Baltimore Has Only 196 Murders in 2011, a First Since 1977

For the first time in decades, Baltimore City’s murder rate has fallen below 200. Sure, it’s still at the top of the list of murders per capita, but it’s a significant decline and definitely a reason to celebrate. It represents just the third time since the 1960s since there were fewer than 200 murders.

In 2001, officials were celebrating a murder rate that finally dropped below 300, saying it was just the beginning of things to come. In 2007, it was on target again to breach the 300 mark, but was held below.

Neighboring cities like Washington DC have also experienced a similar drop. D.C. saw a high of 479 murders in 1991, and only 108 in the last year.

According to The Baltimore Sun, murders are often seen as “a reliable barometer of crime because they are less subjective than other categories.”

So what’s the cause of the drop? No one can say for certain, though city officials would like to take credit. From taking down drug organizations to targeted enforcement operations, police, probation, and prosecutors are all believed to have played a role in the overall decline of crime and violence in the city.

“A very small segment of our population pool disproportionately contributes to violent crime in this city. Many of these guys are known to us,” said Police Commissioner Frederick H. Bealefeld III, who took office in 2007. He admits that when he took over the city lacked a real crime reduction plan. He instituted a plan to focus on the “worst of the worst”, targeting known “bad guys” and creating the Violent Crimes Impact Section.

The existing murders still tend to disproportionately affect members of the African American community. Ninety-five percent of the victims of last year’s homicides were black. Only one of the cases have been closed and only 46% of the murder cases have been solved by police—one of the lowest clearance rates on record.

The positive effects of a lower homicide rate, however, are appreciated by all. Police see kids playing football on streets where they wouldn’t have normally been out and about. Community activists remark on the changing scene, saying there were street corners so packed with drug dealers, in years past, that you couldn’t push through.

Do Baltimore police still go after the “little guys”? Yes. Though they are primarily interested in the “worst of the worst”, they will still arrest you for seemingly petty offenses like drug possession and theft.

If you are facing charges, whether for drug possession or homicide, you need a criminal defense attorney on your side. Contact our offices today to discuss your case and how we might be able to help.

Maryland Judge Says ‘No’ To Cops Requesting Access to Cell Phone GPS Data

U.S. District Court Judge Susan K. Gauvey refused this week to issue a warrant to federal authorities who wanted to access the GPS information of a suspect. Law enforcement wanted the information so they could track down the suspect in a felony case, though they had made limited efforts to track him down prior to the request.

In her refusal, Gauvey said limiting the officers’ access to this information “does not frustrate or impede law enforcement’s important efforts, but rather places them within the Constitutional and statutory framework which balances citizens’ rights of privacy against government’s protection of society.”

Courts across the country are exploring cases similar to this one, discussing how police’s access to GPS data should be dealt with. When it comes to placing GPS units on vehicles, appellate courts in both California and Oregon have ruled that police do not need warrants for such tracking. A Washington state Court of Appeals ruled otherwise and the U.S. Supreme Court plans to take up this issue soon.

Police practices and policies have not been able to keep up with the quickly evolving technologies of the day. Because most smart phones now have GPS capabilities built in, it’s possible to track someone even without them making any calls. Phone companies are said to be able to tell you where their customers are within a 10 meter radius, something the cops would love to have unlimited access to.

Cell phones and similar technology has become a top tool in law enforcement investigations. However, the benefits of this technology as an investigative tool must be balanced with the Constitutional rights of the people. “This technology is going to cause more and more of these arguments,” says Douglas Ward of the Division of Public Safety Leadership in the Johns Hopkins University School of Education. “Like anything else, there can be abuses. Justice demands that we weigh that.”

In this specific case, police had the cell phone number of their target and with that information (and a warrant), they could have located the suspect using GPS data. However, they didn’t prove to the judge that the suspect (whose identity and crime were kept secret) posed any flight risk. As a matter of fact, they located and arrested him in the meantime, without the warrant.

Much of the argument in such cases arises about what sort of “expectation of privacy” a person can have in regards to their movements. Should the police have access to your future movements? This is a question that hasn’t arisen in decades past; only with the advent of GPS technology has the ability to track movements in real-time even been possible.

For now, it remains a gray area for law enforcement, where judges can really go either way depending on the facts of the case and evidence presented by law enforcement in pursuit of a warrant.

Can Top Cop Be Held Accountable for Baltimore’s Problems?

How many scandals can a police department weather before the leadership is blamed? That’s what many people are wondering about the Baltimore Police Department and it’s Commissioner Frederick H. Bealefeld III. While the initial shakeups provided him an opportunity to show his leadership under pressure, some are starting to wonder if the problems are now a sign of poor leadership.

According to the Baltimore Sun, when asked to reflect on his time with the department in 2009, Bealefeld said “Come on, has anybody had to go through what we’ve gone through?”

Known for not pulling any punches at press conferences and being relatively available, Bealefeld has steered clear of the press lately while maintaining contacts with community leaders.

