Caught fabricating evidence, convicted Baltimore police officer remains on force 2½ years later

More than 2½ years ago, defense attorneys released Baltimore Police body-camera footage showing Officer Richard Pinheiro Jr. placing drugs in a vacant lot and then acting as if he’d just discovered them. A year later, Pinheiro was convicted of fabricating evidence and misconduct in office, a decision upheld last week by a state appeals court. Prosecutors have dropped cases that relied on Pinheiro’s police work and say they’d never call him again as a witness. Still, Pinheiro

Essex, MD police officer charged with rape

ESSEX, MD— Authorities in Baltimore County have charged an Essex police officer with rape. Officer Anthony Michael Westerman, 25, has been charged with two counts of second-degree rape and three counts of second-degree assault. Westerman has been employed by the Baltimore County Police Department since 2013. His most recent assignment was at the Essex Precinct. This case was initiated when police in Baltimore County received information concerning the allegations. The Special

Gov. Hogan Issues First Paroles For Juvenile Lifers

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — For the first time in 24 years, individuals sentenced to life in a correctional facility for crimes they committed before turning 18 are being paroled by a Maryland governor. This shift in policy for juvenile lifers by Gov. Larry Hogan, R, is unprecedented in the state’s recent history. “The governor talked about this issue in his original campaign, and it’s something that he gives serious attention to,” Hogan Administration Deputy Legal Counsel Ch

Judge convicts Baltimore Police officer of lying in court, misconduct in office

A Baltimore Circuit judge convicted Officer Michael O’Sullivan of perjury Thursday for lying about a criminal case and misconduct in office. O’Sullivan, 44, testified under oath that he had seen Yusuf Smith ditch a handgun while running from officers on The Alameda in May 2018. Prosecutors, however, said they checked body camera footage and discovered O’Sullivan couldn’t have seen what he testified to in court. A grand jury indicted him on charges of misdemeanor perjury and m

Representative Elijah Cummings, of Baltimore, died early Thursday at the age of 68

Representative Elijah Cummings, of Baltimore, died early Thursday at the age of 68, his office said. Cummings passed away at Johns Hopkins Hospital at 2:45 a.m. from "complications concerning longstanding health challenges," his office said. He hadn't returned to work after having a medical procedure that he said would only keep him away for about a week, The Baltimore Sun noted. Maya Rockeymoore Cummings, the chairwoman of the Maryland Democratic Party and Cummings' wife, sa

Baltimore City Police Officer Dies Of Apparent Overdose

A Baltimore City police officer died of a drug overdose early Friday, Baltimore County police said. Joseph Banks Jr. was off duty and at a motel in the 4400 block of Washington Boulevard in Halethorpe, according to a police report. Baltimore County officers responded to a reported overdose. Upon arrival, his girlfriend told police he was unconscious. She said she and Banks had been using drugs throughout the day. At 11 p.m. Thursday, she told police, Banks used the last of th

Hundreds of Baltimore-area sex assault victims signed waivers releasing police from duty of investig

Over 2017 and 2018, police departments in the Baltimore area prompted sexual assault victims to waive their rights to an investigation — 223 times, according to a survey by The Baltimore Sun. The practice runs counter to guidance from experts and from the International Association of Chiefs of Police. Baltimore County had the highest number: 172 victims reporting sexual assault signed the forms over the two years. After inquiries from The Baltimore Sun, Baltimore County polic

Authorities Seize Enough Fentanyl To Kill 10 Million People; 3 Maryland Men Indicted

BALTIMORE, Md. (WJZ) — A federal grand jury has indicted three local men after authorities seized 20 kilograms of fentanyl, which is enough to kill more than one and a half times the population of Maryland. According to the indictment unsealed on Oct. 30, Nevone McCrimmon, 47, William Elijah, 51, and Terrance Mobley, 50, are all said to be high-ranking members of a Baltimore-based drug trafficking organization with ties to the Sinaloa and Tijuana Mexican drug cartels. Start

Ex-Philly cop pleads guilty to drug conspiracy with Baltimore Police Gun Trace Task Force

Three days into his trial, a former Baltimore and Philadelphia police officer changed course and pleaded guilty to charges that he conspired to sell drugs with corrupt members of the Baltimore Police Department’s Gun Trace Task Force. The defense attorney for Eric Snell, 34, said his client felt the weight of the government’s evidence against him, which included testimony from a convicted Baltimore police officer who told jurors how he funneled stolen cocaine and heroin to Sn

Officers in Freddie Gray case appeal suit against Baltimore State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby to Su

Five of the six Baltimore police officers charged in the death of Freddie Gray are fighting to take down the Maryland state attorney who announced the charges – and they want to take the fight all the way to the Supreme Court. In 2016, two officers were acquitted, another’s trial resulted in a hung jury, and prosecutors dropped charges against the remaining three officers. It was an emotional end to the case that had gripped the city of Baltimore ever since April 2015 when Gr

Inmate advocates press Maryland to scrap book restrictions

BALTIMORE (AP) — Advocates for Maryland’s prisoners are pressing the mid-Atlantic state to scrap “senseless and harsh” regulations they say restrict the ability of inmates to access books and violates their constitutional rights. As part of a new effort to block inmate access to Suboxone, a drug sold in thin strips that are easily concealed inside envelopes, prisoners in Maryland can now only order books from two vendors that the American Civil Liberties Union says offers onl

Baltimore police officer arrested, Spencer Moore, 14-year veteran, faces drug trafficking charges

BALTIMORE (WBFF)-- Baltimore City Police announced the arrest of an officer Wednesday. Interim Commissioner Tuggle briefed the media on the arrest of the officer, charged with drug trafficking in Baltimore County. Officer Spencer Moore was arrested Tuesday night on drug charges. He is a 14-year-veteran of the police department. Police say the charges stemmed from the distribution of prescription drugs. Interim Police Commissioner Gary Tuggle says, "I do want to say this type

9 plead guilty in Maryland prison conspiracy

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) -- Maryland authorities say nine people, including a former correctional officer, have pleaded guilty for their roles in a bribery conspiracy at a state prison. State prosecutor Emmet Davitt announced the guilty pleas Thursday in the case at the Jessup Correctional Institution. Prosecutors say inmate Tyrone Johnson arranged for his sons Travis and Marquis Johnson to pay former correctional officer Warren Wright bribes for Wright to smuggle narcotics inside

Baltimore man exonerated of murder after 30 years in prison

For 30 years, Jerome Johnson maintained that he was innocent of the 1988 killing of a Baltimore man inside the Nite Owl bar. On Monday, a judge agreed. Johnson, convicted of murder in the death of Aaron Taylor, was exonerated Monday and set free. He had been convicted on inconsistent and faulty witness testimony, his defense attorneys and prosecutors say. The 50-year-old stepped from the Baltimore Circuit Courthouse downtown, hugged his younger brother, and softly thanked his

Philadelphia cop charged in Gun Trace Task Force case asks for pre-trial release

Philadelphia police officer charged as part of the Baltimore Police Department’s Gun Trace Task Force case is asking a judge to release him from pretrial detention, saying authorities lack evidence and are going on the word of a corrupt officer. But in a subsequent motion filed later Friday, federal prosecutors laid out evidence against the officer, Eric Troy Snell, including text messages and cell site location data, and said cocaine and an “arsenal” of unregistered firearms