Randallstown

A Walmart Supercenter is scheduled to open Oct. 17 on Liberty Road in Randallstown, and Baltimore County officials hope it will give a boost to a corridor targeted for revitalization. County officials and community leaders expect that the store at Liberty Plaza will attract attention from other major chains to the area. Consumers in Randallstown have high levels of education and income, they say, but the area has struggled to draw national retailers and restaurants. Residents complain that there are too many fast-food restaurants and low-quality stores.

When it came to picking a college, Chris Manning “didn't see the point in waiting until” his senior year. Especially not after the Randallstown junior landed an offer from Mount St. Mary's. “Really, it was just a great situation for me and my parents,” said Manning, who committed to the Mountaineers last week. “It's only about an hour away from my house. [My family will] be able to come see me play at home games. I've talked to the coaches, and it really just felt like home.” Manning, who plays for Team Sizzle on the AAU circuit, was also heavily recruited by Radford.

Laugh all you want, but Agnes Muhl has no doubts about what she, her husband and her mother saw in the front yard of their Thurmont vacation home eight years ago."It was a cougar," insists the 57-year-old Catonsville woman. "It was sitting there looking at the smoke coming out of our chimney."Mrs. Muhl isn't alone. Over the past 25 years, dozens of Maryland residents have reported cougar encounters, even though wildlife officials insist that mountain lions haven't roamed the state for at least a century.

Baltimore County is preparing to sell three taxpayer-owned properties to private developers, but members of the public won't know all the details of what they're planning until officials make a decision. County leaders said last week they would not release proposals for the North Point Government Center in Dundalk, the Towson fire station, and a police substation in Randallstown after The Baltimore Sun filed a Public Information Act request. Don Mohler, County Executive Kevin Kamenetz's chief of staff, said the county wants to keep the documents under wraps so that the procurement process is "devoid of any kind of external pressure.

A man was found with gunshot wounds early Friday morning in Randallstown, according to Baltimore County Police. A woman called police from the 5400 block of Old Court Road at 3:06 a.m. to report a friend outside her back door, ringing her buzzer and trying to get in, police said. When police arrived, he was unconscious but breathing, with two gunshot wounds to the back. The victim was taken to Northwest Hospital Center, where he was later pronounced dead. County homicide detectives are investigating, according to police.

When it came to picking a college, Chris Manning “didn't see the point in waiting until” his senior year. Especially not after the Randallstown junior landed an offer from Mount St. Mary's. “Really, it was just a great situation for me and my parents,” said Manning, who committed to the Mountaineers last week. “It's only about an hour away from my house. [My family will] be able to come see me play at home games. I've talked to the coaches, and it really just felt like home.” Manning, who plays for Team Sizzle on the AAU circuit, was also heavily recruited by Radford.

(From the Baltimore Crime Beat blog) A man who police say shot and wounded his wife and then barricaded himself in his Baltimore County house in Randallstown for hours was found dead inside this afternoon, a police spokesman said. Police identified him as Terrence Joseph Wilson, 36, who lived in the 9500 block of Oak Trace Way in a subdivision off Liberty Road. His wife, who escaped the house before the standoff, was being treated at Maryland Shock Trauma Center for multiple gunshot wounds.

Walmart is continuing to grow in Baltimore, opening its newest store Wednesday in Randallstown and planning to unveil an expansion of its Ellicott City store later this month. The retailer has hired 300 workers to staff the 150,000-square foot Randallstown location, at 8730 Liberty Road, which will offer a full line of groceries, including a bakery, a deli, meat and dairy products and a produce department. Subway restaurant and SmartStyle Family Hair Salon are leasing space in the 24-hour-a-day location.

A man was pistol-whipped in the head in Randallstown on Wednesday evening, according to Baltimore County police. Officers responded about 6:40 p.m. to the 8800 block of Meadow Heights Road and found the man wounded, a police dispatcher said. He was assessed briefly on the scene before being taken to Northwest Hospital, the dispatcher said. No one was shot in the incident, police said. No further information was immediately available. krector@baltsun.com twitter.com/rectorsun

An early morning fire at a Randallstown apartment complex has displaced 16 people and damaged 12 units. One firefighter from the Pikesville Volunteer Fire Company received minor injuries and has been treated and released from an area hospital. Firefighters responded shortly after 2 a.m., when the the Baltimore County 911 Center received several calls about a fire on the third floor of a building in the 3600 block Yennar Lane, near North Rolling Road. The fire spread quickly across the attic and through the roof of two adjoining buildings.

