Barracks

Trooper 1st Class Eric D. Workman sensed something suspicious as he readied for work yesterday. His girlfriend, a trooper at the Golden Ring barracks, just happened to have a court appearance in Carroll County yesterday. His two supervisors joined him for breakfast at the Double T Diner in Catonsville before following him to work. Workman's instincts were right. A bright yellow banner, "Welcome Back Trooper Eric Workman" draped in front of the Westminster barracks on Route 140, greeted him. As Workman pulled up, Lt. Dean Richardson, the barracks commander, motioned him toward the front entrance.

A Baltimore man was sentenced yesterday to four consecutive 20-year prison terms after being convicted in Carroll County Circuit Court of armed robbery, assault and kidnapping in a case involving the December burglary of an Eldersburg home that led to the shooting of a state trooper. Ronald J. Presco, 37, of the 3000 block of Arunah Ave. was found guilty in June of 30 out of 31 charges, including armed robbery, burglary, first- and second-degree assault and kidnapping. A second suspect, later identified as Steven T. Jones, was shot and killed five days after the burglary in a Baltimore County house as state troopers from the Westminster barracks fugitive task force tried to arrest him, police said.

Visitors to the new state police barracks in Westminster, which opens next month, will notice a striking difference, beginning in the spacious foyer inside the front entrance.Straight ahead will sit a duty officer, who no longer will share cramped space with two communications dispatchers, said Lt. Terry Katz, barracks commander in Westminster. Katz joined William Ebert, a civilian capital projects engineer for the Maryland State Police, on a preview tour of the $3.1 million building last month.

Maryland State Police Lt. Terry L. Katz will replace Lt. Leonard Armstrong as commander of the Westminster barracks tomorrow, county sources said yesterday.News of the command change at the state's largest barracks will become official tomorrow morning, when Katz is introduced to the county commissioners.The announcement is a courtesy to the commissioners, who have a law enforcement agreement with the state police. The county pays $3.8 million in salary and benefits for more than 50 resident troopers assigned to the Westminster Barracks as the county's primary police agency.

Westminster's state police barracks, where resident troopers used to dine on road kill, will soon be torn down.Crowded and seedy, old Barracks G won't be missed by younger troopers when the new quarters open next month for the state's largest and busiest barracks. But old-timers who once boarded there chuckle at the memory of the 35-cent meals in the 1960s -- for which they were charged, even if they didn't eat them.They enjoy telling about the countless practical jokes that helped soothe tensions after 12-hour shifts on patrol.

State troopers in Westminster were ordered yesterday to report to Barracks G at the beginning of their patrol shifts, a move designed to enhance communication between command staff and those on road patrol.Sgt. J. W. Long, the morning shift commander yesterday, said the 7 a.m. roll call was the first held at the barracks and it went smoothly.Long said he couldn't resist borrowing a line from "Hill Street Blues," a television show in the 1980s. He ended the roll call saying, "Hey, let's be careful out there."

The dedication yesterday of the $3.1 million state police barracks in Westminster was, said Lt. Terry Katz, "a perfect time to reflect on the past and look to the future."Katz was joined by Lt. Gov. Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, state Treasurer Richard N. Dixon and other state and local police and civilian dignitaries who welcomed past barracks commanders, including Carroll County Sheriff Kenneth L. Tregoning.Katz also welcomed the return of a half-dozen retired troopers who opened the old barracks in 1961 and most of the first 10 resident troopers.

The U.S. Senate would like to hand a fat check to Fort Meade for construction projects, but the House of Representatives and the president will first have to approve the budget that has $25 million allotted for the post.The military construction appropriations bill for fiscal 2000 includes money for new barracks on the base in western Anne Arundel County and a new processing station where enlistees could get physicals and take tests. The bill was approved by the Senate last week, and a House subcommittee is studying it.It has not been scheduled for a vote.

Lt. Terry L. Katz, new barracks commander of the Maryland State Police in Westminster, was introduced to the county commissioners yesterday and immediately struck a deal.Katz, a 29-year veteran with a background in criminal intelligence and police training, promised to keep the commissioners informed about law enforcement activities and asked them to share any concerns with him."I'm sure glad to be coming to my first command in Westminster, the state's flagship barracks," said Katz, 50, a county resident.

Trooper Bryan Pearre was named 1998 Trooper of the Year for the Westminster barracks during the Superintendent's Awards Ceremony at Maryland State Police headquarters in Pikesville Friday.Pearre, 23, was one of about 80 troopers and civilians honored, including nine others from the Westminster barracks.Pearre, a Carroll County resident, will complete his third year on patrol in July. He was nominated for the award by the command staff at the barracks for responding to nearly 1,000 calls for service last year.

