Get-away driver gets felony murder charge

Monday was a bad day for two armed robbers, who were both shot and killed by a concealed carry holder. It will also be bad for the get-away driver, who wasn't even in the store when the robbery happened:

About nine hours later, Reading police arrested the man they said was the get-away driver in his Fleetwood apartment.

Alexander Garcia Bialek, 21, was taken into custody late Monday with the help of borough police in the apartment building in the first block of North Laurel Street.

Police said witnesses saw the two robbers speaking to someone in a brown SUV before going into the store. Police gathered surveillance video that showed the SUV, then contacted its owner, who said he had lent the vehicle to Bialek.

Bialek was charged with second-degree murder, robbery and conspiracy.

District Attorney John T. Adams said a person can be charged with second-degree murder if he or she is an accomplice to a felony that results in a death.

The fact that Bialek wasn't in the store doesn't matter. The fact that he didn't kill anyone doesn't matter. The fact that it was his partners who were killed lawfully by the concealed carry holder doesn't matter. According to 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 2502:

(b) Murder of the second degree.--A criminal homicide constitutes murder of the second degree when it is committed while defendant was engaged as a principal or an accomplice in the perpetration of a felony...

(d)...“Perpetration of a felony.” The act of the defendant in engaging in or being an accomplice in the commission of, or an attempt to commit, or flight after committing, or attempting to commit robbery, rape, or deviate sexual intercourse by force or threat of force, arson, burglary or kidnapping.

Bialek has some long days ahead of him.

Yes, Rev. Jackson, I'm ready for that honest conversation about race in America

Talk about tone deaf:

Do people even proofread anymore?

Two misspellings in one headline, posted at least six hours before I captured this screenshot. Original article here.

How did this 2nd Amendment story make it past the producers?

63-year-old shot to death in Glen Burnie parking lot

From the Baltimore Sun:

A 63-year-old retired schoolteacher was found shot to death inside her car in the parking lot of a Glen Burnie shopping center Friday morning, Anne Arundel County police said.

Police were called around 11 a.m. Friday to a parking lot in the 7300 block of Ritchie Highway, where they found Myra Elizabeth Cason of Glen Burnie inside her Suzuki Sidekick with a gunshot wound to the chest.

Cason was last seen leaving Maryland Primary Care Physicians around 7:50 a.m. She was discovered later in the parking lot in front of a Pep Boys and a Gavigan's furniture store, police said.

She was pronounced dead at the scene and was taken to the medical examiner's office in Baltimore.

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Rational choice and common sense in the Giffords shooting

When a Democrat politician like Rep. Giffords is attacked, it seems rational to blame the action, either directly or indirectly, on the political opposition, whether that be Republicans, conservatives, or the Tea Party.  Now to be fair, I don't know of anyone who is suggesting that any of these actors actually pulled the trigger, but there have been suggestions they may have created and fostered a climate in which somehow made this act easier to happen.

Here's one problem.  Rep. Giffords is a former Republican, and a rather conservative (Blue Dog) Democrat.  In practice, she only votes with the Democrats about 40% of the time.  And last week she voted against Nancy Pelosi for minority leader.  So from the same political perspective as above, it seems rational, and even just as  likely that Rep. Giffords' attack was based upon the fact that she was not liberal enough, and perhaps someone with a left-wing motivation could have created and fostered such a climate.  In fact, Rep. Giffords was a "bulls eye" on a Daily Kos "target list," presumably for not being left-wing enough.  She was also the target of a Daily Kos post just two days before her attack (now removed, go figure) in which the author suggested that Giffords was "DEAD to me" for not being liberal enough.

In 1963, JFK's assassination was initially blamed on a right-wing culture of hate that supposedly existed in Dallas, Texas at the time (sound familiar?).  The problem?  Lee Harvey Oswald turned out to be a Castro-sympathizing Communist.  Not exactly the right-winger some were hoping for.

The fallacy with all of these conjectures is that they assume rationality.  Normal people make decisions based upon facts, often tempered by emotions, but generally speaking those decisions are based in some form of rationality.  Criminals, on the other hand, are not constrained by a normal sense of rationality, so why would you expect them to be constrained by laws to prevent such actions?

