle, police found a length of rope, a blanket and a knife. Held at Central Booking and Intake Center was Bobby Ray Stanberry, 35, of Suitland. Agent Donny Moses, a police spokesman, said Stanberry had been charged twice with raping two prostitutes, but the charges were dropped because of the credibility of the victims."

"A murder suspect who was mistakenly released from custody in May, and subsequently surrendered when he was notified of the mistake, had his murder charge dropped by prosecutors yesterday. ... prosecutors did not have enough evidence to proceed with a case against James C. Burton, charged with killing Aaron Godbolt, 23, in March 2006 as he stood on Reisterstown Road in Northwest Baltimore." - "By a Sun reporter" (?)

The State is looking for Kenyan Anastasia Olouch, wanted for abusing an elderly man.

"Mayor Sheila Dixon's administration introduced legislation in the City Council [Monday] to tighten the city's pension law after a former top police deputy received a lucrative pension deal -- a proposal that may end similar arrangements in the future."
So it wasn't illegal to make false statements to the pension board and file fraudumlent paperwork before?

Gee, the new gun control plan sounds a little dangerous: A man trying to flee police fell 50 feet and then got hit by a Chevy Malibu. JZ quotes Donny Moses: "He was armed and in accordance with what the mayor's trying to do. We are trying to get these handguns off the streets."

Jeffrey Corporal, 22, was found guilty of armed robbery, reckless endangerment, using a handgun in a crime of violence and having a handgun in a vehicle after robbing Mike Kim of Parkside Liquors.

Down in Annapolis, Leeander Blake got life, finally.

At Sandy Point State Park, Juan Payz Reyes was arrested for raping two teenage Sheppard Pratt patients.

City to homeless: Move It!

Monday's Indictments

The Baltimore City Grand Jury indicted Steven Lashley, 29, of the 2000 block of Paulette Road for first-degree murder and other charges. Court documents allege Steven Lashley is responsible for an incident in which three men were stabbed in the 400 block of Water Street around 2 a.m. on September 22, 2005. One of the three men, Stanley Thomas, Jr. died as a result of his injuries. The other two men were treated at area hospitals and survived their injuries. An arraignment is scheduled for September 5, 2007 before Judge John M. Glynn, Room 236 Mitchell Courthouse. [Your boyfriend] ASA Samuel Yee will prosecute this case.

The Grand Jury indicted Jamal Wise, 21, of the 1800 block of Spring Street for witness intimidation. Court documents allege Jamal Wise is responsible for an incident of threatening a witness in a criminal case. Wise approached the witness on two different occasions in June 2007 and threatened to kill him for testifying in a criminal case against an acquaintance of his. An arraignment is scheduled for September 11, 2007 before Judge Wanda K. Heard, Room 540 East. ASA David Grzechowiak will prosecute this case.

The Grand Jury indicted Shawnawn Morgan, 22, of the 2200 block of Round Road for witness intimidation. Court documents allege on July 11, 2007 Shawnawn Morgan and a co-defendant were responsible for an incident in which they threatened a witness in a criminal case. Both suspects approached the witness as he attempted to exit Courthouse East shouting expletives. The incident arose from Morgan’s family member pointing out the witness in a non-verbal manner during a court proceeding. Another woman, Takiea Corbin, was indicted on the same charge August 3, 2007. An arraignment is scheduled for September 5, 2007 before Judge Wanda K. Heard, Room 540 East. ASA Christopher Sandman will prosecute this case.

--from the SA's office

Life Plus 25 for Demetries Sturgis

At a hearing today Judge Kaye Allison sentenced Demetries Sturgis, 22, of the 3000 block of Matthews St. to life in prison for first degree murder and a consecutive 25 years in prison for first-degree assault. A Baltimore City jury convicted Sturgis June 25, 2007. Says the SA's office,

On July 18, 2006, at approximately 2:30 a.m. in the 400 block of Whitridge Ave. the two victims (Larry Reed of 1409 N. Bond St. and Rasheed Stevenson of 506 Sheridan Ave) got into an argument with Sturgis and another person. Sturgis and the other person left the scene and later returned. It was at this time Sturgis cut and stabbed Rasheed Stevenson 11 times, fatally severing his carotid artery, and then stabbed Larry Reed in his cheek, underarm and thigh. The two victims were then rushed to the hospital by a close friend. Sturgis and the other person fled the scene. The motive for the incident stemmed from the fact that Sturgis did not believe that the victims were legitimate members of the Bloods Gang.

Assistant State's Attorney Kevin Wiggins of the Homicide Division prosecuted this case. yay Kevin Wiggins!