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Charles County Circuit Court Judge Patrick Devine, far right, speaks to the crowd gathered for the “So You’ve Been Pulled Over” event at the Waldorf West branch of the library about best practices for one’s day in court following a traffic stop. From left to right next to Devine are Cpl. Steve Bryant of the Charles County Sheriff’s Office, public defender Michael Beach and Assistant State’s Attorney Andre Bruce.

(MD Independent) Staff photo by LINDSAY RENNER-WOOD

In the moment, a traffic stop can be an unnerving experience. If the stop results in a ticket, the ensuing trip through the court system can be just as harrowing and confusing for those inexperienced with or uninformed about the legal system and their rights. Last Tuesday in Waldorf, a group of local legal experts convened at the Waldorf West branch of the Charles County Public Library to demystify the process and make it less scary.

In her introductory remarks before the discussion began, law librarian Mary Jo Lazun of the Charles County Public Law Library said she frequently answers questions from the people who come to avail themselves of the library’s services. One of the most common statements she hears before someone asks their questions, she said, is “So, I got pulled over.” On the basis of the frequency, Lazun said she decided to organize a panel that would be able to let Charles County’s citizens know what their rights and responsibilities are in traffic stops, and what to expect if the stop ends with a ticket or court date.

Cpl. Steve Bryant of the Charles County Sheriff’s Office went first, providing a step-by-step breakdown of how most traffic stops proceed. First and foremost, Bryant said, the officers “try to make [the traffic stop process] easier for you.”

When one notices the officer signaling for them to pull over, he said, it’s best to pull over to the righthand shoulder, away from traffic. He advised that one should keep their hands visible and wait, rather than trying to prepare ahead of time — for their own safety.

“From the back, when we see people digging around … it’s a sign to us that things could be going south,” Bryant said. He also advised the crowd to not argue with the officer during the stop, and to “save it for court,” offering that someone providing an explanation of the circumstances to the officer is not necessarily arguing.

Bryant also reviewed different rights individuals may not know they have during a traffic stop. For example, he said, K9 scans of the vehicle aren’t considered searches by the court, and so people have the right to refuse the K9 and ask for the officer to do it instead. As driving under the influence goes, courts do not admit field breathalyzer tests as evidence, Bryant said, but just having a Maryland driver’s license means you have legally already consented to undergoing sobriety testing at the police station.

Bryant also urged citizens to “comply and complain,” or, obey the officer for the duration of the traffic stop, but afterward file a report if one feels their rights have been violated and do so as soon as possible.

“We want that too,” Bryant said. “If we have officers who aren’t doing the right thing, we want to know.”

Public defender Michael Beach told the crowd that while it’s far from out of the realm of possibility that a traffic stop might be unjustified, one should “absolutely cooperate” during the course of it. “You gain nothing from being uncooperative,” Beach said.

Beach also urged the attendees to never consent to a K9 scan, or to a search, adding that K9 scans aren’t considered searches and there’s “no advantage to saying yes” to such scans.

“If they want to go in your car, they can go in your car,” Beach said. “That’s something to fight in court another day. But if you’ve consented to a search, unless that consent was coerced in some way, you’re pretty much out of luck.”

Beach told the crowd that while it’s important and necessary to be respectful of the officer during the stop, if they start asking questions about destination or the like, one is free to ask for a lawyer or refuse answers under Miranda rights. Respect, however, is crucial: “Respect will always look way better than you getting into it with the officer. … That always gets better results than being confrontational.”

Beach also echoed Bryant’s remarks about filing complaints when one has been treated unfairly by the responding officer, and to remember that the sheriff and state’s attorney are elected officials.

“If you have bad experience, give feedback. If you have a good experience, give feedback,” Beach said. “We all want the officers who are doing everything right — and there’s plenty of them — to be recognized.”

Assistant State’s Attorney Andre Bruce said the first thing, when examining the case, is to make sure there was a valid reason for the stop, and if it’s found to be valid were the circumstances around a search valid as well. Invalid stops, Bruce said, can result in the court dismissing the case entirely.

Bruce and Judge Patrick J. Devine also emphasized the previous remarks on the importance of respect at all points.