(In fact, these conjectures also ignore the fact that Jared Loughner had spoken with Giffords back in 2007 before there was a Tea Party or before most of the nation had heard of Sarah Palin.)

There is no evidence in the news since Saturday that suggests any sort of political motivation for this attack.  And if you watch Jared Loughner's videos on YouTube, you will rather quickly come to the realization that his head is not screwed on very tightly.  Likewise, his "favorite" books are not just Animal Farm and Brave New World, but also Mein Kampf and the Communist Manifesto, the Wizard of Oz, Aesop's Fables and To Kill A Mockingbird.  His rants are about dreaming, currency, grammar, language, and mind control.  His ideas are not confined to one side of the political spectrum. Only time will tell, but it seems extremely unlikely to me that this nutcase was motivated in any way by Sarah Palin, Markos Moulitsas or anyone else in any position of power.

Proposing snap legislation (like gun control or restrictions on free speech), or otherwise taking advantage of this tragedy to blame the opposition or further one's own case is shameless.  They're all responses to flawed reasoning about how and why this tragedy occurred.

Teens facing second set of murder charges in Glen Burnie slayings

According to the Baltimore Sun, Anne Arundel County police have connected the murders of two individuals in Glen Burnie this past year by their suspected killers:

Two of four teenagers charged in the killing of a man during a holdup at a Glen Burnie take-out restaurant are now facing additional first-degree murder charges — this time in the summertime slaying of a clerk at a 7-Eleven in Glen Burnie.

Vincent Ethan Bunner, 17, of the 100 block of Dunlap Road in Pasadena and Shawn Anthony Johnson, 18, of the 7800 block of Windbourne Drive in Glen Burnie were charged Tuesday in the second fatal shooting, Anne Arundel County police said. Investigators are seeking a third person. Police made the announcement at a news conference Wednesday.

The Sun goes on to mention possible gang affiliations.

For additional coverage, see the Washington Post.

Man Shot and Killed at Glen Burnie Bar

From WBFF FOX45:

Anne Arundel County police are investigating a fatal shooting at a Glen Burnie bar early Saturday morning.

Police were called to Dietrich's Tavern in the 7300 block of Furnace Branch Road shortly after midnight.

At the scene they found 30-year-old Kelley Terrell Fisher of Glen Burnie shot several times in the torso. He was rushed to Baltimore-Washington Medical Center where he died.

A preliminary investigation suggests Fisher and the suspect knew each other.

Another man was shot and killed at Dietrich's in January 2009.

Anyone with information on the suspect is urged to call Detective Michelle Mangold at 410-222-3458 or call the Anne Arundel County Police Department at 410-222-8610.

In addition, anonymous tips can be made to Metro Crime Stoppers by calling 1-866-7LOCKUP or text information to them at 'CRIMES.'

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Four arrested in Glen Burnie pizza shop killing

From the Baltimore Sun:

Police say they have apprehended all four suspects in the killing of a Glen Burnie man at a pizza shop Nov. 12.

Police arrested Shawn Anthony Johnson, 18, of Glen Burnie and Vincent Ethan Bunner, 17, of Pasadena in November in connection with the shooting death of Misael Abdias Flores and robbery of Mr. Wings and Pizza in Glen Burnie. Police said Flores was in the shop in the 7600 block of Baltimore- Annapolis Blvd. with a female employee when four men dressed in dark clothing entered and announced a robbery. Flores was fatally shot in the chest, and the four fled.

Last week Willie Antonio McLean, a 19-year-old suspect in the incident, turned himself into police near his home on Scotts Avenue in Glen Burnie, police said. And on Sunday, police located Charles Sequan Butler, 17, of Brooklyn Park and took him into custody without incident.

Why was man accused of shooting city officer out of jail?

This is a good (but depressing) story about the ineffectiveness of our criminal justice system:

In 2008, Franklin Gross Sr. — the man accused of shooting a city police officer in the chest over the weekend — received a five-year prison sentence for a handgun conviction and 12 years for a separate armed robbery charge.

Yet Gross was out of prison, roaming downtown Baltimore early Saturday.

