Drug Charges

A cabal of corrupt corrections officers and members of the Black Guerrilla Family gang enjoyed nearly free rein inside the Baltimore City Detention Center, federal authorities allege, smuggling drugs and cellphones into the jail and having sexual relationships that left four guards pregnant. An indictment unsealed Tuesday names 25 people - including 13 women working as corrections officers - who face racketeering and drug charges. Twenty of the accused also face money-laundering charges.

His family feared the worst after Marcus "Anton" Lesane went missing two weeks ago, and on Wednesday those concerns were confirmed when his body was found stashed behind a vacant home in Northwest Baltimore. Police confirmed that a body found Tuesday morning in the 2600 block of Loyola Southway was that of Lesane, a 27-year-old who had been living in Southwest Baltimore and was last seen April 10 with a friend. He had been shot. A resident who regularly sweeps the alley found his body in the rear of a crumbling vacant home, according to police and residents.

A 22-year-old woman was arrested Tuesday night after leading Laurel Police on a chase as she threw items from her vehicle's window. Officers initially attempted to stop the vehicle, which had a suspended registration, around 8:30 p.m. in the 14100 block of Baltimore Avenue. The driver drove away and fled the police, and was seen throwing items out of the window; police recovered bags of cocaine and marijuana from the roadway. The driver eventually got out of the vehicle and ran, but police apprehended her in the 11600 block of South Laurel Drive.

Anne Arundel County police on Monday evening arrested two Pasadena men on drug charges after seizing more than three pounds of marijuana and other marijuana items from their residence, said police officials on Tuesday morning in a prepared statement. Officials said that at approximately 5:10 p.m., members of the Eastern District's tactical patrol unit and tactical narcotics team executed a controlled dangerous substance (CDS) warrant at the 1200 block of Hillside Road in Pasadena.

A southwest Baltimore couple have pleaded guilty to federa drug charges for distributing cocaine here for a Philadelphia-fed drug ring operated by a Halethorpe mechanic and an Arbutus lawyer.Karen Nelson, 35, and her husband Glenn, 31, both of the 600 block of Wickham Road, entered their pleas Friday to Judge John R. Hargrove in U.S. District Court. Glenn Nelson works in the Baltimore Sun's transportation department.Prosecutor Andrew G.W. Norman said Karen Nelson, assisted by her husband, distributed between five and 49.5 kilograms of cocaine in the Baltimore area from July 1988 to March 1989.

County police posing as drug dealers arrested six men and a woman on drug charges during a sting operation on Scott Town Road in Shady Side Saturday.Curtis B. Brent, 38, and Wanda Wood, 36, both of the 2600 block of Evergreen Road, Odenton; Charles P. Cavey Jr., 36, of the 1300 block of Avalon Blvd. in Shady Side; Michael Lescallet, 38, of the 4800 block of Anchors Way in Galesville; Jimmy McPherson, 36, of the 5900 block of Franklin Gibson Road in Deale; and David P. Rogers, 20, of the 1200 block of Holly Ave., Shady Side, all were charged with purchasing a look-alike drug.

A Maryland state trooper on Wednesday evening made quick use of what he learned at a three-day training class on spotting illegal activity, as he stopped to help a couple of stranded motorists on Interstate 95 near Elkton and ended up arresting the two Florida men after finding a load of marijuana. The trooper, whose name was not available, was coming back from the class when he stopped at about 7:30 p.m. to help two men who were changing a flat tire on a pickup truck on the exit ramp from northbound I-95 to Route 279 near Elkton.

Drug charges against Ravens kick returner David Reed have been moved to the inactive docket by Baltimore County prosecutors, effectively dropping the case. Reed was charged Dec. 8 with possession of marijuana. Lt. Robert McCullough told The Sun at the time that Baltimore County police were called to Reed's Owings Mills apartment to investigate "possible narcotics. " Though the case was set for a court date next week, prosecutors on Friday placed the case on the "stet" docket, meaning the case will not be pursued and will eventually be dropped after a year.

Baltimore prosecutors dropped gun and drug charges Wednesday against teenage twins, hours after a judge acquitted their father of similar charges stemming from the same search and seizure. Brothers Tremayne and Travers Johnson, who turned 18 last month, still face animal cruelty and mutilation charges in a separate case accusing them of setting fire to a pit bull puppy, which rescue workers later named Phoenix. The dog's injuries drew nationwide attention and outrage, with people calling for tougher penalties in animal cruelty cases and donating more than $25,000 to a reward fund to help catch the perpetrators.