“The right time to make a challenge is in court,” Bruce said.

“If you confront the officer, that video may show up in court,” Devine said, adding that a traffic stop is “the wrong time to go off” and that a positive disposition can “neutralize” potential threats.

“You’ve got discretion there. Do that and use it,” Devine said. “Even though the officer is in charge, you have a tremendous amount of control over whether this ends poorly.”

Originally Posted on the Maryland Independent: 

https://www.somdnews.com/independent/news/local/local-legal-figures-convene-traffic-stop-advice-panel/article_611e4e96-8abc-5bdf-ae70-fb1ddf621843.html

Anthony “Tony” B. Covington, state’s attorney for Charles County, released on March 3 part two of a two-episode podcast discussion regarding drunk driving.

The “Tony Talks Charles County Crime” podcast hosted by Covington aims to educate and inform citizens about the criminal justice system. The podcast covers a wide range of topics related to criminal justice both locally and nationally.

According to a press release by the state’s attorney’s office, drunk driving is an issue that kills almost 30 people nationally every day. In part one of the discussion, Covington breaks down the problem of drunk driving and its causes, while sharing a gripping true-life narrative of how drunk driving affected one family forever.

In part two of the podcast, Covington is joined by his executive assistant Kristen Schulz and public relations specialist Kandes Carter.

The podcast is in a question and answer style format, offering solutions to help end drunk driving, including laws and sentencing that reflect the nationwide slogan, “Don’t Drink and Drive.”

“Drunk driving is a huge problem in our country,” Covington said. “We don’t treat it as serious as we should both in the courtroom and regular citizens. Eleven thousand people died just last year as a result of drunk driving. I’m just trying to educate the public on what’s going on.”

Listeners can access the podcast on the State’s Attorney Office’s website, as well as multiple streaming apps including Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Stitcher and others.

Originally Posted on Maryland Independent: 

https://www.somdnews.com/independent/spotlight/state-s-attorney-addresses-drunk-driving-in-two-part-podcast/article_5717ee62-4e19-511d-9c75-2d7c2a13c5c0.html

La Plata, MD – Charles County Circuit Court Administrative Judge Amy Bragunier called defendant Daniel Juwan Butler a “nice hard-working young man.” Bragunier then declared “nice people sometimes do bad things.” Butler stood before Bragunier in a jam-packed courtroom in La Plata Tuesday, Oct. 30 to be sentenced for an early December crash that claimed the life of Taylor Anne Halblieb, 21 of Hughesville (pictured, right). On Aug. 30, Butler, who was indicted in early June, pleaded guilty to negligent manslaughter by motor vehicle, a charge that is a felony. Police investigators and responders dispatched to the scene of the crash on Route 6 west of Cooksey Road during the early morning hours of Dec. 7 confirmed that Butler was extremely intoxicated.
Bragunier sentenced Butler to 10 years in prison, suspending all but six years, with five years of supervised probation. “There was aggravation here,” said the judge. Noting that Butler, 23 of Newburg, was a long-time volunteer with his hometown volunteer fire department, Bragunier told the defendant, “I don’t want to send you to prison, but I have to.”

The outpouring of support for Halblieb’s family and friends was substantial as several benches were occupied by people of all ages wearing blue T-shirts with the victim’s picture on the back. The shirts were distributed during a 5-kilometer race held this past May in Halblieb’s memory, dubbed “Taylor’s Trot.” The event raised funds for the Charles County Humane Society. Friends and family, including Halblieb’s parents and a sister, described her as someone who made friends easily, loved dogs and had a bright future. Taylor Halblieb had aspired to be a police officer like her father. “If you had a good heart you were a friend for life,” said her mother, Patricia.

“My world came crashing down,” said Robert Halblieb, a retired police officer, who accused Butler of wanting “to play the mercy card.”

