A Day In The Life Of Police Beat....

(Excerpted and annotated for your reading pleasure)
Date: August 8th, 2008 Friday

NEIGHBORHOOD WATCH POLICE REPORT

(This one is great!)
1. FRAUD: On July 27th, a 30 year old Annapolis resident reported that she had been defrauded through an internet scam. The victim said that she offered her professional services as a tutor to school aged children on Craig’s List. A male suspect responded to the ad and told her that he would like her to tutor his son, who would be arriving in the USA shortly from abroad. An agreement was struck where the victim was to
receive $372.00 in exchange for tutoring sessions to be held at a local library. The suspect sent her a check for $3,500.00 and asked her to cash it, keep $372.00 for her fee, and wire the remainder to a caretaker of the child at an address in Florida. The victim complied. Later, her bank advised her that the check had turned out to be bogus, and that she is liable for the entire amount. (08-004664)(CP NOTES: This person was offering tutoring services? In what-financial planning?
Ahh, a sucker is born every minute....)

2.SEXUAL OFFENSE: On August 5th, staff members of the Boy’s and Girl’s Club reported that they had become aware of sexual activity between a 13 year old female member and a 28 year old employee.....He is charged with Second Degree Rape and other related offenses. He is currently being held at the Detention Center in lieu of a $175,000.00
bond. (08-004887)

And as always, CP's favorite--Bad Drivers!

6. BAD DRIVERS:

8/5 7:16 am Louis & Forest - a traffic stop was made due to a car being driven with a faulty brake light. The driver was identified as Alejandro Najera Morales, 32, of Pindell Ave. A check revealed that he did not have a driver’s license. He was arrested and charged with Driving Without a License. (08-004881)

8/5 12:28 PM West & Lafayette - a traffic stop was made of a suspicious vehicle after a report of possible drug activity in the area was received. The driver was identified as 31 year old Akia Nicole Dillard, of 1165 Madison St. A check revealed that her license was suspended. She was arrested and charged with Driving On A Suspended License.
(08-004884)


8/7 12:20 AM Bay Ridge & Tyler - a traffic stop was made due to a driver failing to stop for a stop sign. The driver was identified as Tymeika Renae Lewis, 18, of 1140 Madison St. A check revealed that she did not have a driver’s license. She was arrested and charged with Driving Without a License. (08-004929)

8/7 8:12 PM 1400 block of Tyler Ave.- a traffic stop was made of a suspicious vehicle after, a report of possible drug activity in the area was received. The driver was identified as 44 year old Sean Patrick Kearney of Royal Oak, MD. A check revealed that his license was suspended. He was arrested and charged with Driving On A Suspended
License. (08-004884)

(CP NOTES--This again underscores the importance and significance of supposedly "minor" traffic violations...)


How about being a part of making YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD safe for everyone this year. We are always looking for Annapolis Citizens to come on board with Neighborhood Watch. Let the police show you how.And it is FREE. Contact Neighborhood Watch Coordinator Stacey Bolin at SBolin@annapolis.gov

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This Disgusts Me

The Boys & Girls Clubs are supposed to be a place of refuge. A place of mentoring. Not a place for a 28 year old predator to look to rape a 13 year old girl!

2.SEXUAL OFFENSE: On August 5th, staff members of the Boy’s and
Girl’s Club reported that they had become aware of sexual activity
between a 13 year old female member and a 28 year old employee.  The
father of the victim approached the Club, reporting that he had heard
rumors in the neighborhood about the incident. The Club Staff began
looking into it and found some substantiation, then immediately
contacted police. The investigation determined that the 13 year old said
that she and the suspect had sexual intercourse on the club’s premises
in the 400 block of Captain’s Circle on July 29th at about 11:00 AM.
The suspect, to staff members, acknowledged that sexual activity
occurred between the two, but said that it was other than intercourse.
On August 7th at 5:33 PM, Joey Duvall Wise, 28, of the 200 block of
Bloomsbury Square was arrested at his home without incident. He is
charged with Second Degree Rape and other related offenses. He is
currently being held at the Detention Center in lieu of a $175,000.00
bond. (08-004887)

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Chief Pristoop: "I totally understand the community concern."

