Baltimore County Crime Tour, 2006 edition

Well, it's just a week into the new year and based on the recent spate of violence in Baltimore County, I'm thinking of beginning a guided crime tour. And gosh, lucky for me, none of the stops on the tour require me going very far from home.

As of last night, we can add a murder at the Valley Center shopping center in Owings Mills to the list. The day before brought us a murder at Security Square Mall (where I practically grew up) and a shooting at White Marsh Mall. And just before the new year, there was a double murder of two city police officers, just around the corner from my old middle school.

(Shockingly, Owings Mills Mall has emerged unscathed from this recent trend of shootings but the year is still young. Plus, in fairness, the getaway vehicle from the Security murder was found that night in the Owings Mills subway station lot, right next to the mall.)

We learned about last night's shooting before it hit the media. Our friend who lives a stone's throw from the TGIFriday's where the murder occurred called us and left a message saying she heard six gunshots. This morning she reported that a police helicopter circled above her neighborhood until roughly 1 a.m. We later learned via local news that the perpetrator was caught and the shooting resulted from a fight where the victim and shooter knew one another.

For some reason it's somewhat more comforting to know that if murders are going to happen, that at least the people know one another. The murder at Security Square Mall appears to be more random. At this point police believe it was most likely an attempted car-jacking. This crime, I might add, happened at 10:30 in the morning, right in the middle of broad daylight. Add to that the fact that the assailant remains at large and you have more than a few scared shoppers.

Of course the one positive thing to come from these shooting is an increased attention in the safety of shopping areas. The murder of St. Paul's administrator William Bassett at Towson Town Center this past year spurred the Baltimore County Council to pass legislation requiring video cameras at shopping malls. Unfortunately, the video cameras haven't deterred everyone, especially not the gun-wielding man at the Towson Hechts who was reportedly distraught over a parking space.

I wish I had something particularly poignant to say about this violence spree but I don't. It's difficult to see many attacks in just a few short days, especially so close to home.

All I can say is thank goodness for the Baltimore County State's Attorney's Office, which pursues the death penalty in all death penalty-eligible cases. Perhaps wannabe thugs should learn a lesson from Wesley Baker, the inmate executed last month for his role in a murder at Westview Mall. Unlike the city, Baltimore County gets convictions.