Twelve Years for Computer Thief

At a hearing today, Judge Lynn K. Stewart sentenced Gregg Wakefield, 37, of the 2400 block of Pickering Drive, to 12 years in prison. Wakefield pled guilty July 11, 2007 to two counts of second-degree burglary. Judge Stewart ordered that the 12-years be served consecutively to a three-year sentence Wakefield received on a fraud violation of probation last month. Wakefield also faces three-years for a violation of probation for a case pending in Baltimore County. Details:

In May and December 2006, Wakefield, an employee of Prime Net - an IT contractor for Johns Hopkins Hospital, crawled through the vents of the Weinberg cancer building to gain access to the main computer room. He disconnected and stole network equipment taking the building’s computer network down on both occasions. Total loss for Johns Hopkins Hospital was approximately $113,000. Wakefield then sold the equipment over the internet for approximately $18,000. Surveillance video recorded Wakefield as he went into and left the building and his photo was posted on the hospital campus. Prime Net cooperated with investigators after realizing he was involved and turned him in.

Thursday, 20 September

We're now at #232 -- an-as-yet unidentified man beaten to death on his 40th birthday. His friend, also attacked, is expected to survive.

A seventy year old man (shot in the back by some coward) remains in critical condition. (Note: since when does BCPD have 'agents'?)

A shooting, a robbery, and a synagogue.

WARNING! DICK CHENEY IS ON THE LOOSE IN BALTIMORE! WARNING! Ok, ok, I couldn't resist. Actually, a mass-shooting (five people!) by someone with a shotgun loaded with birdshot (no fatalities). Certainly, Mr. Cheney's M.O.

His DNA "wouldn't let him" get away any longer, and twenty-eight years later, Thomas J. Grant's fate is in the hands of the jury on the question of his guilt regarding the death of Sheila Bazemore Rascoe.

That Liberian child rapist in MoCo is set to be deported.

Mayor Sheila Dixon was in New York City yesterday -- no doubt feeling very safe, since, after all, it's a much safer city than Balmer -- talking to her counterpart there about firearms and joining NY's gun-lawsuit.

More crime at the University of Maryland College Park, this time, a "brazen carjacking" at Easton Hall.

Last -- certainly not least! True irony has to be a john posting on a website dedicated to swapping stories and info of streetwalkers 'I say to the citizens of Baltimore City Lk 23:34 "forgive them, they know not what they do"' regarding the morality of Baltimore City. Um. Look in a mirror much? If I were a vice-cop, I'd be trolling through (Warning: Unsafe for Home OR Work!) this website to hunt johns coming into the city for a little action. It's a quality of life issue and, I suppose, a minor one compared to the murder rate, but if there's one thing certain, it's that Baltimore could use some improvement in its "quality of life." C'mon johns, really: Lefty Lisa and Righty Rosie are safer and cheaper than streetwalkers. Plus, LL & RR come with those great gifts of "no need for a get out of jail" *or!* "How do I explain to my wife how she got six STDs?" cards. (Website found courtesy of the greater Baltimore blogosphere.)

UPDATES:

Three people -- two Frederickians and a Gaithersburgan -- stewing in jail for the 2005 murder of David Lee (also of Frederick), who "was shot to death in July 2005 to keep him silent." Keep him silent? Silent about what? Damn uninformative article! More info at the Frederick News-Post.

Witnesses: 0; Intimidators: yet another

This just in from the powers that be:

Judge Robert Kershaw declared a mistrial today in the attempted murder and witness intimidation trial of Victor Shuron, 30, of the 2300 block of Seamon Ave., and Yosef Winston-Bey, 27, of the unit block of Dunvale Rd. The jury had been deliberating this case for approximately one day when the court received a note from the jury forewoman stating that one of the jurors "has a concern". The note, discussed in open court, said that as the juror was at the bus stop following court yesterday that the juror saw "two of the men who were in the courtroom during the time of the trial pointed her out and it scared her." She told the court that "she doesn't want to vote on the charges..."

Court documents allege that on November 27, 2006 Shuron got out of a car driven by Winston-Bey in the 2800 block of Greenmount Ave. and shot the victim, a witness in a Baltimore County felony case, as he sat in a car parked in the Waverly Shopping Center.