He could be pulling back because he knows the heat is on. Just this year, a plainclothes officer was shot by other officers outside a nightclub, a veteran officer was indicted for running a heroin ring and even selling heroin on police property, and 50 officers have been identified in a kickback scheme involving towing companies.

While crime in the city is down, this reflects a nationwide trend and may not be indicative of Bealefeld’s performance. “The reality is, chiefs of police nationwide work for a political leader, and their tenure is based on how they serve that political leader,” says the director of Johns Hopkins University Police Executive Leadership Program Sheldon Greenberg. “What politicians want first and foremost is good stats, and they’re willing to forgo a lot of other things if their chiefs give them good statistics.”

In other words, had crime risen or even remained steady, there’s a chance Bealefeld may not have lasted this long.

Despite all of the drama within the department, some of Bealefeld’s support is holding pretty steady. He has the confidence of community leaders behind him and that of the FOP. On the other hand, some believe his time is up and the department could benefit from new leadership.

There’s little doubt that community confidence in the department is wavering. How can a city expect to stand behind its police when the police keep making headlines with questionable and even criminal behavior themselves. Pointing fingers doesn’t solve the problem and while the finger-pointing is going on, leaders are missing their opportunity to restore public confidence.

It’s normal to not trust the police in Baltimore—a sad but true fact. But when you are arrested and charged with a crime, your mistrust can be at an all-time high. A criminal defense attorney is often the only person that you might feel comforted by within the legal system. If you are facing charges, contact us today for a consultation on your case.

“Clerical Error” Renders Firearm Serial Number Law Invalid

Altering or removing a serial number on a firearm is not a crime in Maryland. At least for the time being. Turns out, when the laws were changed in 2003, a “clerical error” rendered the prior law invalid, making the crime not a crime at all.

According to the Washington Examiner, the Maryland Supreme Court overturned a man’s conviction after reviewing the law and finding no penalty was outlined for the offense, invalidating it as a criminal offense. The judges said in their finding, “When an individual is convicted pursuant to a charge that does not constitute a crime, that conviction must be reversed and the sentence vacated.”

The courts will likely see some appeals from this matter as those people convicted of altering serial numbers on weapons between 2003 and now would be eligible to have those sentences vacated and their convictions overturned.

Serial numbers on firearms are used to track weapons. Often, stolen guns or those used in the commission of a crime will have the numbers altered, making them impossible to trace. “It’s not like on TV where it’s easy to trace it back to the owner. This could make it more difficult for prosecutors at the state level,” said senior attorney for the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence Daniel Vice.

The case that brought this flawed law to the attention of the courts was one where the defendant had been convicted on a multitude of charges. Although this one was overturned, his other convictions are still valid.

Lawmakers in the state are expected to change the law and get it back in working order by this fall. It’s also important to note that altering the numbers on a firearm remains a federal offense. Even though the state of Maryland can’t charge you with this violation, the federal government can.

Gun laws in Maryland are otherwise fairly serious. Unlawful carrying of a handgun, for instance, carries a mandatory minimum 30 day sentence and up to 3 years in prison. This is one of the least stringent gun laws in the state; a second offense of this crime has a minimum 3 years in prison.

When you are facing gun charges, the likelihood that a clerical error was made is slim to none. More than likely, you will be charged with a legally sound crime and it will be up to you and your defense attorney to contest those charges in court.

If you’ve been charged with a weapons offense in the state of Maryland, contact me today for a consultation.

Baltimore Crime, Arrests and Indictments All on Decline

Changes in police practices and prosecutors’ procedures, along with potentially unexplainable factors, have all led to a drop in crime, a drop in the number of arrests, and a drop in the number of defendants released from booking without being charged. As explored in this in-depth piece from the Baltimore Sun, many are taking credit for the shift, though not everyone is completely convinced that the numbers tell the whole story.

In 2000, under the leadership of Martin O’Malley, police in Baltimore city were arresting anyone that ran afoul of even the most minor “quality of life” offenses. People were being arrested and booked into jail for things like loitering, nuisance crimes that would otherwise be handled with a warning or a ticket. This led to a mountainous arrest rate over the next several years, with 98,000 arrested in 2005, at the peak of this zero-tolerance practice.

But this high number of arrests led to prosecutors having to turn many arrestees away. Whether the arrest was made on charges that wouldn’t stick or if the offense was simply too minor to clog up the courts, prosecutors released more than 25,000 people without charging them in that same year.

In 2007, Police Commissioner Frederick H. Bealefeld III took over and began a more focused approach to enforcing the law. His department is far more concerned with arresting only the serious, violent offenders. While crime has fallen during his time as Commissioner, some believe it’s an anomaly and has nothing to do with what they fear is a more lackadaisical approach to law enforcement.

During zero-tolerance days, nearly anyone who looked suspicious or who was found loitering would be “slammed to the ground” and searched for drugs. Now, some citizens say those same drug dealers who were scared to come back on the corners are doing just that—standing side by side with the police, unafraid of potential consequences because they know the cops aren’t interested in nonviolent and low level drug offenders anymore.