Assistant State’s Attorney Francis Granados provided Bragunier, who was not the judge presiding over the August plea hearing, with the prosecution’s statement of facts regarding the events that led to Taylor Halblieb’s death. The tragedy evolved from an evening of binge drinking by Butler (pictured, left) and fellow firefighter Logan A. Shifflett at the Greene Turtle in La Plata. Granados said a surveillance camera at the bar indicated Butler consumed about seven to nine beers. Butler and Shifflett then traveled in the defendant’s Ford F-150 to another bar, Vino Liquor, where Halblieb worked. There the two were observed drinking double shots of whiskey. Granados said Halblieb served the two men and called her best friend. The victim’s friend told investigators she heard two men in the background telling Halblieb to get off the phone. A surveillance camera revealed Halblieb spoke with the two men in Vino’s parking lot after she got off work and was headed for home in her Hyundai Elantra. Halblieb’s friend told authorities she received a text from the victim stating that she was being followed by two men in a truck. The friend then received a cell phone call from Halblieb, who indicated she believed they were no longer following her. What the friend heard next was a scream and the victim saying, “oh, no” before the call was abruptly ended.

The three-vehicle collision occurred when Butler’s eastbound truck, traveling at a high rate of speed, crashed into the rear of the Elantra, which was also traveling eastbound and had stopped for a red traffic light. The impact pushed the Hyundai into a Honda Odyssey van driven by a La Plata woman. Halblieb was transported to University of Maryland Charles Regional Medical Center where she died a short time later. Butler was transported to the same hospital. Shifflett was flown to University of Maryland Prince George’s Hospital Center. The driver of the Honda van was not injured.

Granados argued for a maximum sentence, declaring it still wouldn’t be enough, opining that the State of Maryland does not take drunk driving seriously. “How is this not a crime of violence?” Granados asked. The prosecutor stated the case was tantamount to “depraved heart murder.” In suggesting a sentence above the guidelines, Granados told Bragunier, “this court has an opportunity to make a real impact.”

Those who spoke up for Butler included Southern Maryland Volunteer Firemen’s Association President Andrew Spalding, who made it clear he was speaking for himself and not the association. Spalding, who told the court he has known Butler since he [Butler] was a small child, described the defendant as “nothing but remorseful. This incident is tearing his soul apart. There’s no doubt Daniel should be held accountable.” Noting that Butler had no prior criminal record, Spalding said a long jail stretch wouldn’t be beneficial but an outreach program where Butler would address young people on the harsh consequences of driving while intoxicated would help the community. “Daniel Juwan Butler is not a bad person,” said Spalding.

Butler’s attorney, James Farmer, said his client pleaded guilty to spare Halblieb’s family the agony of a jury trial. Farmer also lobbied for the outreach program. “This is not who I am,” said Butler to Taylor Halblieb’s family and friends. “I wish it were me instead of her. All my life I’ve been helping people.”

“So much misery inflicted by bad choices,” said Bragunier, who told the defendant that during his probation he would need to address students at all of Charles County’s high schools and the College of Southern Maryland regarding the consequences of choosing to drink and drive.

“On that night, you were anything but a nice person,” Bragunier told Butler. “The last 20 minutes of her life were hell.”

Originally Posted on The Baynet:

http://www.thebaynet.com/articles/1018/volunteer-firefighter-gets-six-years-for-fatal-crash.html

Daniel Juwan Butler, 22, of Newburg pleaded guilty to manslaughter and waived his right to a jury trial on Thursday in the death of 21-year-old Taylor Anne Halbleib in December.

Butler is accused of killing Halbleib, a Hughesville resident, while driving drunk.

Almost all available seats in the courtroom were filled with friends and family of Halbleib, most of them wearing blue T-shirts bearing the logo for “Taylor’s Trot,” an annual fundraiser for the Humane Society of Charles County that was established in her memory.

An investigation by Maryland State Police officers found that on Dec. 7, 2017, Butler was driving eastbound on Route 6, west of Cooksey Road, when for unknown reasons he failed to stop, striking Halbleib’s car in the rear. Her car was then pushed into another car that was in front of it.

Halbleib was transported to the University of Maryland Charles Regional Medical Center, where she succumbed to her injuries.

Butler and a passenger in the pickup truck he was driving were both injured. A woman driving the vehicle that was in front of Halbleib was uninjured.

On June 1, Cpl. J. Zimmerman of the Maryland State Police CRASH Team presented the facts of MSP’s investigation to a grand jury for Charles County.