A new trial date of December 13, 12007 (sic) has been set.

Huh. Sadly, I can't even say that I blame her.

Fucking terrorism, that's what we're dealing with here.

Wednesday, 19 September

The Morgan State student shot to death Monday (previously known as No. 230) has been identified as Richard Asare, 24, of Montgomery County.

Marvin Jordan, twice-escaped convict recently re-captured by police in South Carolina, became unescaped when "an alert jail guard noticed the glasses had been taped up and found the [handcuff] key."

An attempted child-napping of a 7th grader in the county averted earlier this month makes the news ... two weeks later. Really, though, shouldn't anyone driving around a school with no shirt on be considered predatory?

A shooting in Hazz - erm, Harford - County involving Aberdeen police and an AWOL Army soldier who started waving a gun around. What's with all the crazy soldiers lately?

I guess it's ... something. Right?

Eduardo Raul Morales-Soriano pleaded guilty to his involvement in the alcohol-related crash that killed a Marine corporal and his date last Thanksgiving.

Oh, well, maybe closing these loopholes might be a start, right? Since, y'know, allowing murderers and other violent predatory types to wander free so you can make a few extra bucks is, um, pretty fucking low, yeah?

Muy Loco? No guno! Something tells me the criminal element will continue to find firepower, however.

LATEDATE:

"All charges dropped" against the Oh-Cee lady with all the dead fetuses in her yard.

It's all a fun game of innocent, harmless (snortle) pranks ... until the po-po decide you're going to foot the bill.

Last -- certainly not least! True irony has to be a john posting on a website dedicated to swapping stories and info of streetwalkers 'I say to the citizens of Baltimore City Lk 23:34 "forgive them, they know not what they do"' regarding the morality of Baltimore City. Um. Look in a mirror much? If I were a vice-cop, I'd be trolling through this website to hunt johns coming into the city for a little action. It's a quality of life issue and, I suppose, a minor one compared to the murder rate, but if there's one thing certain, it's that Baltimore could use some improvement in its "quality of life." C'mon johns, really: Lefty Lisa and Righty Rosie are safer and cheaper than streetwalkers. Plus, LL & RR come with those great gifts of "no need for a get out of jail" *or!* "How do I explain to my wife how she got six STDs?" cards.

Spineless Judges Uphold Same-Sex Marriage Ban

... and the ruling is as confused as Ricky Martin's girlfriend.

Darryl Halsey Indicted for Murder

The Baltimore City Grand Jury indicted Darryl Halsey, 26, of the 4200 block of Sheldon Avenue for first-degree murder. Court documents allege that Darryl Halsey was responsible for an incident on May 16, 2007 when Earl Sonny Cornish, 21, was found suffering from gunshot wounds in the 500 block of Chateau Avenue. Halsey allegedly walked up to Cornish in the unit block of Chateau Avenue struck him in the face, displayed a handgun and shot Cornish in the back following an argument with a female acquaintance of Halsey. Cornish died later at Sinai Hospital. An arraignment is scheduled for October 15, 2007 before Judge Albert J. Matricciani, Room 252, Courthouse East. Assistant State’s Attorney Don Giblin will prosecute the case.

Los federales nab crack dealer, gun-toting Blood, Hagtown pervert, California man who left trailers of asbestos in Severna Park, crooked accountant, a coke supplier to the "Lester Fletcher Drug Organization."

September 18

Two people were killed yesterday: An MSU student was murdered on E. Cold Spring Ln. at 10:45 yesterday morning, and a man in Cherry Hill was fatally shot at 11:30 last night. And not to stir up the pot of racism (and alleged racism) that bubbles here so frequently, but if a JHU student got killed at 10:45 on a Monday morning on N. Charles St., would his death be relegated to two paragraphs on the second page of an article about the escalating murder rate?

Three Sun reporters dig up more on the two domestic killings in Baltimore County over the weekend.

Good news for PG criminals who don't give a damn about UM: In the search for a serial kisser/fondler/rapist, "there are more police per square foot in College Park than virtually any area in Prince George's County."

In the Blotter, stolen beer and an arrest in Christopher Clarke's murder.

Eight months? That's outrageous, even by Baltimore standards.

Another Baltimore jury gets a chance to prove their wisdom, as they deliberate the witness intimidation case against Victor Shuron and Yusef Winston-Bey.

