Two Home Invasion Robberies in
Rockville Area
ROCKVILLE (APRIL 21, 2005) -- Detectives with the Montgomery County Police Major
Crimes Division – Robbery Section are investigating two separate home invasion
robberies that occurred this afternoon.
At 4:21 p.m., 1st District officers responded to the 12800 block of Esworthy Road in
North Potomac for the report of a burglary in progress. Initial investigation revealed
that a lone suspect knocked on the front door. A female inside went to the door and
refused to open it; however the suspect opened the door and forced his way in. The suspect
then displayed a handgun and forced the woman upstairs into a bedroom, where there were
two young children. The suspect then went through the rest of the house and took property.
The suspect left the scene a short time later. A second suspect was seen outside the
residence during the robbery. The victims were not injured.
The first suspect is described as a black male, in his mid 20’s, 5’11"
tall, weighing approximately 150 pounds, and was wearing all black clothing. The second
suspect is described as black male wearing red clothing.
At 5:39 p.m., officers with Rockville City Police and Montgomery County Police -1st
District responded to a report of a burglary in progress in the 500 block of Longwood
Drive in Rockville. Responding officers learned that the male and female residents were
followed into their home by two suspects who were armed with handguns. Once inside, the
victims were tied up, while the suspects went through the residence and took property. The
suspects then left the scene. The victims were not injured, and were able to free
themselves and call police. The suspects in this incident were described as black males,
one was short and heavy-set and in his 20’s, the other suspect was tall. There is no
further description at this time.
Anyone who has information about these incidents and/or suspects is asked to call the
Montgomery County Police Department’s Major Crimes Division – Robbery Section at
240-773-5100. Those who wish to remain anonymous may call Crime Solvers of Montgomery
County, toll-free, at 1-866-411-TIPS (8477). Crime Solvers will pay a cash reward of up to
$1,000 for information provided to them that leads to an arrest and/or indictment of the
suspects in these crimes.
DRIVER AND UNBORN CHILD KILLED IN FIERY CRASH ON BALTIMORE BELTWAY
FULLERTON (APRIL 21, 2005) – Maryland
State troopers from the Golden Ring Barrack are continuing their investigation into a
fiery vehicle crash, which occurred April 20, 2005,on the Baltimore Beltway (I-695) in the
vicinity of Belair Road in Baltimore County, that left a woman and her unborn child dead.
The victim is identified as Tina M. Scheve, 37, of the 4500-block of
Fullerton Avenue, Baltimore, Maryland. She was pronounced dead at the scene by a forensic
examiner. Her body was taken to the Office of the State Medical Examiner in Baltimore for
an autopsy. Scheve was reportedly nine months pregnant.
. Shortly before 4:30 p.m., the driver of a rollback-type tow truck
had stopped his vehicle on the right shoulder of the outer loop, prior to Belair Road
overpass. The driver was seated in the truck and was speaking to a motorist whose vehicle
was disabled west of the accident location.
According to witnesses, Scheve was operating a red 2004 Chevrolet
Impala on the outer loop in the center lane of three, east of Belair Road. For reasons
unknown, the vehicle traveled across the lanes and onto the right shoulder. The Chevrolet
impacted the rear of the tow truck and became engulfed in flames. The tow truck driver and
other motorists rushed to the vehicle to render aid. They were unsuccessful in their
attempts.
The truck is owned by B and B Towing of Perry Hall, Maryland. The
driver, Anthony Gaither, was not injured in the crash and drove the vehicle from the
scene. The Chevrolet was stored for possible post-crash inspection purposes.
Traffic on the outer loop was backed up for approximately five miles
to Route 702. Personnel from the State Highway Administration were dispatched to assist
with lane closures. The two right lanes were closed until shortly after 7:00 p.m.
Troopers are being assisted by a collision reconstructionist.
Members of the Baltimore County Police Department and Maryland Department of the
Environment also responded to assist.