A 10-vehicle collision on the inner loop of the Beltway near Pikesville sent six people to hospitals last night and tied up traffic for more than an hour, state police at the Golden Ring barracks said. Police said the vehicles collided about 9 p.m. near the Stevenson Road exit ramp. At least one of the autos caught fire. Three people were taken to Maryland Shock Trauma Center. St. Joseph Medical Center and Greater Baltimore Medical Center treated the other three people. The names of the injured and their conditions were not available.

At the Air Force Student Detachment barracks at Fort Meade, almost every room contains mold. Water drips from leaky pipes into buckets on the floor. Shower water seeps down a hallway wall. Forty-seven airmen live in these half-century-old barracks, among the worst on the Army installation in western Anne Arundel County. "I think we've gone beyond the point of saying these barracks are unsuitable," said Maj. Danny S. Chung, commander of a Marine Corps detachment at Fort Meade. "I think many people in the chain of command have realized that."

State police at the Westminster barracks are looking for the driver of a vehicle that struck a jogger about 8 p.m. Thursday in Finksburg and left the scene. Police said Donald Grone, 55, was jogging near his home on Constellation Way north of Kays Mill Road when he was struck and fell to the pavement. Police said Grone, who was unable to describe the vehicle, was taken by a Gamber Volunteer Fire Department ambulance to Sinai Hospital, where he was treated for nonlife-threatening injuries.

A Baltimore man was sentenced yesterday to four consecutive 20-year prison terms after being convicted in Carroll County Circuit Court of armed robbery, assault and kidnapping in a case involving the December burglary of an Eldersburg home that led to the shooting of a state trooper. Ronald J. Presco, 37, of the 3000 block of Arunah Ave. was found guilty in June of 30 out of 31 charges, including armed robbery, burglary, first- and second-degree assault and kidnapping. A second suspect, later identified as Steven T. Jones, was shot and killed five days after the burglary in a Baltimore County house as state troopers from the Westminster barracks fugitive task force tried to arrest him, police said.

Lt. Dean Richardson has been with the Maryland State Police for 35 years, 28 of them at the Westminster barracks. He has been the station's commander since 2004. He said yesterday that he can't understand why the state police abruptly informed him last week he would be transferred to the McHenry barracks in Garrett County - a two-hour-and-45-minute drive from his New Windsor area home. "I can assure you that I had no idea that this was coming, and I was shocked when it did," Richardson said by phone while finishing paperwork in his Westminster office.

Trooper 1st Class Eric D. Workman sensed something suspicious as he readied for work yesterday. His girlfriend, a trooper at the Golden Ring barracks, just happened to have a court appearance in Carroll County yesterday. His two supervisors joined him for breakfast at the Double T Diner in Catonsville before following him to work. Workman's instincts were right. A bright yellow banner, "Welcome Back Trooper Eric Workman" draped in front of the Westminster barracks on Route 140, greeted him. As Workman pulled up, Lt. Dean Richardson, the barracks commander, motioned him toward the front entrance.

A Maryland State Police trooper who was critically wounded while trying to arrest a suspect almost two months ago has been named Trooper of the Year for Carroll County. Tfc. Eric D. Workman, 36, who received the award at the state police Westminster barracks, was one of four troopers recognized for their work. "Eric, we are so lucky to have you among us today," said Lt. Dean Richardson, the barracks' commander, as he described Workman's performance throughout 2006. "You truly [epitomize]

A Maryland State Police trooper who was critically wounded while trying to arrest a suspect almost two months ago was named Trooper of the Year for Carroll County yesterday. Tfc. Eric D. Workman, 36, (pictured at right) received the award at the state police Westminster barracks yesterday afternoon. He was one of four troopers recognized for their work. Lt. Dean Richardson, commander of Westminster barracks, cited several of Workman's accomplishments during the past year, including the 270 warrants he served, contributing to the Westminster barracks' total 870 for the year - the most warrants served by a state police barracks.

Three Maryland State Police troopers based in South Carroll have received awards for outstanding performance in 2004. One of the three, Michael R. Myers II, 26, was named Trooper of the Year for the Westminster barracks by Lt. A. Dean Richardson, the barracks commander. "They are recognized for traffic, criminal, DWI arrests, warrants, drug arrests. They're self-motivated; they're leaders," Richardson said. Myers also "helps the new guys out of the academy" in field training. Myers' patrol area includes Eldersburg, Sykesville, Taylorsville, Winfield and Woodbine, as part of the resident trooper program that provides Carroll's primary law enforcement.

JEROME COUNTY, Idaho - The barbed wire and watchtowers are gone, the military police building reduced to a stone foundation. For more than 60 years, the former Minidoka internment camp has remained etched in the memories and imaginations of many Japanese-Americans as a desolate and menacing place. But today, the site blends almost seamlessly into a serene landscape dotted by clumps of trees and low hills beyond. On her way here this June morning, Jeni Yamada brushed a few simple strokes into her sketchbook to capture the scene.