God bless you and your free speech, Mr. Keegan: "If Dixon continues to be nothing more than a machine stooge feeding the tax-fed kleptocracy for friends, relatives and contributors as the only ones who 'Get In On It,' Baltimore will sink. If she continues turning Baltimore into a school-free drug zone, residents the city needs most will flee."

A local blog recounts a robbery of two clubgoers near Pratt and S. Exeter.

At a hearing today Judge David Ross sentenced Anthony Whitley, 29, of Edgewood, MD to 15 years in prison, first five years without the possibility of parole, for two counts each of robbery deadly weapon, first and second degree assault, use of a handgun in the commission of a crime of violence and conspiracy to commit robbery deadly weapon. The details:

On December 14, 2005 at approximately 7:45 p.m. two men armed with handguns entered the management office of the Lockwood Garage, 124 Market Place. They duct-taped the manager’s hands to his head and held a woman, nine months pregnant, at gunpoint. They proceeded to remove more than $24,000 from a safe. A coat with one of the guns used in the robbery was found in a stairwell at the garage after the robbery and DNA tests from the coat matched Whitley. Additionally, a duffle bag with a coin box and deposit bags taken from the robbery were located in front of a motel located a mile from Whitley’s house in Harford County. Whitley’s fingerprints were found on that coin box. A co-defendant in this case, Darryl Williams, is scheduled for trial October 29, 2007. Assistant State’s Attorney Michelle Martin of the General Trial Division prosecuted this case.

September 17

A fatal shooting by Baltimore City police officers: an unidentified man, #25 shot by police this year (and was the tenth to die). Related: "As violence in city increases, so does use of guns by officers." (See yesterday's comments. --Ed.)

I don't get why they didn't just rob the bank anyway -- y'know, since they were like, right outside -- but it really doesn't matter: the HowCoPoPo popped 'em up right quick. (Maybe the bank is one of those silly ones without weekend hours).

There's a pretty full blotter today.

And, while not Baltimore related: OJ Simpson, back in jail, I'm bettin' he's going to vow to spend the rest of his life tracking down the "real" robber.

If the underage criminal element in the city and its surrounding areas aren't enough to convince kids to lead a clean, honest life, perhaps we could scare 'em straight by taking them for a tour of Maryland's unclean youth offender facilities?

Running a red light may seem like the most minor crime ever, but when it causes you to run into an ambulance, it earns a mention.


Dead dogs and groin bites: to add injury to injury, the victim's dog then got run over by someone at the scene. "Who cares about Pee-Gee?" you say? But dog attacks happen in Balmer, too.

And, speaking of motorcycle crashes, -- and because of the job he wanted to do -- police recruit Ruben Renta died, he "was speeding and not wearing a helmet ... lost control of his motorcycle, crashing into a road sign on the 2300 block of Hanson Road in Edgewood, according to the Harford Sheriff’s Department." So, listen: motorcyclers? Always wear your helmet, and don't run red lights (the latter applies to all drivers).

September 16

Three more murders. The unid'd man killed yesterday was identified as Brian Smith-Hopkins. Also, reports JZ:
- At 11:38 p.m. Saturday night, Tyrone Jones, 26, was shot and killed on the 1500 block of North Woodyear. He was pronounced dead at Shock Trauma.
- At 4:30 p.m. Sunday, two men were shot on the 3400 block of Belair Road. Both were pronounced dead at area hospitals.

Antoine Skipwith, who "walked off from the Baltimore City Correctional Center," robbed a bank customer in HoCo with a buddy, then drove his car into a ditch.

How can this article about police shootings not mention the fact that the department is still understaffed by some 200-300 officers? Doesn't it seem pretty obvious that understaffing puts officers in life-threatening, backup-less situations more often, not to mention leaving more criminals out there?
Instead it blames everything from police training to gangs to O'Malley. Huh?

September 15

Three homicides "last night" (so it's unclear if these were Friday or Saturday):

• John J. Christen, 20, shot multiple times in the Top Shelf Lounge at about 1 a.m. in the 200 block of Fredhilton Pass


• Unidentified adult male with a gunshot wound to the torso, 2300 block of East Oliver Street, 11:10 a.m.


