Howard County Police

Howard County Police are investigating a collision between a county police cruiser and a Toyota Camry Saturday that sent both drivers to the hospital with minor injuries. Police say the driver of the Camry failed to yield the right-of-way while making a left turn from northbound Oakland Mills Road onto Homespun Drive at about 8 a.m. Saturday. The police officer's 2008 Crown Victoria, driven by Officer Hiram Henderson, hit the passenger side of the 1999 Camry, driven by 45-year-old Asiye Gaus of the 7500 block of Harmans Road in Harmans.

Police in Howard County say they busted a marijuana growing operation at a house in Laurel, seizing 341 plants that authorities estimate could yield 170 pounds of pot worth more than a half million dollars. Police charged Manoj Unni, 30, of the 9300 block of Cross Timbers Court, with several drug counts. Police said they searched the house on Wednesday and found the alleged growing operation in the basement, with "sophisticated growing equipment. " Police said they found "high-intensity lights, a dehumidifier, air filters, water pumping systems, lighting timers, a CO2 system and a ventilation system.

The Howard County Police Department has formed a new youth mentoring program to help curb the county's continuing problem with juvenile crime.The program, Cops As Peers (CAP), pairs volunteer police officers with youths in need of positive role models. Many of the children are identified by teachers or by officers during their trips through neighborhoods, said Sgt. Rick Maltz, a coordinator of the program."We're trying to make a difference in tomorrow one day at a time," Sergeant Maltz said.

A woman was found fatally shot Thursday evening in St. Peter's Episcopal Church in Ellicott City, a man was discovered dead on the grounds nearby and another woman was critically injured by gunfire — turning a quiet, family neighborhood near the historic downtown into a crime scene. Police and SWAT team members swarmed the 3600 block of Rogers Ave., just up the hill from the historic mill town's Main Street, and blocked off a section of the road after receiving a call about 5:20 p.m. from a custodian at the church, who said he'd found two women in a church office suffering from gunshot wounds.

Three more people have been arrested and charged in connection with a shooting in Clarksville on April 6, according to Howard County police. Patrick James Belt, 21, of the 16000 block of Frederick Road in Mount Airy faces attempted first-degree murder, assault, robbery and other charges. Stevie Ann Gribble, 19, of the same address, was charged with conspiracy to commit first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit first-degree assault. Diana Eileen Marker, 22, of the 5500 block of Hunting Horn Drive in Ellicott City was charged with conspiracy to commit murder, attempted first-degree murder, attempted armed robbery and other charges.

Howard County police shot a man Monday near railroad tracks by an Elkridge industrial park after he refused to drop his handgun, police said. Police spokeswoman Sherry Llewellyn identified the man Monday night as Jeffrey Dustin Nichols, 19, of the 6600 block of Grouse Road in Elkridge. He was taken to the Maryland Shock Trauma Center, where he was listed in critical condition, she said in an email. Police said they were called about a man firing shots in the Hanover area around 3 p.m. Police followed him from the area near Loudon and Melrose avenues to an industrial park in the 7400 block of Hi Tech Road.

Police in Howard County say they busted a marijuana growing operation at a house in Laurel, seizing 341 plants that authorities estimate could yield 170 pounds of pot worth more than a half million dollars. Police charged Manoj Unni, 30, of the 9300 block of Cross Timbers Court, with several drug counts. Police said they searched the house on Wednesday and found the alleged growing operation in the basement, with "sophisticated growing equipment. " Police said they found "high-intensity lights, a dehumidifier, air filters, water pumping systems, lighting timers, a CO2 system and a ventilation system.

A former Howard County police officer is scheduled to be sentenced Friday after being found guilty of assaulting a police officer from Baltimore City during an altercation outside a bar in Canton in August last year. A Baltimore Circuit Court jury on Wednesday found Casey R. Lechter, 23, guilty of assault and disorderly conduct, and not guilty of resisting arrest, according to his attorney. Lechter's brother, Kary Williams, 35, was convicted of disorderly conduct and acquitted of assault and resisting arrest.

The Elkridge teenager shot by Howard County police a week ago died over the weekend, Howard County police said. Police described the incident that took place last Monday afternoon as a standoff, saying that Jeffrey Dustin Nichols, 19, refused to drop a handgun. Officers, called to Elkridge for reports of shots fired, followed Nichols along railroad tracks to an area behind an industrial park 7400 block of Hi Tech Drive, where he again refused to drop the weapon and was shot eight times.