CP recently reported about graffiti at the Eastport Post Office which appears to be gang related. A reliable source has confirmed that to CP. The upshot is that a neighbor reported the graffiti to the police and to the Post Office and seemed to get nowhere. At the very least, it should have been removed. The neighbors should have been contacted by the police. The police should have taken this seriously and worked to educate us about possible gang tagging. At the worst, it is a federal offense. Meanwhile, CP had been communicating with one member of the Police Department who questioned the seriousness of the graffit and whether or not public attention would be aiding the vandals. CP wrote to another APD officer who had been previously informed about this and whose job description would have made communication relevant. This officer has not responded to CP. However, CP's reliable source has been communicating with Chief Pristoop who wrote the following to CP's source:

"We will promptly look into this. I totally understand the community concern. And I will ensure subordinate personnel heightens their attention. My Intelligence Unit is also aware and will conduct necessary investigations."

Thank you Chief Pristoop. This seems to be another example of citizens trying to report crime and work with APD and getting nowhere. Let us all hope that in your new role, you can create and encourage a more cooperative, proactive and responsive atmosphere and culture from the top down. In this manner, we won't need to go to you to get our officers to do what we would normally expect them to do as part of their job.
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Plums, Peaches, Corn...and Empanadas

Regarding the recent post on the downtown farmer's markets (City Dock by Fawcetts on Sundays from 8-12 noon) Ellis wrote "I'm gonna have to check this out sometime" to which CP responds:

Dear Ellis

By all means--great produce, terrific baked goods and a nice, pleasant way to enjoy urban life. However, be warned--it is expensive and many of the suppliers come from far away. I wish I could understand why we don't have more local suppliers as we exclusively have at Riva Road. Perhaps that helps to explain the high--actually exorbitant prices. Of course Riva Road prices are not so great either.I am more than happy to bike downtown, get fresh fruits from the grower and even to pay a bit more than at Safeway or Giant. Perhaps ten or fifteen percent more--but not more than that--which many of these items cost. The best value was the $3 empanadas (stuffed turnovers)by the Bethesda-based baker. The fresh fruits were mouth watering. But will somebody please explain why eliminating the middleman and all the infrastructure and overhead raises instead of lowers costs?

While I am on the topic, don't forget the Riva Road Market on Saturday--get there early! CP again recommends you not buy from Werth (Wirth? Worth?) Farms from the big white truck at the Riva Road side/corner of the market. They refused to accept a hundred dollar bill and chastised CP for having the audacity to bring real money to a farmer's market--which of course only accepts cash or food stamps. (Hey--keep it up and I'll be on food stamps.) Maybe I'll show up with a hundred again--just to bother them. If only they knew that it is much more likely to pass a counterfeit twenty than it is to pass a counterfeit hundred. And how do I know that their greens are not counterfeit?

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Pounding The Sidewalks

CP continues to get comments about the sidewalk tax issue. Refer to the post of August 1 and the various comments received: http://annapoliscapitalpunishment.blogspot.com/2008/08/who-should-pay-for-sidewalks.html

This morning CP spoke with an Eastport resident who jokingly called me a "trouble maker" because I had jokingly suggested that Mayor Moyer send one of her Celebrate 300 medallion paperweights to each tax payer who sent in their $25 payment in lieu of a refund. This Eastporter was concerned that city officials would not realize it was satirical and might take me seriously. Hmmm....

Here is another comment CP just received from JLP:

"Hi Paul

As you know, I don't generally like to leave comments, but Stanford's [note--see Aug 1 comments] response brings up my biggest problem with this whole issue. Regardless of how you feel about this fee, there is no denying on any side that this fee was passed at City Council, with a public hearing and the opportunity to speak out on it. The fact that some feel this issue wasn't broadcast loudly enough by the paper or by bloggers or by the mayor herself doesn't really matter. If you're not going to be an active member of the citizenry, keep an eye on what is happening at City Council meetings, and stand up and speak out when an issue comes up that you feel strongly about (at that time, not 8 months later), then your right to complain is greatly diminished. Well, you can complain as much as you want, but it doesn't mean that much. If you consciously choose to bury your head in the sand until after a law has been passed, then the fact that you don't approve of the law is, in many respects, too bad. had the city done this under cover, without public hearing, I could better empathize, but as it is, it just sounds like a lot of whining after the fact. Especially from people publicly quoted in the paper as saying that they shouldn't have to pay because there aren't sidewalks in their neighborhood. The city publishes the agenda for each and every city council meeting. It takes mere second/minutes to glance at it and see if there is anything worth speaking up about - probably less than an hour over the course of a year. If you care about your city and your government and your future, it's an hour well-spent. It's irresponsible not to."

and CP's response...

