Update On Shooting On Monday Night In Mappsville, VA.

Photo/WESR

According to Sheriff Todd Godwin, on Monday, August 20 at approximately 10:21 p.m., the Accomack County Sheriffs Office received a report from the Eastern Shore 911 Center in regards to shots being fired in the Mappsville Trailer Park.

 Further investigation revealed that one victim was approached by two black males outside of his residence at which time the victim was shot by the suspects. A 2nd victim was also shot at the residence during this incident and the suspects fled on foot prior to deputies' arrival. One victim was pronounced dead at the scene as the other was transported by Bloxom Ambulance to Riverside Shore Memorial Hospital and flown to Sentara Norfolk General where he is listed in stable condition.

The incident appears to have been the result of an attempted robbery.

Identification of the deceased is being withheld pending notification of immediate family.

The Accomack County Sheriff's Office was assisted by the Virginia State Police, Parksley Police Department, and the Onley Police Department.

Anyone with information concerning this crime is asked to contact the Accomack County Sheriff's Office at 787-1131 or 824-5666.
Source:

Three Nelsonia Men Held In Salisbury Shootings

October 9/SALISBURY, Md. -- Three Accomack County men are being held after another round of weekend shootings left residents shaken and city officials scrambling to address the ongoing problem.

Three Virginia men are in custody in connection with a shooting early last Sunday morning on Olivia Street that sent one man to the hospital, according to the Wicomico Bureau of Investigation.

Police said Tyrone Greene, age and residency unknown, was walking on the 700 block of Olivia Street at about 1:30 a.m. when a vehicle approached him and fired multiple gunshots, one of which struck the victim in the upper thigh. Greene was taken to Peninsula Regional Medical Center, where he was treated and released.

Only a few minutes after the first shooting occurred, police responded to a call on Linwood Avenue, where a second victim, an 18-year-old man, was shot in the thigh, according to Capt. Mark Tyler of the Salisbury Police Department. The man's injuries were nonlife-threatening.

Police later located the vehicle suspected in the Olivia Street shooting and took 21-year-old Breon Lamar Ayers, 18-year-old Tyquon Demetrius Robins and 21-year-old Ronrecus Lestie Strand, all of Nelsonia, into custody.

Tyler said police are trying to determine whether the two shootings are connected, as there were no witnesses in the second incident.

Mayor Jim Ireton said police are waiting for ballistics to compare bullet casings found on Linwood Avenue to weapons found in the suspected Olivia Street shooting vehicle.

The city has been plagued by shootings during the past month, and Ireton said he's working diligently to find out why.

"These boys came from Virginia, the last group came from Delaware, and I'm wondering what's bringing them here," he said. "Right now, I'm in touch with crime prevention experts from all over the country ... trying to nail this down."

www.easternshorenews.com

Woman Kills Family Members 'For No Reason'

SEATTLE, Sept. 24 (UPI) -- A woman opened fire on her family "for no reason," killing a son-in-law and two granddaughters before turning a gun on herself, Seattle police said.

The woman, Chhouy Harm, also fired at her daughter trying to flee from the family's West Seattle home Thursday before killing herself as police arrived, The Seattle Times reported.

"Grandma just shot them for no reason," said 17-year-old Tony Sun, a 17-year-old family member who arrived shortly after the shootings and saw police officers in front of the house.

Harm's daughter, who survived the shooting, told police officers outside of the home, "My mom has gone crazy," the report said.

Police said they didn't know of a motive for the deadliest shooting in Seattle since Kyle Huff killed six people in the city's Capitol Hill neighborhood before killing himself in March 2006, the Times said.

A relative said tempers flared in the family's home Wednesday night but did not provide the newspaper with details.

www.upi.com

Doctor Shot At Johns Hopkins Hospital In Baltimore

BALTIMORE (AP) - A suspect in the shooting of a doctor at Johns Hopkins hospital has been subdued and detained.

Hospital spokesman Gary Stephenson says the shooting was on the eighth floor of the main hospital building. He says that floor remains locked down. Earlier, Baltimore police said the hospital was being evacuated.

Police say they do not know the doctor's condition. However, the Baltimore Sun reports the doctor is in critical condition.

Portions of the Nelson Building, a thoracic center on its sprawling East Baltimore campus, have been placed on lockdown and other sections have been evacuated, the Sun reports.

www.wtop.com

Beltway Sniper Malvo Claims More Shootings, Co-conspirators

Lee Boyd Malvo is claiming that he and fellow Beltway sniper John Allen Muhammad lined up co-conspirators to broaden the campaign of violence that paralyzed the Washington region eight years ago, but that the collaborators backed away, according to a television interview.