A woman who prosecutors said brought a rifle to the shooting of a Reisterstown teen pleaded guilty Monday to attempted first-degree murder and use of a gun, according to a spokesman for Howard County prosecutors. Howard County Circuit Court Judge Richard S. Bernhardt set a sentencing date of July 5, when prosecutors are expected to seek a 25-year sentence for Chiquita Sketers, 22, of Randallstown, according to spokesman T. Wayne Kirwan. The plea stems from a June 19, 2012, incident in which Sterling Randolph Watts, 15, was shot in the back of the head, but survived life-threatening injuries.

Baltimore County police said on Thursday morning that a pedestrian was struck in Randallstown at Offutt Road and Winands Road and said that Winands and Tulsemere Road have been closed. Cpl. Cathy Batton, a Baltimore County Police Department spokeswoman, said the pedestrian will be transported to a medical facility via helicopter that, she said, will land at Randallstown High School. Police and Fire officials reported the incident around 8:20 a.m. Text NEWS to 70701 to get Baltimore Sun local news text alerts

A 17-year-old Hampton University student drowned while attending a pool party on the Virginia campus on Wednesday. University officials said David Esan, of Randallstown, was at a party at Holland Hall when he drowned. University spokeswoman Yuri Milligan said Esan was spotted in the gymnasium pool after the party broke up, at about 11:50 p.m. Wednesday. She said several people called 911 to report the drowning. "Lifeguards and paramedics attempted to revive him on the scene," she reported in a press release.

Randallstown girls basketball coach Ron Isaacs called his team "the Cinderella team" of the state Class 2A state semifinals, but the Rams did not have a great time at the ball. Isaacs' youngsters stuck close for a while before Middletown's combination of outside shooting and inside strength overwhelmed them and powered the Knights to a 60-27 victory at UMBC's RAC Arena. The Rams (22-7) had their only leads in the first quarter. Mariah Byam's follow shot and Essence Stinnette's free throw gave them a 9-8 edge, but that would be their last lead as Middletown scored 12 straight points.

Edmondson boys basketball coach Darnell Dantzler was caught in the moment Thursday night at Randallstown, emotionally accepting one hug after the next while his players were in the background loudly celebrating. In the past four years, the Red Storm had successful seasons come to an end in the region championship game with each opponent going on to win the state championship. But this time, it was Edmondson's turn. This time, it was seniors Darius Walker and Isaiah Tripp and Darius Hubbard and Myrek Lee-Fowlkes making big plays, hitting important shots and making clutch free throws at the end to lead the No. 5 Red Storm to a 73-63 win over Randallstown to claim the Class 2A North region championship.

The winter storm that's passing through the state today has yet to postpone any of the boys basketball regional championship games, which are still set to take place for Thursday and Friday. However, it is impacting preparations, particularly for the Class 2A and 1A games that are scheduled for Thursday. Four of the seven regional title games scheduled for Thursday involve Baltimore-area teams, and with school closed today, each won't have the opportunity to practice after semifinal wins on Tuesday.

Et cetera Randallstown alum Womack is Houston-bound Former Randallstown basketball guard Tione Womack has signed with Houston. The former first-team All-Metro player, who led the Rams to two state titles, has spent the past two years at Hagerstown Community College. Womack averaged 10 points, 7.6 assists, 3.1 rebounds and 2.9steals as a sophomore. "Tione has a pass-first mentality that creates easy scoring opportunities for his teammates and is a quick, solid on-ball defender," Cougars coach James Dickey said in a news release.

A man 55-year-old man was killed Wednesday afternoon in a motorcycle crash in Randallstown, according to Baltimore County police. David Cassell of the 8400 block of Charlton Road in Randallstown died when he collided with another vehicle at about 3:15 p.m. at the intersection of Liberty and Chapman roads, police said. The accident remains under investigation. No other injuries were reported. liz.kay@baltsun.com Text BUSINESS to 70701 to get Baltimore Sun Business text alerts

The Randallstown boys basketball team had the ultimate fourth-quarter test of character. The Rams saw their 15-point lead dwindle to nothing with five minutes to play in Tuesday's Class 2A North region semifinal. The opponent was No. 13 Lake Clifton, defending state champions and the same Lakers who rallied past them earlier in the season. Instead of folding, Randallstown stayed poised. The Rams executed on offense and clamped down on defense, scoring the next eight points to restore order and claim a hard-fought 59-55 win on their home court.