First, his sentences were backdated to May 28, 2006, to account for the time he spent in jail after he was first picked up on a charge of being a felon in possession of a firearm. Next, as part of his plea agreement, half of his 12-year sentence was suspended.

With the plea agreement, Gross was looking at a six-year sentence, with two years shaved off because he had already spent that time in jail.

Another two years came off through diminution — or "good time" — credits. In May, he was freed on mandatory release, 26 months after being sentenced.

The new charges against Gross filed this weekend in the shooting of Officer Todd Strohman mark the fifth time the 29-year-old has been charged with gun-related crimes, highlighting the continuing challenges that law enforcement authorities say they face in keeping gun offenders off the streets.

Unreal.  Seventeen years of sentences reduced to 26 months. It's no wonder Baltimore is such a violent place.

3 Hurt in Odenton Bar Shooting

From WBFF FOX45:

Anne Arundel County police are investigating an early morning shooting at an Odenton Bar that left three people injured.

Police say James Jones, 23, of Halethorpe, is accused of shooting three people at My Place Bar & Lounge in the 1600 block of Annapolis Road shortly before 2 a.m.

Surveillance video of the parking lot shows Jones in a fight near the main entrance of the bar. He pointed a gun at several people inside before chasing Antwone Hooper around the parking lot.

Jones eventually shot Hooper in the head, back and stomach.

At the scene, police say they found two others who had been shot by stray bullets on their way into the bar.

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Warrant issued for third teen in pizza shop killing

Willie McLean

From the Baltimore Sun:

Anne Arundel police have obtained a warrant for the arrest of a third teenager in connection with the attempted robbery and homicide earlier this month of a 20-year-old man in a Glen Burnie pizza shop.

Police are looking for Willie Antonio 'Tony' McLean, 19, and believe he was involved in the shooting death of Misael Abdias Flores, a Glen Burnie man.

Police believe four men dressed in dark clothing entered a Mr. Wings and Pizza in the 7600 block of Baltimore-Annapolis Blvd. just before 9 p.m. on Nov. 12 and announced a robbery. Flores, who was inside the store with a female employee, was fatally shot in the chest, just days before his 21st birthday. The four men then fled, police said.

McLean, police said, is known to frequent Glen Burnie, Pasadena, and Brooklyn in Anne Arundel County.

Officer Gets Probation for Dog Park Shooting

From FOX45 Baltimore:

A federal officer has been given probation before judgment for shooting a Siberian Husky named Bear-Bear at a Severn dog park.

Keith Shepherd was convicted of misdemeanor animal cruelty and discharging his personal handgun near homes in the Quail Run community.

The judge gave him one year of unsupervised probation, 80 hours of community service and a $500 fine for the animal cruelty charge. Shepherd's record will be expunged if he meets the terms of his probation.

Shepherd claimed the husky was attacking his pet and threatening him and his wife.

Bear-Bear had to be euthanized after the Aug. 2 shooting.

Second suspect arrested in pizza shop murder

Shawn Anthony Johnson

The Baltimore Sun has the story here.

According to Anne Arundel County Police:

On November 17, 2010, at approximately 7:00 p.m., homicide detectives along with members of the Special Enforcement Team arrested and charged a second suspect in reference to the aforementioned homicide. Through investigation, detectives identified the suspect and located him in the area of Bliss Lane in Glen Burnie, where he was apprehended without incident. The suspect, Shawn Anthony Johnson, 18, of 7813 Windbourne Drive Apartment I, in Glen Burnie, was charged with First Degree Murder, Felony Murder, Armed Robbery and several other related handgun charges. The investigation is still very active. Anyone having any information should contact Detective Norval Cooper at 410-222-3453.

Trial of federal officer who shot dog in Severn park set for Friday

From the Baltimore Sun:

What's not at odds is that two family pets were brought to a neighborhood dog park on a summer evening in Severn and the owner of one dog shot the other dog, producing outrage from animal advocates, and then, two weeks later, criminal charges against the shooter.

Everything else is in dispute in the emotional case that left a Siberian husky named Bear-Bear so severely injured the dog was euthanized.