Malvo also claimed responsibility for 42 shootings, many more than he and Muhammad had been linked to, according to a forensic psychiatrist who interviewed the man, now 25.

The revelations were greeted skeptically by lawyers involved in the case that shook the region in 2002.

The claim of 42 shootings "doesn't seem very plausible," said Katherine Winfree, who prosecuted Muhammad in Montgomery County in 2006 and spent hours interviewing Malvo before he testified against his one-time father figure.

Winfree also doubts that the pair had collaborators. "I would just find it very surprising if there were other people actually involved in the planning and going to participate in carrying out these multiple shootings," she said.

Until now, Malvo and Muhammad had been linked to as many as 27 shootings and 17 deaths nationwide, according to a tally by the Associated Press. Much of that blood was shed during a rash of killings in the Washington area in October 2002 that left 10 dead and three wounded. Malvo is serving a life sentence in Virginia; Muhammad was executed there last year.

The new claims came to light in interviews with actor William Shatner for a show that aired Thursday night on the A&E network. But a copy of the script provided by the network shows that Malvo, who has lied before to shift responsibility for the crimes from Muhammad to himself, initially denied outside involvement.

"Lee, was there anybody else involved?" Shatner asked him in a telephone interview. "Were there any co-conspirators?"

"Uh, no," Malvo replied, speaking from prison.

Shatner reminded Malvo that he had told his psychiatrist that there were co-conspirators.

"There were two others," Malvo said. "There were two other people who were supposed to be involved. But in the end, they end up backing out." One, he said, was killed by Muhammad.

The FBI declined to comment on Malvo's claims, according to the Associated Press.

Malvo also told Shatner that "there was supposed to be three to four snipers with silenced weapons, silenced rifles, and in this way you could do a lot more damage along the entire Eastern Seaboard."

Shatner, best known for his role in "Star Trek," acknowledged on camera the lack of concrete information. "We were not able to ascertain the identity of any co-conspirator and acknowledge the inconsistencies in Malvo's accounts," he said.

The show, "Confessions of the D.C. Sniper with William Shatner: An Aftermath Special," generated considerable buzz Thursday, aided by an interview that Shatner gave to ABC's "Good Morning America."

Defense attorney Jonathan Sheldon, who represented Muhammad, said: "I think this is sort of a ratings thing. Were there other people who knew of these shootings and were supporting them in some ways? I think it's really, really highly unlikely."

Muhammad and Malvo had obtained a car and guns from others, but to call those people co-conspirators unfairly suggests that they bear blame for the crimes, Sheldon said.

Sheldon questioned the number of shootings mentioned by Malvo but said it is not implausible that the pair committed more than they were accused of. He said the FBI approached him before Muhammad's execution date in November, asking him to speak to his client about unsolved murders.

"They were talking about a few individual shootings," Sheldon recalled, adding that they mentioned cases in Arizona and Florida. But Muhammad refused to acknowledge any role in any crimes, Sheldon said, including six fatal shootings in Maryland.

On the show forensic psychiatrist Dr. Neil Blumberg shared a conversation he had with Malvo: "Lee told me that there were approximately 42 shootings that he and Muhammad engaged in, but it actually appears to have been considerably more than that. Prior to arriving in the D.C. area, Lee and Muhammad traveled all over the country, robbing people, shooting people, killing people."

Blumberg added, "On average, they were shooting people at least three to six times a month."

When Shatner asked Malvo directly about other shootings, he answered: "Well ... for example, there was, uh, two in Arizona, Florida, Texas, Washington State, Alabama, uh, Georgia, Mississippi."

Winfree, now Maryland's chief deputy attorney general, was interviewed for the show and appears on camera. According to a transcript, she discussed how Malvo confessed to her in 2006 that four years earlier he had killed 60-year-old Jerry Taylor on a golf course in Arizona.

Shatner picks up the thread: "He confirmed killing Taylor and later confessed to the Tucson police. He also admitted shooting Albert Mychlezyck who survived, John Gaeta in Hammond, La., and a case in Texas."

Malvo and Muhammad stood trial for murder only in Virginia and Maryland.

But Winfree said Thursday that she doubts the 42 figure.

"If people had unsolved shootings they wanted to close, it seems a lot more of those would have been found out," she said. "I just really question the accuracy of that big number being quoted now."

When she interviewed Malvo in 2006, he had already been sentenced to life in prison; Muhammad had been condemned to die. She said that after escaping Muhammad's controlling influence, Malvo finally seemed eager to unburden himself and tell all.

