Westminster Man

A 20-year-old Westminster man was found guilty Friday of arson -- setting fires on April 26 that destroyed a barn in Westminster and damaged a house under construction in Reese.A Carroll County Circuit Court jury deliberated about three hours before convicting Kevin W. Wayson, of the 1200 block of Campus Court, of two counts of second-degree arson, each punishable by up to 20 years in prison and a $30,000 fine.The barn on Poole Road was destroyed at a loss of about $35,000, said Brian DeLeonardo, assistant state's attorney.

A Westminster man was arrested Wednesday night on charges of selling crack cocaine to undercover state troopers after being released on his own recognizance on other drug charges, state police said.Michael A. Watson, 37, of East Green Street was ordered held at Carroll County Detention Center in lieu of $25,000 bail after he waived a hearing scheduled yesterday, court records show.In the earlier case, Westminster police said Watson was arrested with two men and a woman after a raid about 3: 14 p.m. Wednesday on an apartment in the first block of Pennsylvania Ave., when suspected cocaine was found.

On Friday morning, Westminster police arrested a 45-year-old man they had been seeking in connection with a drug investigation that had begun in the summer.Wayne Austin Safrit of the 200 block of Stone Road in Westminster was arrested at 11 a.m. Friday. He was charged with two counts of possession with intent to distribute cocaine.Mr. Safrit was being held Friday afternoon in the Carroll County Detention Center on $250,000 bail.Police said the arrest came as a result of an investigation that started in July.

A Westminster man was injured early yesterday when his car went out of control on an icy curve, struck a utility pole and overturned on Hook Road, state police said.Joseph M. Thomas, 19, of the 1000 block of Hook Road was airlifted to Maryland Shock Trauma Center in Baltimore, where he was treated and released, a hospital spokeswoman said yesterday.Thomas told troopers he was traveling at the speed limit, 40 mph, when he "hit a patch of black ice" at 12: 23 a.m., police said.The investigation is continuing.

A 46-year-old Westminster man has been arrested on charges of stabbing his girlfriend in the leg with a folding knife, police said. Carl Wayne Pruitt of the 100 block of S. Center St. was charged with first- and second-degree assault in the attack on Wilda Katherine Atwell, 31, of the same address at 1:30 p.m. Friday. She was treated at Carroll County General Hospital in Westminster for a three-inch cut on the back of her left thigh, police said. Police said the woman reported that her boyfriend had been arguing with her at their residence.

A 31-year-old Westminster man accused of holding authorities at bay for about 90 minutes yesterday afternoon from his downtown apartment was in custody last night, city police said. Police received a call about 1:20 p.m. that a man was armed and suicidal at Liberty and Green streets, police said. Negotiators talked to the man by telephone during the standoff. Liberty Street was closed between Main and Green streets. About 3 p.m., authorities entered the back of the building and left with the man in handcuffs, said Maj. Dean Brewer, a Westminster Police Department spokesman.

A Westminster man was sent to prison for seven years after he pleaded guilty in Carroll County Circuit Court yesterday to raping a former neighbor's 6-year-old daughter. The man, 48, is not being named to protect the privacy of the victim. He waived his right to a jury trial and agreed not to dispute the charges of second-degree rape against him, court documents showed. Judge Luke K. Burns Jr. imposed a 20-year sentence, suspending all but seven years. Upon his release, the man will be placed on five years' probation, during which time he must have no contact with the victim, nor any unsupervised contact with anyone younger than age 18. The sexual assaults occurred last summer at the man's former home next to the girl's, at a Westminster park, at a creek off Kays Mill Road and in his van, court documents showed.

A Westminster man was sentenced to 20 weekends in the Carroll County Detention Center yesterday after he pleaded guilty to sexually abusing a Taneytown girl who is now 13 years old. According to court documents, Maurice M. Pickett Jr. began sexually abusing the girl, then 12, in December 1998. The offenses continued until July. A grand jury indicted Pickett on multiple charges, which were dropped after he pleaded guilty to a second-degree sexual offense, court records showed. Circuit Judge M. Michael Galloway imposed a six-year sentence on Pickett before suspending most of the term.