• Qafim Kaba, 29, stabbed to death, the 2500 block of Terra Firma Road in Cherry Hill

In the County, in addition to the Cranbourne road muder/suicide, another asshole-male domestic in Essex, a man shot by his lover's jilted swain.

Friday Night

Galt says there was a man shot in the head at Harford & Homestead St. last night at about 10 pm. No links yet to any stories.

A murder-suicide tonight at 1904 Cranbourne Road in Timonium has left two children orphaned. The wife had a restraining order against her husband, but he violated it. Obviously.

Police say two teens were stabbed while riding an MTA bus in southwest Baltimore this afternoon while the bus was coming from Walbrook High School.

WTF? Four sex attacks in 40 minutes in College Park. Police say the suspect is a white male, 5'9", 160 pounds, who always strikes between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m. and doesn't force his way in but finds unlocked doors and windows. The think he has hit nine times prior to this.

Checking the markets now, pot prices surged in all regions and sectors last quarter, and trading remains heavy on the Maryland Exchange with local prices climbing to $420 an ounce for "Poolesville Train Wreck."
And cocaine prices are expected to continue to surge over the New York Q1 average price of $30,000 a kilo wholesale as the imprisoned Diego Montoya's rivals and lieutenants fight for their share of the world's largest market, which observers expect to fracture into smaller, less efficient operations. "Authorities doubt any would-be cartel leader can maintain his 250-strong private army," the "Machos."

"The Washington and Baltimore field offices of the FBI, in conjunction with the Drug Enforcement Administration; the Fairfax County, Virginia, Police Department; the Montgomery County, Maryland, Police Department; and Loudoun County, Virginia, Police Department arrested 18 individuals and conducted 12 searches as part of a methamphetamine trafficking investigation."

September 14

An inmate stabbed a guard at Jessup last night.

Blotter's got the shootings:
A man in his 30s was being treated at a hospital after he was shot in the neck by an assailant in the first block of N. Ellamont St. near Gwynns Falls Parkway about 2:15 a.m. yesterday, and in the Eastern, "shortly before 3 a.m. yesterday police responding to a report of a shooting in the 2800 block of E. Federal St., near Baltimore Cemetery, found a 20-year-old man lying in the street and bleeding from multiple gunshot wounds. He was treated at Johns Hopkins Hospital and admitted. His condition was not available, and no arrest had been made."

Another new low for the White House: they're threatening to take away the only U.S. Attorney we've ever loved and hide his gorgeous suits under a judge-burka!
I HATE YOU SO MUCH GEORGE!!!

A man convicted of sexually abusing his ex-girlfriend’s 6-year-old daughter is entitled to a new trial, the Court of Special Appeals held, finding that the judge at Frederick Roscoe Coates’ first trial erred in admitting statements the girl made to a Sexual Assault Forensic Examination (“SAFE”) nurse.

After a challenge from the Attorney General's office, Eastern Correctional Institution has changed its policy on inmate reading materials and will lift an all-out ban on a white supremacist newsletter and distribute copies if they're in line with department policy. No word on when or if the jailbirds will get their "Maxim."
(...speaking of the Eastern Institutions, we're totally jazzed about this!)

In Elkton, 20-year-old Matthew Blackburn pleaded guilty to first-degree murder charges in a shooting that prosecutors say was the result of a robbery disguised as a drug deal.

Councilman Jack Young: "We need to have a dialogue about taking the profit motive out of drug dealing and ending the so-called war on drugs."

Police Seeking Pistol-Whipper

Baltimore City are searching for Damian Knight, a dangerous suspect wanted for pistol-whipping and shooting at a woman after she wouldn't give him her phone number. He was last seen with braids, but may be sporting a different hairdo now (right).
He may also be going by the name Donta Carter.

Nine Months of Ankle Bracelet for Horticulturalist

The ordeal of city pot grower Joseph Guadagnoli is over. You’ll recall that May 8 after a 9-month investigation, Federal, County, and city task forces raided Guadagnoli’s home and garage in the 6400 block of Glenoak Avenue in Hamilton and claimed to find some $230,000 worth of wacky terbacky growing there. The investigation began when undercover state police officers witnessed Guadagnoli enter a store called “Maryland Hydroponics” in Laurel. Officers ran Guadagnoli's license plate and found that he lived in Baltimore City and had priors for possession of marijuana, and began observing his house and collecting his trash. A trash inspection found a pot stem in a vacuum cleaner bag. A warrant was obtained and a raid conducted on May 8.