"My impression is, he was using it as a catharsis," Winfree said. "He wanted to come clean, to be able to help law enforcement close cases. He wanted families to know what had happened to their loved one. He wanted to make things as right as he possibly could."

Malvo had hoped to be moved to a different prison, she said, so he had an incentive "to be as expansive as he could."

"Yet, we never heard about co-conspirators or a number as high as 42," she said. "I don't know what his motivation is now. It's got to be pretty boring in prison when you know you're never getting out."
www.baltimoresun.com

Marine Fatally Shot While Celebrating Before Deployment

In the latest of a string of Baltimore-area killings involving servicemen, a Marine about to be redeployed to Afghanistan was shot at a downtown hookah bar early Friday.

Chase Love, a 26-year-old from New Orleans, was shot once in the chest after an altercation in the lounge between 3:15 a.m. and 3:30 a.m., said police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi. He said Love was celebrating with fellow Marines before returning to Afghanistan.

Guglielmi said police are interviewing bouncers and other witnesses but have identified no suspects or persons of interest in the shooting.

"Chase was one of the funniest, most loving people I've ever known," said Kathey Early, who knew him from the Road Runners Club, the summer track team she and her husband run in Louisiana. "We've had many kids come and go, but Chase was one that my daughters accepted as a brother and that I thought of as the son I never had."

Early said Love's mother died of breast cancer when he was a senior in high school and that he entered the Marines shortly after graduation.

"He felt that as the man of the house, it was an opportunity for him to take care of his [two] sisters," Early said. "He loved it. He knew he was going to make a career of it."

Love lived with his wife and two stepchildren in North Carolina, where he recently bought a home, Early said. He had served in Iraq and Afghanistan, and his Facebook page says that he was a radio operator.

Early did not know why he was in Baltimore. Through tears, she laughed at the memory of a picture of Love in Iraq with lollipops spilling from his pocket.

"That was Chase," she said. "Always a jokester, such a joy to have around."

Guglielmi said Queen's Hookah, in the 200 block of E. Baltimore St., has no history of violent incidents.

The lounge, located in the space formerly occupied by the hookah bar El Basha, opened within the past several weeks, neighboring business owners said. The door was locked and the storefront dark on Friday afternoon.

"I was shocked this morning," said Paul Kuppalli, who owns the greeting card shop next door. "I've been here for 24 years, and I've never seen anything like this. Sure, it worries me to have a killing next door."

Queen's Hookah sits two blocks west of The Block in a stretch of convenience stores, check-cashing windows and financial buildings. Save for a few robberies, the area is usually devoid of trouble, Kuppalli said.

The city has experienced several violent weekends recently, and a shooting at the Inner Harbor last weekend prompted Police Commissioner Frederick H. Bealefeld III to outline a strategy for preventing trouble during the Fourth of July weekend.

Bealefeld said 300 police officers will patrol the harbor and downtown area during Sunday's fireworks, an increase from last year that had been planned before the shooting. State police and other agencies, such as the Maryland Transportation Authority, will assist.

Several active and former servicemen have been the victims of killings in the Baltimore area in recent months.

In June, unarmed former Marine Tyrone Brown was shot by Gahiji H. Tshamba, an off-duty Baltimore police officer, outside a Mount Vernon bar. Tshamba has been charged with first-degree murder.

In January, Pfc. Darius Ray of Potomac was stabbed after an altercation at a late-night house party in Northeast Baltimore. Three men were charged with first-degree murder.

In December, Clifford Jamar Williams, an Army private on leave from Afghanistan, was shot while driving home from a city grocery with his wife.

In November, former Marine Grayson Edward Kenney Jr. was found in his neighbor's driveway in western Baltimore County, dead of gunshot wounds.

www.baltimoresun.com

Crippen Indicted On Ten Criminal Counts

SNOW HILL -- A Pocomoke City man accused of murder tried to kill two men one night in May, not just the one he's charged with shooting to death, a new indictment alleges.

A Worcester County grand jury has indicted Alexander Crippen on 10 criminal counts, including the murder of Reginald Jerome Handy Jr., and the attempted murder of Torrance Davis.

The day after the May 27 shooting, police found Crippen, 36, in a room at the Travelers Motel in Delmar, Md. He was arrested and charged with Handy's death, but neither court documents nor statements from law enforcement officials at the time indicated that there was another victim.

According to the indictment Crippen "did feloniously, willfully and of deliberate premeditated malice aforethought attempt to kill and murder Torrance Davis."

