Prosecutors in the Carroll County State's Attorney's office call it "the cornfield case."
They identify the crime in that manner because the decomposed body of 74-year-old Margaret E. Cullen was found last August in a cornfield along Route 30 in Hampstead.
Yesterday, testimony began in the trial of Abras Morrison, 21, one of two men charged in the slaying of Mrs. Cullen, a longtime resident of Homeland in North Baltimore.
Mr. Morrison, of the 6000 block of Lanette Road in Baltimore County, and Troy Dominic Shellington, 21, of the 3600 block of Cottage Ave. in Baltimore, were charged last August with first-degree murder and kidnapping in Mrs. Cullen's death.
In opening statements before Circuit Judge Francis Arnold, County State's Attorney Thomas Hickman said that the chain of events which led to Mrs. Cullen's death began when Mr. Morrison stole one of her checks and forged a $2,000 payment to himself.
Mr. Morrison, a graduate of Mount Saint Joseph High School, was employed by the Cullens as a nurse's aide. He took care of Mrs. Cullen's husband, Edward, a retired dentist, who was seriously ill.
When bank officials discovered that the check had been forged and Mrs. Cullen filed a theft report with the police department, Mr. Morrison decided to do something about it, Mr. Hickman said.
Mr. Morrison and Mr. Shellington went to Mrs. Cullen's home in the 5400 block of Springlake Way, cut out a basement window, entered the house and waited for Mrs. Cullen, Mr. Hickman said, and when she returned home they grabbed her.
In the early hours of Aug. 14, the two men drove Mrs. Cullen in her 1984 Cadillac to the cornfield and stabbed her to death, the prosecutor said.
Baltimore City police arrested Mr. Morrison and Mr. Shellington on Aug. 24 after piecing together information about a missing person report filed on Mrs. Cullen and the check forgery complaint.
Michael Kaplan, Mr. Morrison's defense attorney, said the confession his client gave to Baltimore homicide detectives was improperly obtained.
"We will call Andras Morrison to testify and explain how he was tricked or induced or coerced into giving a confession in this case," Mr. Kaplan said.
Judge Arnold denied defense pretrial motions to suppress the confessions at trial.
In testimony yesterday, the branch manager of the Signet bank where Mrs. Cullen banked, said she received an unusual call from Mrs. Cullen on Aug. 13 asking her to drop the theft and forgery charges against Mr. Morrison.