A man and a teenager were arrested Sunday afternoon and charged with multiple drug violations after police stopped a 1994 Lexus that the man was driving with a fraudulent temporary tag in the 1600 block of E. Monument St. When the driver fled the vehicle, he was chased by Sgt. Dennis W. Workley and arrested near the scene. The teen, who attempted to flee with raw heroin valued at $2,000, was arrested by an off-duty city police officer working security at nearby Johns Hopkins Hospital, Workley said.

Harford County sheriff's deputies arrested a Baltimore man on drug charges early Thursday morning after the suspect fled while deputies were attempting to stop him for speeding. According to the Sheriff's Office, Reginald S. Artis, 34, of the 2500 block of Hollins Street in the Southwest Baltimore, was charged with possession of a drug other than marijuana, narcotics possession with intent to distribute and hindering a police officer, according to court records. Around 12:48 am Thursday, a sheriff's deputy saw a 2000 silver Mercury exceeding the posted speed limit on Hanson Road in Edgewood, according to a Sheriff's Office news release.

Aberdeen Charles William Gilbert, 76, whose address is listed as the Aberdeen Post Office, was charged Friday with failing to appear in court in a case in which he was charged with having an alcoholic beverage in a retail area. Justin P. Walters, 30, of the 200 block of Farm Road, was charged Sunday with possessing a drug other than marijuana. Jonathan David Hodges, 25, of the 3100 block of James Run Road, was charged Sunday with failing to appear in court in a case in which he was charged with driving with a suspended license.

When Brenda Brown stood before a judge, she figured she had only one real option: plead guilty. She had been caught with three bags of marijuana in her pocket in Northwest Baltimore. She didn't know that Kendell Richburg, the arresting officer, had lied about having seen her buy the drugs, potentially violating her constitutional right against unreasonable search and seizure. Now, her case is among hundreds under review by prosecutors in light of Richburg's conduct. Brown, 52, is serving a sentence that includes a year of probation, court costs, counseling, drug testing and another possession count on a lengthy rap sheet.

Maryland State Police arrested Grammy-nominated rapper 2 Chainz on drug charges following a Thursday traffic stop on his way to perform at a homecoming event at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore, police said.  The rapper, real name Tauheed Epps, tweeted about the incident and  posted a photo of himself standing with two unidentified state troopers . Gregory Shipley, a spokesman for the state police, told The Sun that the incident is...

Baltimore police officer Kendell Richburg pleaded not guilty to federal drug charges Tuesday, as his attorney said the accusations are linked to "relatively benign" actions surrounding his use of confidential informants. "It's nothing close to selling drugs, or giving the confidential informant drugs to sell or anything of that nature," the attorney, Warren A. Brown, said after the hearing. "Whatever behavior he engaged in it was designed to enhance public safety, it was designed to get guns off the street, and sometimes it was designed to please the Police Department.

Two brothers were arrested Sunday night on the parking lot of the McDonald's on Route 40 in Aberdeen and charged with possession of marijuana and possession of marijuana with the intent to distribute. Brenden Anthony Johnson, 20, and his brother, Kyle Johnson, 18, both of Belcamp, were arrested just before 9:30 p.m. on Dec. 30 and charged with five separate drug offenses. Each was charged with possession of marijuana, marijuana possession with intent to distribute, marijuana packing possession/distribution and two counts of possession of drug paraphernalia.

Two brothers were arrested Sunday night on the parking lot of the McDonald's on Route 40 in Aberdeen and charged with possession of marijuana and possession of marijuana with the intent to distribute. Brenden Anthony Johnson, 20, and his brother, Kyle Johnson, 18, both of Belcamp, were arrested just before 9:30 p.m. on Dec. 30 and charged with five separate drug offenses. Each was charged with possession of marijuana, marijuana possession with intent to distribute, marijuana packing possession/distribution and two counts of possession of drug paraphernalia.

When Brenda Brown stood before a judge, she figured she had only one real option: plead guilty. She had been caught with three bags of marijuana in her pocket in Northwest Baltimore. She didn't know that Kendell Richburg, the arresting officer, had lied about having seen her buy the drugs, potentially violating her constitutional right against unreasonable search and seizure. Now, her case is among hundreds under review by prosecutors in light of Richburg's conduct. Brown, 52, is serving a sentence that includes a year of probation, court costs, counseling, drug testing and another possession count on a lengthy rap sheet.

A 19-year-old Baltimore man, who three years ago accused three city police officers of abducting him and leaving him in a Howard County park, was cleared of an attempted murder charge Wednesday and given a suspended sentence on drug charges.  In May 2009, when he was 15 years old, Michael B. Johnson  Jr. was picked up by the officers and left in the rain without shoes or a cell phone at Patapsco Valley State Park. The officers were charged a year later with kidnapping and related charges.