What's more, the indictment goes on to say, Crippen "shot at him with a gun, that created a substantial risk of death or serious physical injury."

In court records for minor criminal charges, Davis, 27, lists both a Horntown, Va., P.O. box and a Pocomoke City address.

Crippen has been charged with first-degree murder, attempted murder, concealing and transporting a handgun, first-degree assault, second-degree assault and reckless endangerment. Bond has been set at $1 million and a jury will determine his guilt or innocence during a two-day trial in September.

According to documents filed in Worcester County District Court, a verbal altercation broke out late in the evening of May 27 between Crippen and Handy. Witnesses told police that Crippen approached an individual sitting on the steps of a house in the 500 block of Laurel Avenue in Pocomoke when Handy came up to him and the two began to argue. Crippen then pulled out a handgun, fired several shots aimed at the victim. and fled the scene. A bullet hit Handy in the back and the 22-year-old Greenbush man was pronounced dead before paramedics could get him to the hospital.

Police later said that the attack was targeted and that Crippen and Handy had a history of not getting long. Davis's relationship to Crippen is not explained in the indictment.

According to Maryland court records, Davis has a history of minor brushes with the law. A 2002 second-degree assault conviction came with a $100 fine, and a similar arrest two years later cost him 90 days in jail. Davis also spent a month incarcerated for making a false statement to an officer in 2004 and another 10 days in 2006 for disorderly conduct. He is currently on probation for failing to pay child support.

www.delmarvanow.com

"Last Word Of The Week"

There seems to have been alot of heated discussions this week concerning the statement that Pocomoke Mayor Mike McDermott made this week to the Daily Times concerning the murder a few days ago in Pocomoke. And naturally because Pocomoke is my home town I hear it all!

Don't get me wrong. I like the Pocomoke Mayor. I do, however, think he would fair alot better if he would keep his comments out of the "crime business" and leave that up to his Chief of Police. There are alot of people here in Accomack County quite angry and worked up over this. I hope he left some "wiggle room" to get out of it. "Politics" or not Mr. Mayor you need to have a long talk with OUR Accomack County Sheriff! I think the apologies need to begin there and then with the rest of the law abiding people (like me) that visit your town for one reason or another.
LAST WORD OF THE WEEK Pocomoke mayor's Va. criticism is suspect as written by Ted Shockley, Eastern Shore News:

Last week a Greenbush man was fatally shot in Pocomoke City, Md. The town mayor was quoted in a report before an arrest was made that its violent incidents were the fault of Virginians

"I'm weary of the Virginia violence that pours over into Pocomoke City -- the problems that we've had in the past couple years tend to come from Accomack County, and it's really getting wearisome to our city," said Mayor Michael McDermott.

As it turned out, the man charged with murder resides in a Washington, D.C., suburb of Maryland. In fact, he lived in Pocomoke City in 1993 when he was charged with first-degree murder. The charge was later dropped.

I'm surprised that the Maryland mayor decided to paint our county as a violent badlands before a Marylander was charged with the slaying of Reginald Jerome Handy Jr., 22, of Greenbush.

Instead, maybe Accomack County should be a little wary of having such a lawless place so close to our border.

You would think the self-proclaimed "Friendliest Town on the Eastern Shore" would be a little friendlier with respect to comments about its southern neighbor.

It led me to think of everything that gets on my nerves about Pocomoke City. I could start with all of the Walmart plastic bags blowing through Accomack County. Maybe someday, those plastic bags could come from our soon-to-be-opened Walmart. Right now, they are imported from the north.

I could continue with the outrageously long wait at the traffic light at Walmart in Pocomoke City. Or the Pocomoke Christmas Parade, which I stopped attending because I don't like mixing with hooded mobs on sidewalks after dark. (If you want a much nicer after-dark Christmas parade, go to Chincoteague's or Exmore's instead.)

Or the super-long waits at the former Greene Turtle restaurant on U.S. Route 13. No wonder it's no longer in business.

Sure, all of that seems petty, but I didn't start the pettiness.

The truth is, Accomack County spends a lot of money on everything from cars to meals in Pocomoke City. Accomack County provides a lot of Marylanders jobs at the Wallops industrial complex. For two municipalities in separate states, Pocomoke City and Accomack are pretty close and cooperative siblings.

One wonders if Maryland competition for NASA-related spinoff business and new residents was behind the mayor's criticism of us. People will say anything to lure a job or two.

In reality, the issue of street shootings is more a societal issue than a geographical problem. When it comes to senseless violence, there are a lot of contributing factors that transcend state lines and municipal limits.