This investigation is continuing…
U. S. SUPREME COURT AGREES TO HEAR ATTORNEY GENERAL
CURRAN’S
APPEAL IN CASE INVOLVING CRIMINAL DEFENDANT’S STATEMENTS MADE TO POLICE
ANNAPOLIS (April 21, 2005) – On April 21, 2005, the State
of Maryland’s Attorney General, J. Joseph Curran, Jr., announced that the United
States Supreme Court has agreed to hear his office’s appeal regarding the case of
Leeander J. Blake. No official date for the argument date has been set, but it is likely
to be heard in late 2005. "We are quite pleased that the Supreme Court has decided to
hear this case," said Attorney General Curran. "The Supreme Court grants only a
small percentage of the certiorari petitions filed, but we made a strong argument as to
why this case needed to be reviewed." General Curran will assemble a team of
attorneys to present this case to the country’s highest court.
Leeander J. Blake and an accomplice, Terrence Tolbert, were accused of murdering 51
year-old Straughan Lee Griffin of Annapolis in 2002. Tolbert was found guilty of murder
and other offenses in January 2005, but Blake’s case has never reached trial.
Blake’s attorneys argued that his statements made to police were inadmissible because
Blake had asked for an attorney before making these statements. An Anne Arundel County
Circuit Court judge ruled the statement inadmissible. The Attorney General’s Office
then appealed to the Maryland Special Court of Appeals arguing that Blake had initiated
the conversation in which he incriminated himself, and the earlier ruling was overruled.
But Blake’s attorney’s appealed that decision, and the Maryland Court of Appeals
reversed the Court of Special Appeals. Maryland state law requires that a case be dropped
if prosecutors unsuccessfully appeal a pretrial ruling suppressing evidence in a criminal
case.
BAY BRIDGE CONSTRUCTION
ON-SCHEDULE
Westbound Center Lane Expected To Open Prior to
Memorial Day
BALTIMORE(APRIL 21, 2005) – On April 19, 2005, the Maryland Transportation
Authority announced today that it expects to reopen the center lane of the Bay Bridge's
westbound span in time for motorists traveling during the Memorial Day holiday.
"Our goal is to get off the Bay Bridge before the Memorial Day holiday," said
Robert L. Flanagan, Maryland Transportation Authority Chairman and State Transportation
Secretary. "Thanks to strategic planning, a lot of hard work and good weather,
this project is nearly halfway complete. We are confident that all lanes on the Bay
Bridge will reopen in time for beachgoers to head out for the Memorial Day weekend."
Impulse Response Testing was completed on the westbound span throughout January and
February. Preliminary results show the structural integrity of the bridge is good
and that remedial work is going well. Data regarding the testing have been given to
the Overview Team for its review.
"The bottom line is work is going well, and if the weather continues to cooperate, we
hope to be able to open the center lane on schedule," said Authority Executive
Secretary Trent M. Kittleman. "We are continuing to perform daily inspections
and are working with the experts on the Overview Team as they analyze results from the
Impulse Response Testing."
The westbound center lane of the Bay Bridge has been closed 24-hours-a-day since January 3
as workers repair more than 7,000 feet of concrete poured as part of the rehabilitation of
the westbound bridge deck. Work for Phase II of the project, expected to begin late
2006, primarily will involve pre-cast concrete work that will be performed during
overnight hours without continuous lane closures. As always, routine maintenance
work needs to be done occasionally and may cause temporary daytime or evening lane
closures.
Before traveling the Bay Bridge, visit www.chart.state.md.us to view real-time
images from the bridge's approaches or call the BAYSPAN Hotline at
1-877-229-7726 for current traffic conditions. For additional lane-closure
information, please visit the website www.baybridgeinfo.com.
The Maryland Transportation Authority owns and operates the State's seven toll
facilities. The Authority's six Members, appointed by the Governor with consent of
the State Senate, serve as the agency's policy-setting and governing body. Maryland
Secretary of Transportation Robert L. Flanagan serves as Authority Chairman.
Maryland Department of Housing Launches 35-Year
Mortgage Product |
Continuing Innovations of the
State's More House 4 Less Program |
| CROWNSVILLE (APRIL 21, 2005) – On April 20, 2005, the
Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) Secretary Victor L.