The differing accounts of what happened at the Quail Run community's dog park are scheduled to be aired Friday in an Annapolis courtroom. A judge is to decide if Keith Elgin Shepherd, 32, is guilty of animal cruelty and firing his gun near homes, or if the shooting of the husky owned by Ryan and Rachel Rettaliata was justified. Shepherd's lawyer said he was protecting himself, his wife and pet, a German shepherd named Asia....

One Suspect Identified In Fatal Pizza Shop Robbery

WJZ.com has the update to yesterday's story:

Police have arrested and charged a teenager with murder in an attempted robbery at a Glen Burnie pizza shop.

Suzanne Collins explains three other suspects are still wanted by police.

The victim is a young man who was visiting a female clerk at the pizza shop. Police say he told the masked men who demanded money to leave, and he was shot.

There is a shrine set up in honor of the murder victim outside Mr. Wings and Pizza in Glen Burnie. Misael Flores, 20, was shot to death there in an apparent robbery attempt Friday night while visiting a female employee. The shop owner says the four assailants had masks.

'We were walking in the kitchen,' said Malik Sawaf, Mr.Wings and Pizza. 'I heard noise. I come outside. I see the one guy; he had a gun in his hand. And he told me 'You go back.' I just step back and he shot him.'

Anne Arundel County police have arrested 17-year-old suspect Vincent Bunner.

...

Police aren't saying if Bunner was the triggerman, but they do say at least two of the four suspects were armed.

Bunner is charged as an adult with first-degree murder.

Anyone with information on this incident should contact Detective Norval F. Cooper at 410-222-3453.

FOX45 Baltimore also has an update here.

Pizza shop killing: a 20 year old man was shot to death during a pizza store holdup Friday night

From the Baltimore Sun:

Anne Arundel County police are interviewing witnesses and looking for suspects in the Friday night shooting death of a 20-year-old man caught in a Glen Burnie pizza store during an armed holdup, according to police Lt. J.D. Batten Jr.

Police said four men entered Mr. Wings and Pizza, in the 7600 Baltimore Annapolis Blvd. at 9 p.m. Friday and announced a holdup. Two were armed. When Misael Abdias Flores, of the first block Kuethe Road, Glen Burnie, and a female employee both told them to leave, one shot a man in the upper torso and all four robbers fled on foot. Flores was not a store employee, but was standing next to the [sic] shot employee.

The thieves were described only as partially masked and wearing dark clothing.

Presumably, they meant shop employee since Flores was shot, not the store employee.  More coverage: FOX45 Baltimore has more here, the ABC2 story is here, and WJZ has a story here.  Here is the Google Street View location of Mr. Wings and Pizza:

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Police investigate fatal shooting of man, 56, in West Baltimore

From the Baltimore Sun:

Police were investigating the fatal shooting of a 56-year-old man Wednesday night in West Baltimore, a department spokesman said.

Officers responded to the 800 block of N. Brice St., in the Midtown-Edmondson community, about 9:39 p.m., said Detective Kevin Brown, the spokesman.

The victim, identified as Sherman Payne of the 600 block of N. Dukeland St., was taken to Maryland Shock Trauma Center, where he was pronounced dead at 10:39 p.m., Brown said.

Police had no suspects and had yet to determine a motive, according to Brown.

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What's wrong with this article?

Have you ever attended an event that was featured in the news, and then read an article about the event the next day and wondered if the reporter attended the same event as you?  You find errors or misrepresentations, and then you wonder: if they can't get the details right about the events I know about, how much are they getting wrong about the events I don't know about?  It's a scary prospect.  In a similar light, I present to you the following news article from WBAL-TV (bold is mine).  Obviously this is not an event I was present for (thank God), but just a basic knowledge of local geography reveals some issues:

BALTIMORE -- A Glen Burnie man is wounded after being shot in Severn Sunday morning, police said.

The Baltimore City Police Department said it received a report that a shooting occurred at about 1:16 a.m. in the 7800 Block of Citadel Court.

Responding Western District patrol officers said they found a man with a gunshot wound in his upper body. The victim was taken to Shock Trauma, where he was listed in serious condition.