Dear JLP:

Thanks for your note--please write more often. In general I am, as you know, most sympathetic to your main point and am constantly disappointed by people who say they don't care or don't know and don't want to care or know about what they sneeringly and ignorantly refer to as "politics." This is why CP is here--to encourage interest and involvement in our local issues. But hey--a whole $25! That's an entirely different matter and hit a sore nerve. While many have admitted that in terms of dollars alone, a "fee" or a "tax" of $25 per household is darn reasonable and even a bargain compared to the actual cost to a homeowner for repairs, that was not the big problem.

I think that hardly anybody respects or trusts our local government to do the right thing, act responsibly or act in the interest of we the people. Therefore, the entire thing is looked upon as a debacle, and one that is apparently an illegal act--and how this got by city council and the city attorney is plain old baffling--and troubling. Additionally, this administration has managed to flub so many other basic things such as The Market House and the Annapolis Police Station that people downright doubted whether it could properly handle and actually undertake sidewalk repairs with this new source of moola.

BUT.....We have special taxes as revenue sources for roads, and most of us completely and willingly accept and pay them, so why not for sidewalks? Why is there discussion about the private responsibility of sidewalks when they are so clearly a public utility?

In summation--yep-we all should be involved and knowledgeable, and it's our own damn fault if we slowly get boiled in oil, but how can a city council meeting compete with American Idol or Oprah for our attention?

I suppose we get the government we deserve. It is up to us to demand better.


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Illegal Immigrants Not Welcome In Anne Arundel County

Well, true to his word, County Executive Leopold is cracking down. Too bad the crack down is happening at the County owned golf courses.



Apparently there was an investigation at Compass Pointe and when the contractor got wind, he tipped off his employees at Eisenhower Golf Course and all of his employees ran away.  What does that tell you?  Do you think there might be an illegal or two working for them?



Hopefully Billy Casper Golf, the County contracted management firm, will feel the wrath of losing a lucrative County contract and be blacklisted from future public bidding.



I also think that maybe they need to look into it a bit more and see if this is the status quo for Billy Casper and if the County should have known about it before awarding them the contract and paying them money!



Again, it boils down to a sense of personal responsibility. If you want to live here and work here, do it LEGALLY. You can get a green card, you can get work visas. Being here illegally is ILLEGAL. You have been warned and Leopold has fired a few shots across the bow wiht more to come I hope!

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Graffiti: "Innocent" Vandalism or Serious Gang Problem?

What some say is gang "tagging", others brush off as just some jerk with a can of spray paint. Recently some graffiti which may be a form of gang turf delineation has appeared in Eastport, and in all places on the wall of a federal government building. What could that be you may ask? The US Post Office. Some concerned neighbors have asked both the police department and the post office to take action. Some of these citizens are interested in removing the graffiti themselves, but that may subject them to a host of problems, including gang retaliation or perhaps even some charges related to federal property. However, from what CP has been able to tell, neither the local law enforcement folks or the post office seems too concerned, nor have they removed the graffiti.

CP thinks the police need to communicate to the public about what this type of graffiti may mean, or may not mean, and how we as a community can cooperate on addressing this.

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Are the Air Conditioners on the Buses Working Yet?

Hello--Annapolis Department of Transportation? Anybody there? It's August. The buses are hot--they are still hot! When will the air conditioning systems be working? Hello? Hello? Has that consultant helped you figure it out yet? Oh well.....

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Things Are Getting Better

Over the past few days, I have noticed that the sentences handed down by some of our judges have been more reasonable to fit the crime.  I say thumbs up for these judges!

32 years in prison for a habitual armed robber 

Harbor House murderer gets 45 years 

Admiral Heights burglar gets 10 years

Not a bad week as far as we are concerned.

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