The mayoral thing to do would be to help find ways to fix the problem before publicly affixing blame.

NOTE: If you care to leave a comment be sure to think about what you write. I DID NOT post this so the people of Pocomoke (that seem to think they have no use for the mayor ) could have a big time with comments. I merely want everyone to know that Accomack County heard him loud and clear

Update: Pocomoke Murder

POCOMOKE, Md. - Police have arrested an alleged shooter accused of gunning down a man in Pocomoke Wednesday night.

Thirty-six-year-old Alexander Crippen is sitting behind bars in connection to the alleged homicide of Reginald Jerome Handy Jr.



"Crippen was charged with First Degree Murder, Second Degree Murder, Manslaughter, Use of a Handgun in the Commission of a Crime of Violence and Possession of a Handgun," said Joel Todd, the State's Attorney for Worcester County.

During a press conference Friday afternoon, Todd says Crippen allegedly approached Handy.
"Words were exchanged between Handy and Crippen," said Todd. "Crippen fired a handgun several times at Handy."

Police say the men knew each other, but they aren't sure how.

With the help of eyewitnesses they were able to make an arrest.

"When we spoke with them they were actually able to identify who the shooter was and that's how we were able to identify who Mr. Crippen was and begin actively searching for him," said Detective Corporal Mike Lupiwok, with the Worcester County Sheriff's Office.

Police located and apprehended Crippen around 11:00 Thursday night at the Traveler's Motel in Delmar.

Police also say he was staying there under a different name.


Pocomoke police are encouraging people in the area to attend an open discussion concerning the recent happenings on Saturday, June 12th at 10:00 a.m. at the New Macedonia Baptist Church.

www.wmdt.com

Arrest Made In Pocomoke Murder

POCOMOKE CITY, Md.- Authorities have arrested a suspect wanted for shooting a 22-year-old man to death in Pocomoke City late Wednesday night.

Thirty-six-year-old Alexander Crippen was taken into custody Thursday evening at a hotel in Delmar. He was charged with first- and second-degree murder, manslaughter and possession of a handgun in the commission of a felony. He is being held at the Worcester County Jail. Bail has not yet been set.

Pocomoke City police say that at around 10 p.m. Wednesday, they received calls for shots fired in the area of Laurel and Fifth streets. Upon arrival, officers found Reginald Jerome Handy Jr., of Greenbush, Va., suffering from a gunshot wound.

Handy was transported by ambulance to Peninsula Regional Medical Center. He was pronounced dead on arrival.

According to investigators, the suspect and victim knew each other. Authorities say Crippen shot Handy during a dispute over cigarettes. Witnesses helped police identify Crippen as the suspect.

www.wboc.com

22 Year Old Virginia Man Shot In Pocomoke

POCOMOKE CITY, Md.- Police are looking for a suspect wanted for shooting a 22-year-old man to death in Pocomoke City late Wednesday night.

Pocomoke City police say that at around 10 p.m., they received calls for shots fired in the area of Laurel and Fifth streets. Upon arrival, officers found Reginald Jerome Handy Jr., of Greenbush, Va., suffering from a gunshot wound.

Handy was transported by ambulance to Peninsula Regional Medical Center and was pronounced dead on arrival.

The Worcester County Bureau of Investigations, along with Maryland State Police and Pocomoke City police investigated this incident and identified a suspect as the shooter. The suspect's identity will be released once an arrest is made.

www.wboc.com

Saturday Night Shooting In New Church

According to Sheriff Larry Giddens, on Saturday, May 15 at approximately 11:01 p.m., the Accomack County Sheriff's Office received a report of shots fired at a party on Rantz Street in New Church. Further investigation revealed that three persons had been shot as a result of the gunfire and two of the three victims were transported by Bloxom Ambulance to Shore Memorial Hospital and later transferred to Sentara Norfolk General where they are listed in stable condition. The third victim was treated on the scene by Oak Hall Rescue. The suspects fled the scene prior to deputies' arrival.

The victims injured during this incident consist of a 17 year old juvenile, whose name was not released, and two adults. The adults injured were Alnisa Crosland, age 22 of Berlin, MD and Mike Harmon, age 37 of New Church.

The Accomack County Sheriff's Office was assisted by the Virginia State Police and the Onancock, Parksley, Bloxom, and Hallwood Police Departments.

Anyone with information concerning this crime is asked to contact the Accomack County Sheriff's Office at 787-1131 or 824-5666.

www.shoredailynews.com