Hoskins announced the launch of the Community Development Administration's (CDA) first
ever interest-only mortgage product through More House 4 Less.
This new interest-only mortgage is a 35-year loan with a fixed interest rate for the
life of the loan. Currently, the interest rates on this product start at 4.875%. With low
monthly interest-only payments for the first five years and fixed monthly principal and
interest payments thereafter, this product will help to make a home affordable to many
homebuyers who have had difficulty finding the right house in today's high-cost housing
market.
Offered through DHCD's highly successful Maryland Mortgage Program (MMP), the 35-year
mortgage product can provide the opportunity for borrowers to buy a bigger house, a house
in better condition or a house closer to their workplace. A borrower can expect to save
around 20% on their monthly mortgage payment during the five-year interest only period.
This could allow the borrower to buy "more house" (an approximately 15% larger
mortgage amount). For example, a working family with a $60,000 annual income is able to
increase their potential maximum home purchase from about $200,000 to approximately
$230,000.
Under the leadership of Governor Ehrlich and Secretary Hoskins, CDA is continually
moving forward with new initiatives to make homeownership a reality for even more
Marylanders by providing new mortgage products that will offer homebuyers more home
purchase opportunities. Governor Ehrlich is committed to addressing the need for "a
variety of housing for all incomes in Maryland. Exciting initiatives such as the More
House for Less campaign ensure that the lives of Marylanders will be positively
impacted and homeownership will be within reach."
"We are excited about giving Marylanders more choices in purchasing a home,"
said Secretary Hoskins. "The Ehrlich-Steele Administration will continue to put the
homebuyer first in developing programs that keep Marylanders in Maryland."
DHCD is now providing a much greater range of mortgage products, thus expanding
opportunities to buy a home. For the first 25 or so years of CDA's single family lending
history, only one mortgage product was offered. By the end of 2005, DHCD expects to
increase the number of products offered to 12 different purchasing options. These options
will provide a full range of fixed-rate mortgages to prospective homebuyers, from
the borrower who needs to borrow the maximum amount affordable to the borrower who needs
the least amount of cash for closing on a home purchase.
Because of CDA's active management of its tax-exempt mortgage revenue bond program, the
interest rate to the borrower is lower than what the borrower can receive in the
conventional market. For the average loan size of $115,500, such subsidy translates into
monthly savings to the homeowner of about $58.50 or $702 each year.
Between 2000 and 2003 the median home sale price rose by 38%, while the median
household income only increased by 5%. Faced with the escalating housing costs in
Maryland, and family income not rising at the same rate, Governor Ehrlich challenged DHCD
to provide innovative housing opportunities for Maryland's working families. As a result,
DHCD extensively restructured its mortgage program and, in April 2003, Lt. Governor Steele
launched the More House for Less campaign to make the dream of homeownership a
reality for more Marylanders. Since its inception, the program has assisted over 2,300
Marylanders to become homeowners.
To help with settlement costs, often seen as a barrier to homeownership, DHCD provides
the Downpayment and Settlement Expense Loan (DSELP) program, which offers zero-percent
deferred loans up to $3,000 for downpayment and closing cost assistance. One of the newer
initiatives is additional downpayment assistance, where buyers willing to pay a higher
mortgage rate receive a 2% closing cost assistance grant. This provides significant
support, especially in higher priced home markets.
A cabinet-level State agency, the Maryland Department of Housing and Community
Development is committed to expanding homeownership and affordable housing opportunities,
strengthening and revitalizing communities, and preserving Maryland's heritage.
For more information on CDA's 35-year mortgage and other flexible mortgage
products, visit www.morehouse4less.com.
For current loan details, see the CDA Maryland Mortgage Program Fact Sheet for BorrowersCDA
Maryland Mortgage Program Fact Sheet for Borrowers. Borrowers can also call 1-800-638-7781
to receive a CDA homeownership kit.
Bottom of Form |