In 2010, the number of people arrested by Baltimore police was down to 62,341. About 42,000 of these arrests were made “on view” or without a warrant. In 2005, 76,500 of the 98,000 arrests were “on view”. So far in 2011 there have been only 16,000 “on view” arrests.

Because the police are being more discriminate about their arrests, they are giving prosecutors better cases to work with and fewer suspects are being released without charges. Some say changes within the state attorney’s office have also made changes contributing to the lower arrest and higher resolution rates.

Another factor not addressed within the Baltimore Sun article is the “unknown” factor of crime reduction. Major cities across the country are experiencing dramatically lower crime rates and cannot put their finger on the cause. Despite the poor economy, fewer crimes are being committed and no one seems to know why. It would be rash to suggest falling crime could be attributed to good old fashioned police work and nothing else, particularly when the residents of the city see at least some crimes being committed in plain view with nothing being done.

Area Cops Scan Thousands of License Plates Daily

License plate scanners have been used in the area for years. The Maryland State Police has been using the technology since 2004 and with each year their use seems to expand. These scanners are used to identify stolen vehicles, expired registration, and revoked registrations as well. But they also scan plates belonging to law abiding citizens, something the ACLU takes issue with.

These scanners are usually mounted on the back of a patrol car or stationary, on the side of the road. The police car then has a monitor within the vehicle where the scans are displayed and the system alerts them to any law violations found. In one eight hour shift, a scanner can read 5,000 license plates, according to the Baltimore Sun.

If the system recognizes a car that’s been reported stolen or tags that are expired, it sounds an alert, telling the officer what he violation is and showing the scanned photo. If there’s no violation, the photo is stored for up to a year.

Local law enforcement credits the license plate readers with helping to bring auto theft down in the area. Over the past three years, car theft has dropped almost 40% in the state of Maryland. Though it’s unclear how much of this drop can be attributed to the scans, police say that car theft suspects often mention the cameras when they are being interrogated after an arrest.

Because of the suspected relationship between the scanners and the drop in car thefts, the program has received an additional $2 million from the state, doubling its funding.

Unfortunately, the technology isn’t infallible. The cameras cannot scan a vehicle moving at high rates of speed and often has difficulty scanning the small and sometimes obstructed plates on motorcycles. This has been the case with the tragic accident that killed Maryland State Trooper Shaft S. Hunter, who was killed when he hit a tractor trailer while in pursuit of a racing motorcycle.

The ACLU takes issue with the footage that is saved from the scanners. After all, if no law is broken, what is the purpose of storing the photos? Innocent drivers are, in a sense, being subjected to a search without their knowledge. “Police are not supposed to be keeping files on people who are not breaking the law,” says a spokesperson for the ACLU.

The prevalence of these cameras means more and more cases of auto theft and even driving on a suspended registration are using the footage from these devices as evidence. Even when such footage is not present, the evidence in cases like these can seem difficult to overcome.

If you’re facing auto theft charges or even charges of a traffic offense, contact our offices today to discuss your options.

Law Enforcement Solicits Assistance from Prince George’s Felons

Summertime is notorious for elevated crime rates. Officials in the legal community of Prince George’s County are taking a new approach to crime prevention this summer, however, and hope residents who were once locked up can help.

According to The Washington Post, the police in PG County are focusing on five different high crime neighborhoods: Langley Park, Riverdale, Suitland, Hillcrest Heights, and Glassmanor. These areas have been pinpointed as having a high concentration of parolees and prior offenders, which law enforcement says is an indicator of future criminality.

Fifty-six people in PG County have been murdered since January 1. That’s twelve more than the same time last year. Many of those involved—both victims and suspects—had priors on their record.

Within these five areas, law enforcement selected 233 people to attend a meeting, all of which had previously been convicted in connection with a violent crime and were out on parole or probation. They were alerted to the meetings by their supervising officers and warned that their attendance was mandatory.

During the meetings, law enforcement and Maryland prosecutors delivered stern warnings to the groups, telling them there would be no lenience offered for new offenses and encouraging them to stay crime-free. But the meetings weren’t all about threats and harsh words—job training and educational programs were offered as incentive.

In 2004, the Maryland recidivism rate was estimated to be around 48.5 percent. This means that within three years of being released from prison, 48.5 percent of offenders would be locked up again. Using this data, officials hope to curtail at least some of the recidivist crimes.

Similar programs have been instituted in other cities across the country. High Point, NC., a relatively small town with a relatively large crime problem, has been using a similar system since 1997. Since that time, they’ve seen a 47% drop in the violent crime rate. (How much of that drop can be attributed to the prevention program is unknown.)

People who are out on parole or on probation normally understand that a judge and even the police won’t give them the same lenience as someone with a criminal record. But sometimes a reminder is necessary. David Kennedy with the Center for Crime Prevention and Control says, “The record is really, really clear that they respect that and they respond to it. What happens when you have these meetings is that word spreads like wildfire on the street.”

Facing criminal charges is frightening enough. But when you have a criminal history the potential consequences could be even more severe. If you are accused of a crime and are in need of a local defense attorney, contact my offices today.