That same day, troopers from the MSP La Plata Barrack took Butler into custody without incident. He was later released on his own recognizance.

In accepting Butler’s plea, Judge Hayward J. West set a sentencing date of Tuesday, Oct. 30, at 1 p.m.

Halbleib’s friends and family were silent as sheriff’s deputies escorted Butler from the courtroom past them.

Following the plea hearing, friends and family gathered outside the Circuit Court building to hear Assistant States Attorney Francis J. Granados discuss the verdict and the upcoming sentencing hearing.

“Pleading guilty to manslaughter is literally the best outcome that we could have obtained,” Granados told the crowd.

Granados said that Butler could be sentenced to up to 10 years in prison.

Granados answered questions about the sentencing process and encouraged family and friends to submit witness impact statements and speak at the sentencing.

“Sentencings are as much, if not more, about the victim,” he said.

Halbleib’s father Robert thanked Granados before embracing him.

Halbleib was a student at the College of Southern Maryland, where she was majoring in criminal justice. She had hoped to follow in her father’s footsteps and become a police officer, serving in the K-9 division.

Charles County States Attorney Tony Covington told the Maryland Independent that his office was going to see the maximum penalty of 10 years as allowed by Maryland law.

“I don’t think the maximum penalties that are available for these types of crimes is enough,” Covington said. “This young lady’s life is erased from the earth and it’s not going to satisfy the family, unfortunately.”

“We don’t know what the judge is actually going to do, but you can believe the state will be asking for as much time as the judge will give,” he added.

Covington pointed out that on any given day, between 35 and 40 people will be killed by drunk drivers across the county.

“Drunk driving, and the deaths that result from it, really is preventable,” Covington said. “Unfortunately, here in the United States we, for whatever reason, won’t take the steps that are necessary to put very meaningful penalties on it.”

Originally Posted on Maryland Independent:

http://www.somdnews.com/independent/spotlight/butler-pleads-guilty-to-manslaughter-in-death-of-hughesville-woman/article_ea64cfac-160d-56e6-85c7-60203c52f7cf.html 

Charles Leon Thompson Jr., 34, of Waldorf was sentenced to 40 years in prison on June 29 following a guilty plea that he made late last year in connection with an armed robbery which killed one woman and injured several others following an altercation at a local sports bar.

Around 1:25 a.m. on Saturday, Feb. 4, 2017, police responded to the Beer 4 U sports bar in the 2100 block of Crain Highway for a reported shooting. Upon their arrival, police discovered several victims suffering from different injuries, two of whom included 24-year-old Emmanuel Perkins and his girlfriend, Miaquita Gray, 26, of Lexington Park.

A preliminary investigation revealed that a few moments prior to the shooting, Perkins had sustained head injuries after being assaulted and robbed by three suspects during an altercation in the bathroom bar. After the assault, police said the three suspects followed Perkins and Gray as they left the bar and stood in the parking lot. One of the suspects then pulled out a gun and began firing at the couple, striking Gray in her upper body and grazing Perkins in the leg while injuring two others.

Gray, who police said was a bystander and not an intended target, died from her gunshot wound shortly after being transported to a nearby hospital.
Video surveillance and witnesses testimony later revealed that co-defendants Anthony Deangelo Wilkins, 33, and 34-year-old Thompson, both Waldorf residents, were the suspects in the armed robbery. A further investigation by detectives identified Wilkins as the shooter and Thompson as an accomplice, although a third suspect who was also allegedly involved in the armed robbery has not been identified, according to police.

Both Wilkins and Thompson were charged with first-degree murder, attempted first and second-degree murder, armed robbery, robbery, conspiracy to commit armed robbery, first-degree assault, several charges of use of a firearm to commit a violent crime and other related charges.

In December 2017, Thompson pleaded guilty to two of the original 26 counts that he was charged with, including armed robbery and the use of a firearm to commit a violent crime. The two charges have a maximum sentence of 20 years, thus resulting in a 40-year prison sentence for Thompson which he received last Friday.

Thompson’s attorney, public defender Michael Beach, initially told the court on Dec. 4 that Thompson was pleading guilty “under the theory that he was an accomplice” to the armed robbery of the victim inside the Waldorf bar.