Howard County police were looking for a man who allegedly robbed a cab driver Saturday night in Columbia. According to police, Alexander Bofah was sitting in his cab in the parking lot of the Long Reach Village Center about 8 p.m. when he was approached by a man asking for a ride. After the man got into the cab and Bofah began to drive away, the suspect put a knife to Bofah's neck and demanded cash, police said. Bofah, 38, grabbed the knife and was cut on the right hand during the struggle, according to police.

Howard County police are investigating a two-vehicle crash that sent a woman in critical condition to Maryland Shock Trauma Center Tuesday night. Police are categorizing the crash as a "serious personal injury collision. " The collision occurred at about 8:45 p.m. when Mary Ann Cecile Levant, 64, of Columbia, was traveling east on Route 32 near Route 29 in a 2003 Toyota Avalon. Levant lost control of the vehicle and struck the guardrail on the shoulder of the road, police said.

Three people, including a Howard County police officer and a suspect in his custody, were injured in a crash in Mount Airy early Sunday morning, police reported. According to Maryland State Police, Howard County Police Officer Richard M. Romberger Jr. was standing next to his patrol car on Route 144 near Griffith Road with Matthew J. Griffis, 27, of the 24000 block of Burnt Hill Road, Clarksburg. Griffis had allegedly left the scene of an earlier crash, police said. The two men were then struck by a 2000 Volvo S-70 driven by Ricky A. Epperson, 25, of the 7800 block of East Hill Road in Mount Airy.

Howard County police have arrested a 25-year-old Glen Burnie man, who they say was involved in a shooting last week in Columbia. Eric Brandon Miller, of the 1300 block of Whitman Drive, was charged with first- and second-degree assault in the Jan. 11 shooting of Marcus Lee, 20, of Columbia. Lee remains in an area hospital with an injury that is not life-threatening, police said. Lee had been shot once at about 8:30 p.m. and had run into a Sam's Mart store in the 5800 block of Stevens Forest Road seeking help.

A woman being sought by police for questioning in the deaths of 40 animals found at a Columbia townhouse Monday was a former employee of the National Aquarium in Baltimore . A letter addressed from Howard County police to Beth Lindenau was left at the residence where police removed the dead animals, including some inside of a freezer. Police spokeswoman Sherry Llewellyn would not confirm the woman's name but said it is police policy to leave addressed letters at homes to inform residents if animals have been impounded.

Howard County police are investigating a shooting of a 20-year-old man Wednesday evening in Columbia. Officers called about 8:30 p.m. to a Sam's Mart store in the 5800 block of Stevens Forest Road found Marcus Lee suffering from a single gunshot wound. Lee, a Columbia resident, told police he was shot nearby on Stevens Forest Road near Whiteacre Road and had run to the store for help. He was taken to an area hospital with injuries that are not life-threatening, police said. A preliminary investigation has led officers to believe the victim and assailant are acquainted.

The mother of a slain Columbia 3-year-old has been indicted on charges of child abuse and related counts stemming from what Howard County police allege was abuse of Elijah Izale LaJeuness that took place five months before his death. Joaquinia Marie LaJeuness, 28, of the 5900 block of Stevens Forest Road was arrested in Meridian, Mich., and returned Saturday to Howard County, where she has been jailed in lieu of $25,000 bond, county police said. Elijah was 2 years old when the county Department of Social Services received a report on Nov. 3, 2010, that the boy had facial marks and bruising.

Howard County police have arrested 27 men in two prostitution stings this year, according to a news release. On Wednesday, police arrested 11 men on Route 1 near Whiskey Bottom Road in Laurel. They also arrested 16 men at the same location March 19 during another sting. The men all approached undercover female police officers posing as prostitutes and offered them money for sex. According to police, two of the men — Camilio Victor Herrera-Castillo, 25, of Odenton, and Amador Eullogio Lopez-Rosario, 35, of Laurel — were detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement for being in the country illegally.

A former Howard County police officer is scheduled to be sentenced Friday after being found guilty of assaulting a police officer from Baltimore City during an altercation outside a bar in Canton in August last year. A Baltimore Circuit Court jury on Wednesday found Casey R. Lechter, 23, guilty of assault and disorderly conduct, and not guilty of resisting arrest, according to his attorney. Lechter's brother, Kary Williams, 35, was convicted of disorderly conduct and acquitted of assault and resisting arrest.

A Howard County judge threw out charges Thursday that an Ellicott City woman was driving under the influence of alcohol, ruling that they were linked to an illegal quota indicating that officers had to cite two to four motorists every hour. It was unclear how many other county cases might be affected by the ruling, which involved federally funded initiatives that targeted drunk and aggressive drivers from January through April of 2011. At least two other similar cases are pending before the same judge.