Guadagnoli received a five-year sentence with all but 9 months suspended, which he is serving at home with an ankle bracelet. His wife was also charged and received Probation Before Judgment. In spite of the previous reports, sources say Guadagnoli actually had less than $20,000 worth of marijuana seized (about 3 pounds? What's the going rate for an ounce these days?).

September 13

Carl Lackl's mom, Marge Shipley, talks to the Sun, and it sounds like the SA's office is confirming (via not exactly denying) her shocking allegations that her son was informed that his life was in danger with a form letter, which Shipley says Lackl never recieved.

Brandon Green, 22, and Jerome Whitaker, 23, were arrested and charged with the murder of Christopher Clarke, killed March 13 in the 3100 block of Cliftmont Ave. Clarke was apparently just walking by when the two black rednecks got into a gunfight. Rodricks deems Clarke's death an example of "generational suicide" (huh?).

Also, two men, ages 19 and 21, were shot about 2 p.m. yesterday in the 4000 block of Franklin St. and a man, 19, was sitting on the front porch of a house in the 600 block of McCabe Ave. about 11:45 p.m. Tuesday when an unknown man standing across the street shot him in the left leg.

Me Want Money Woman!
On September 3, "man asked woman for money after she parked car, then punched her in the face and stole the car."
If I lived in Waverly, I would be PO'd to hear about this 10 days later. Shouldn't the whole point of the local news be to inform residents about random stuff like this so they can be wary? Or should every city resident just get a flier when they move in to keep on the fridge:

Welcome to Baltimore! Thanks for buying here!
Whether your street is lined with trees or rat corpses, there are some risks that all city residents should be aware of:

People who approach your car

People who knock on your door

Testifying in criminal trials

Calling police about drug dealing on your street

Males who show interest in your children

Parking your car on the street

Walking or driving near people who are arguing

Opening the windows in your car or home

Purchasing narcotics

You'll find that by simply avoiding these risks, you can have a safe and pleasant Baltimore living experience! Enjoy your new home!

Arrested Peoples
A man suspected of an attempted armed robbery at West North Avenue and Ashburton Street about noon yesterday was captured after he fired at least one shot at pursuing police. No officers were hit and none returned fire. And two men were shot in unrelated incidents, one in the first block of N. Ellamont St. at about 2:15 a.m., another in the 2800 block of E. Federal St. in East Baltimore. Their names and conditions are not known.

More on George Robert Chaney, the murderer who was out enjoying a suspended sentence when he robbed a bank: "Chaney pleaded guilty in April [of what year it doesn't say... this year? 1993?] to second-degree murder for the 1993 killing of Mary Ann Fisher, who was found strangled with a telephone cord under her bed in the Perkins Homes public housing project in Southeast Baltimore."

Darrell Tyrone Avery, 22, was arrested for murdering Diekia T. Davis, 21, sometime between September 8 -10 in the Comfort Inn in Catonsville. Police are asking anyone who may have seen anything suspicious there to call detectives.

Perverts:
"William Edward Wray, II, age 50, of Crespatown, Maryland, pleaded guilty [Sept. 12] to two counts of sexually exploiting a minor to produce child pornography."

Roderick Gene Parks, age 42, of Berlin, Maryland, was sentenced to 30 years in prison Sept. 12 followed by a lifetime of supervised release for sexually exploiting a minor to produce child pornography. What worse, Parks has AIDS and the boy must now have yearly HIV tests.

In PGC, Jafet Hernandez got life for raping a woman as she was on her way home from a Riverdale park bus stop.

Jablow Gets a Real Job!

Contrary to the rumors, Jablow, formerly MD's Most Useless Public Relator, will now be producing America's Most Wanted. Vozzella:

So America's Most Wanted viewers should expect to see lots of Baltimore cases, right? Wrong. Charm City has more than its share of crime, but generally not the kind that makes for good TV. Fugitive drug lords, serial killers, missing children - that's entertainment. Drug dealers popping other drug dealers, not so much. Said Jablow: "They're looking for really compelling narratives."