John Stackhouse, an assistant state’s attorney, summarized the evidence that would have been given if Thompson had agreed to a trial. Stackhouse said Perkins, who was robbed inside the bathroom of Beer 4 U, would have testified to the fact that he was hit over the head with a handgun before being robbed of cash and a credit card.

Perkins would have also testified that after he pointed out the three men who robbed him in the parking lot, Wilkins pointed a gun at him and fired gunshots which ultimately killed Gray, according to Stackhouse.

Furthermore, Stackhouse said that he would have shown the jury a surveillance video from the February 2017 incident. The video showed Wilkins carrying a handgun as he and the other two men went into the bathroom, moments before Perkins had entered. There was also evidence of Perkins’ blood found on the shoes and jacket that Thompson wore the night of the incident, according to Stackhouse.

Beach argued in opposition that in the surveillance video, Thompson is shown coming out of the bathroom first, which Beach said put Thompson “the farthest away” from the bathroom robbery.

When Wilkins fired a gun outside the bar, Beach said it was a separate incident and that there was a “two-minute altercation” before the shots were fired, which is what caused Wilkins to pull out his gun, according to Beach.

“Thompson had no idea [Wilkins] was going to do that,” Beach said in court.

Thompson said he agreed that the state had enough evidence to convict him of the crimes charged and officially pleaded guilty to armed robbery and the use of a firearm to commit a violent crime during an appearance in front of Charles County Circuit Court Judge H. James West. Friends and family members of Gray were also in attendance at the Dec. 4 hearing.

In a prior court hearing held in March 2017, Thompson’s bail was set at $50,000, which Stackhouse said Thompson was unable to make at the time. Stackhouse had then requested to the judge that Thompson be held without bond, which was granted.

Thompson’s sentencing, which West had initially scheduled for Feb. 28 of this year, was postponed twice due to a conflict of interest with one of Thompson’s family members who was present in the courtroom. His final sentencing took place on June 29 in front of Judge William Greer, in order “to be fair to everyone,” West said.
Wilkins, who is now incarcerated in Virginia, was shot and arrested near Emporia, Va., after a shoot-out with Virginia police on Sunday, Feb. 12, 2017, a week after Gray was killed. Thompson turned himself in to detectives that following Monday evening, according to Charles County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Diane Richardson.

“This sentence laid down by the court was fair and reasonable, given the senseless killing of an innocent bystander in this case,” Charles County State’s Attorney Tony Covington (D) said in a public statement regarding Thompson’s June 29th sentencing. “Incapacitating violent robbers and murderers by jailing them is the only truly proven way of reducing violent crime on our streets. This sentence takes a dangerous person off the streets for a significant time period. That is a good thing.”

Gray had worked as an assistant manager at a department store in St. Mary’s Laurel Glen shopping center. She was a 2008 graduate of Great Mills High School and took business courses for two years at the College of Southern Maryland, according to Gray’s mother, Delores Gray.

When she was not working, Delores Gray said her daughter enjoyed “going to the beach and to the park, and going with me shopping. She loved having little campfires [at the beach], and sitting, relaxing and talking.”

Delores Gray, a retired St. Mary’s County correctional officer, said family time was the most important thing to her daughter. Everybody in the family is mad and upset as they are having a hard time dealing with Miaquita Gray’s death.

In addition to her cousins, 26-year-old Gray had two older brothers and a sister. A prayer vigil was held a few days after her death.

“Her infectious smile lit up the world,” Delores Gray said. “She loved life.”

Originally Posted on Maryland Independent:

http://www.somdnews.com/independent/news/local/waldorf-man-receives–year-prison-sentence-in-connection-to/article_7340c44b-4117-56ac-a1c0-78dbd7801a64.html

A former Charles County Public Schools substitute teacher, who had been charged earlier this year for allegedly producing child pornography and having illicit contact with a student, has now been charged with rape after investigators learned through the course of their investigation that he allegedly had sex with an 11-year-old girl in 2007.

On June 1, Keith Allan Krikstan, 31, of Waldorf was charged with second-degree rape, three counts of child pornography possession and six counts of possession of obscene matter with intent to distribute.