Police said that, according to witnesses, several shots were heard in the area of Citadel Drive moments before the victim was seen stumbling in the intersection of Citadel Drive and Citadel Court.

Further investigation revealed that a fight broke out in a party held in the area, which was followed by the sounds of gunfire, police said.

Two vehicles, a black Ford Expedition and a black Cadillac, were seen speeding away from the shooting, police noted.

Police said they are looking for a black male with a heavy build who was wearing a black jacket.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Western District at 410-222-6155.

A few things, actually.  The city is listed as Baltimore, but the first line mentions that the shooting actually took place in Severn.  More confusion in the next sentence the article contends that the Baltimore City Police Department received a report and responded to the shooting; but the 7800 block of Citadel Court (further refined as the intersection of Citadel Drive and Citadel Court) is in Severn, not Baltimore.  Lastly, the phone number at the end of article is the Western District phone number for Anne Arundel County Police, not Baltimore City.

So, here are the possibilities:

1. The shooting occurred in Baltimore City, but the address is incorrect;
2. The shooting occurred in Severn (Anne Arundel County), but the responding police department is incorrect;
3. The shooting occurred in Anne Arundel County, but for unexplained reasons, Baltimore police responded.

#1 seems unlikely, because all of the other details suggest it actually occurred in Severn.  #3 is also unlikely, because Severn is not close to, or bordering on the city, where you might expect out-of-jurisdiction assistance.  Likewise, if something like that occurred, you'd expect the article to explain why the city police were responding to call outside of their jurisdiction.  By process of elimination, and by common sense, it appears that #2 is the correct explanation.  In this case it simply appears that the writer got the details incorrect, and that Anne Arundel County responded to the call, not Baltimore City.  What's also frustrating is that this story was updated at least once, 3 hours after it was initially posted, and yet this obvious mistake was still not caught.

C'mon journalists, you can do better than this!

Monday morning shooting follows spate of weekend violence

Even by Baltimore standards, it was a pretty bad weekend: five killed, three injured in seven separate incidents. From the Baltimore Sun:

A spate of weekend shootings and stabbings extended into Monday morning, as homicide detectives responded to a shooting around 9:30 a.m. Monday near the intersection of Park Heights and Shirley Avenues. Police said an adult male was shot.

More information is also coming out on this weekend's violence, in which five men died and three were injured in seven separate shootings. Travis Lane, 29, of the 1500 block of Tunlaw Road, was found dead on the 3500 block of Calvert Street in the Oakenshawe neighborhood Saturday night, in a shooting that police believe may be related to the shooting death of 22-year-old Daryll Hood, who was shot in the head Saturday night on the 4700 block of Shamrock Avenue, one block from his house.

Detectives are also investigating a possible homicide after a man appearing to be in his early fifties was found dead in a vacant house on the 800 block of North Fremont Avenue in the Harlem Park neighborhood Sunday afternoon, said police spokesman Det. Jeremy Silbert. He said there was no preliminary evidence of trauma or foul play on the man's body, but that homicide detectives were called because the man's corpse was found in a vacant house. Police are awaiting the results of an autopsy to determine the cause of death.

Early Sunday morning, police found two men with gunshot wounds in the 1600 block of Warwick Avenue in Coppin Heights. One man, 33-year-old Dennis Waddell, died on the scene, while a 28-ear-old man who was shot in the arm was taken to the hospital.

Police responded late Saturday night to the 3000 block of Presbury Street to find 46-year-old James Ingram shot multiple times. Police said Ingram died at the scene.

Police are also investigating a weekend stabbing. Around 6 p.m. on Sunday, police were called to the 3800 block of Rogers Avenue and found a 35-year-old man suffering from multiple stab wounds. The man said he had been mowing his lawn when a man approached his house in a vehicle, got out, and stabbed the victim in the chest, arm, and back before getting back in the car and fleeing. The man was taken to the hospital, and Silbert said detectives are following leads in that case.

The weekend violence comes after several relatively quiet weekends in the last month. Last weekend there were no shootings, and the weekend of Sept. 10 saw no homicides, a feat not accomplished in the city since April.