(Wow, way to massage a quote for the 'happy' ending!)

Lackl Mom Livid at SA's Office

Carl Lackl's mom is on Ed Norris saying that the State's Attorney's office never informed him that he was in danger, much less reached out and offered protection. The State's Attorney's office claimed that they sent a letter, Lackl's mom says that he never got it.
"They destroyed his life, they destroyed his baby's life."
"I want them to admit that they court system really sucks. That they let people who shoot people out of jail ... they cost me my son by their stupidity, and now [the State's Attorney's office is] blaming the victim."

September 12

It's official, thanks in part to an abysmal turnout, Dixon and Stuffame Galling-Flake will be leading whoever's left in Baltimore into the future. At least opium production is up in Afghanistan so we can dull our pain on the cheap.

This week's Ink names victims, updates stories, adds stats about how things have been since the duo above have been in charge:

• "So far, 18 females have been murdered this year in the city; 10 of those murders took place in the last three months" and "at least eight" women have been charged with 2007 homicides.


• There have been 20 juveniles murdered this year since September 8


• Last week marked the 25th police-involved shooting this year; nine of the shootings were fatal.

This week brought the 26th ... or is it 27th? police shooting, this one shortly after 3 a.m. on Park Heights Avenue. The "victim," who pointed a gun at an officer, survived.

A doozy of a blotter; in addition to the usual robberies, stolen cars and burglaries:

Northwestern
Arrest // Following a nearly month-long investigation, district drug enforcement unit officers armed with a search and seizure warrant yesterday raided a house in the 3300 block of Elgin Ave. and arrested a man on drug distribution and deadly weapon charges. When officers entered through the front door by force, the man tried to escape. Sgt. Ronald Beverly, head of the unit, said officers entered the house about 4 p.m. and that a search resulted in the finding of a quantity of cocaine valued at $12,000 hidden in various rooms. Found hidden under the floor boards of a second-floor room was an unloaded 9 mm Israeli-made Uzi machine pistol and 50 rounds of armor-piercing ammunition, Beverly said. He said the suspect, Artis Dirton, 28, of that address, fled to the roof but was captured. Beverly said Dirton was charged with possession of cocaine with intent to distribute and unlawful possession of a firearm and was being held at Central Booking and Intake Center. Beverly said an investigation showed that drugs were being distributed from the house to dealers in Southwest and Northwest Baltimore.

Robbery try/shooting // A male, 18, was standing the rear yard of his home in the 4300 block of Groveland Ave. about 2:30 p.m. Monday when a gunman approached and demanded his money. When the victim resisted, the gunman shot him in the left leg then fled. The victim was treated at Sinai Hospital.

Northern
Shooting // A man, 21, was reported in good condition at Maryland Shock Trauma Center after he was shot in the back, the head and a leg by an unknown assailant about 9 p.m. Monday in the 700 block of Beaumont Ave. Police said the man was a walk-in patient at Good Samaritan Hospital, where his condition was stabilized before he was transferred to shock-trauma for emergency back surgery.

Southeastern
Stabbings // Two brothers, 36 and 44, were walking in the 400 block of S. Newkirk St. about 2:15 a.m. Sunday when they became involved in an argument with two other males. During the argument, one brother was stabbed in the back and the other was stabbed in the stomach. Both brothers were treated at Johns Hopkins Hospital and were listed in fair condition. No arrests had been made.

Family of Isaiah Simmons III, who died after six counselors at Bowling Brook Preparatory School near Taneytown allegedly held him down for three hours, are asking the state for a single trial for all six defendants.

Gabby County circuit judge Bruce Sewell Lamdin (remember him?) may be suspended for his off-the-cuff commentary.

A potty-mouthed mom reports that a cashier and security guard at the White Marsh (Nottingham) Wal-Mart accused her of abducting her own child. She ran home and notified the media, naturally.

Awkward! "Some fifth-graders at Glenn Dale Elementary School in Prince George's County thought they were going to watch "Star Wars" on DVD, but instead, they got a glimpse of a pornographic movie."
... why are fifth-graders watching "Star Wars" at school?!

If you were alarmed to hear a scratchy Amber Alert break into the evening's 6 p.m. 'Simpsons' episode, don't worry, the one-year-old has been found.