According to court records, between February and April 2007, Krikstan engaged in sexual intercourse with an 11-year-old girl, when he was at least four years older than her, at approximately age 19.

In the same case, Krirkstan was also charged with possessing child pornography and obscene matter on Jan. 13.

Back in January, Krikstan was also arrested in connection with child pornography, displaying sexually explicit materials to a minor and sexual abuse of a minor after officers received information he was allegedly having inappropriate contact with an adolescent girl, according to the Charles County Sheriff’s Office.

Krikstan was a substitute teacher at John Hanson Middle School when students reported to a sheriff’s office school resource officer that they were aware of a substitute teacher who was having inappropriate communication with another student. Officers learned Krikstan allegedly obtained a cell phone number of a female student in December 2017 and began texting her. Soon after, they kept in contact through phone and social media. Evidence showed Krikstan allegedly convinced the girl to send explicit photos to him and he allegedly sent some to her.

In January, Kimberly Hill, superintendent of CCPS, announced in a letter to parents and staff that the school system received the report on Jan. 11 and immediately removed Krikstan from John Hanson Middle School.

During a bond hearing, assistant state’s attorney Sarah Freeman told the court that detectives found more than 100 images or videos of nude underage girls.

Freeman indicated that these photos showed the private areas of the girls. She said that detectives were able to identify two victims in the photos; however, one is still unidentified.

Freeman told the court that Krikstan also placed a hidden camera in a bathroom inside the victim’s home. Detectives found 10 photos of the victim on Krikstan’s devices from the camera.

Freeman also said that all the bathrooms in John Hanson Middle School were checked for cameras in result of that finding.

“[Krikstan] having sexual relations with minors is not something new,” Freeman said.

Freeman told Circuit Court Judge Hayward J. West that in his three cases, Krikstan is facing over 100 years, which she thought would result in a flight risk and asked for no bond.

Judge West held Krikstan, who was being monitored on a home electric monitor as a result of his other pending cases, without bond in court on Monday.

“CCPS fully vetted Mr. Krikstan prior to hiring him as a substitute in September 2017. He was fingerprinted, completed orientation, training and a background check with the State of Maryland and the FBI,” Hill stated. “No criminal history was found. Since September, Mr. Krikstan has worked 34 days at multiple schools, including Hanson, North Point High School, Milton M. Somers Middle School, Dr. James Craik Elementary School and La Plata High School.”

“Part of our ongoing training includes encouraging both students and staff to say something if they see or suspect something inappropriate,” Hill stated. “We commend the students who came forward to report what they felt were inappropriate texts from an adult to a fellow student.”

The sheriff’s office and CCPS encourages parents to talk with their children about the situation, and if they report anything inappropriate to contact Det. E. Webster at 301-609-6558.

Originally Posted on Maryland Independent:

http://www.somdnews.com/breaking/former-substitute-teacher-charged-with-rape-child-porn/article_4d91051b-9d0b-5677-b3f3-d37c74ae2371.html

WASHINGTON — A Charles County, Maryland, man has been convicted again on charges that he stabbed and slit the throat of a puppy in the midst of a domestic dispute.

Stephen Eugene Paysinger, 39, of Waldorf, was convicted Tuesday of aggravated animal cruelty. The puppy survived the attack.

Court documents show that on Feb. 24, 2016, Paysinger went into a Waldorf house that he had bought with his girlfriend, who lived there with her three children. She had gotten a protective order against Paysinger, who had to be removed from the house by police when he found out about it.

Later that night, Paysinger returned to the house and went in. He then choked, stabbed and slit the throat of the family’s puppy, and threatened to kill the children, the documents said.

Paysinger had been previously convicted in the incident. He was convicted in October 2016 on the animal cruelty charge as well as four counts of assault and the violation of a protective order, and was sentenced to serve a total of 23 years in prison, including three years for the animal cruelty charge. In December 2017, all the convictions were overturned on after the Court of Appeals ruled that the trial judge improperly barred a defense witness from testifying.

Originally Posted on WTOP:

Md. man convicted for 2nd time of slitting puppy’s throat