Law Enforcement

Domestic Violence Unit Arrest Fugitive in Protective Order Violation Case – Released the Next Day

Domestic Violence Unit Arrest Fugitive in Protective Order Violation Case – Released the Next Day

On January 1, 2025, officers with the Domestic Violence Unit, in coordination with the Prince George’s County Police Department, arrested Fernando Jose Echemendia, 24, of Fort Washington. Echemendia was located and detained based on active warrants stemming from his failure to appear in court for violations of protective orders and burglary charges. The protective...
Read More »

Police Investigating Fatal Motor Vehicle Collision in Indian Head

Police Investigating Fatal Motor Vehicle Collision in Indian Head

On Wednesday, January 8, 2025, at approximately 2:22 p.m., police, firefighters and emergency medical services responded to the area of 7175 Chicamuxen Road in Indian Head, for the reported motor vehicle collision with injuries. 911 callers reported a single vehicle appeared to hit black ice or a slick spot in the roadway, left the...
Read More »

MDOT SHA to Host Information Workshop on Pedestrian Safety Initiatives on Three Notch Road

MDOT SHA to Host Information Workshop on Pedestrian Safety Initiatives on Three Notch Road

The Maryland Department of Transportation State Highway Administration will host a public informational workshop, 5-7 p.m. Thursday, January 16, to provide information and gather community input to improve pedestrian access and safety along MD 235 (Three Notch Road) in St. Mary’s County. The workshop will be held at Great Mills High School, 21130 Great...
Read More »

16 of 19 Businesses Pass December 2024 Tobacco Compliance Checks

16 of 19 Businesses Pass December 2024 Tobacco Compliance Checks

On December 29, 2024, the St. Mary’s County Sheriff’s Office Alcohol Enforcement Unit conducted a succession of tobacco compliance checks. The covert compliance checks involved using an underage Sheriff’s Office confidential informant (CI) who was 19 years old and wore jean pants and a long-sleeved shirt. The CI was directed to enter the store,...
Read More »

Pursuit of Justice: Charles County Sheriff’s Office Cold Case Homicide – Jack Moore, age 63 of Georgia

Pursuit of Justice: Charles County Sheriff’s Office Cold Case Homicide – Jack Moore, age 63 of Georgia

Today is the 22nd anniversary of the homicide of Jack Moore, a 63-year old resident of Georgia, who was visiting the area at the time of his death. His case remains unsolved. Your assistance can help us bring justice to Jack and his family. On January 8th, 2003 at approximately 10pm, officers with the...
Read More »

From the Yellow Farm House to the White House: A Journey of Conservation and Connection

From the Yellow Farm House to the White House: A Journey of Conservation and Connection

Maryland Department of Natural Resources, By Ranger Sarah Milbourne – Ranger Sarah Milbourne and “Mo,” one of Maryland’s bald eagles from the Scales & Tales program, visit the White House in 2023. Photo courtesy the White House. I can vividly remember the first time I saw a bald eagle in the wild. I was...
Read More »

Police in Charles County Arrest Suspect for DUI, Firearm Violations, and Reckless Driving

Police in Charles County Arrest Suspect for DUI, Firearm Violations, and Reckless Driving

Lonnie Ray Dawes III, 35, of Woodbridge, Virginia, is facing a series of charges after being arrested on December 31, 2024, in Charles County, during an early morning traffic stop. Dawes was taken into custody after officers stopped his vehicle on Crain Highway near Mount Air Road. According to the Charles County Sheriff’s Office,...
Read More »

Boiling Water Attack in Waldorf Leaves Victim’s Face with Peeling Skin; Suspect Released by Judge on Own Recognizance

Boiling Water Attack in Waldorf Leaves Victim’s Face with Peeling Skin; Suspect Released by Judge on Own Recognizance

Emani Bonnetta Webster, 27, of Waldorf, was arrested and charged with first-degree and second-degree assault following a domestic violence incident that occurred on December 31, 2024. According to court records and the Charles County Sheriff’s Office, the charges stem from an altercation at a residence on Hollins Lane in Waldorf, during which Webster allegedly...
Read More »

Bryans Road Man Released on His Own Recognizance After Stabbing Brother in Charles County

Bryans Road Man Released on His Own Recognizance After Stabbing Brother in Charles County

A family dispute on New Year’s Day led to a stabbing and subsequent arrest of Kaleb Thaddeus Hart, 20, of Bryans Road, Maryland. According to court documents and statements provided by the Charles County Sheriff’s Office, Hart was charged with 1st and 2nd degree assault after an altercation with his brother resulted in injuries....
Read More »

Wanted Lexington Man Arrested on Drug Charges in St. Mary’s County

Wanted Lexington Man Arrested on Drug Charges in St. Mary’s County

Steven Ray Lee, 32, of Lexington Park, was arrested on December 28, 2024, following an investigation that led to the discovery of drugs and drug paraphernalia in his vehicle. The arrest occurred in the parking lot of the Sheetz located at 20760 Old Great Mills Road in Great Mills. According to the St. Mary’s...
Read More »

Calvert County Sheriff’s Office Investigating Hit and Run Collision at Roland’s of Chesapeake Station

Calvert County Sheriff’s Office Investigating Hit and Run Collision at Roland’s of Chesapeake Station

On Monday, January 6, 2025, at approximately 10:10 p.m., a white 4-door Jeep struck a delivery van which was in the rear parking lot of the Roland’s of Chesapeake Station. If anyone has information, they are asked to contact the Calvert County Sheriff’s Office. No known injuries were reported and the damage was contained...
Read More »

Two Injured After SUV Strikes Salt Truck and Burst Into Flames in Charles County

Two Injured After SUV Strikes Salt Truck and Burst Into Flames in Charles County

On Tuesday, January 7, 2025, at approximately 12:05 a.m., police, firefighters and emergency medical services responded to the area of Crain Highway and Shepherds Creek Place in White Plains, for the serious motor vehicle collision with one vehicle on fire. 911 callers reported an SUV attempted to go around a salt/plow truck, when the...
Read More »

St. Mary’s, Calvert and Charles County Government Updates for Tuesday, Jan.7th, 2025

St. Mary’s, Calvert and Charles County Government Updates for Tuesday, Jan.7th, 2025

St. Mary’s County – Travel will remain difficult and hazardous; impacts to the evening and morning commute are expected. Extremely cold temperatures are expected beginning tomorrow and continuing through Friday. Residents are encouraged to stay off the roads, if possible, to leave access for emergency response vehicles and snow removal operations. NAS Patuxent River’s operating...
Read More »

Large Outside Fire with Burn Injuries Reported in Mechanicsville

Large Outside Fire with Burn Injuries Reported in Mechanicsville

On Sunday, January 5, 2025, at approximately 6:15 p.m., firefighters from Mechanicsville, Hughesville, Hollywood and additional Charles County departments responded to the area of Chelsea Place and Laurel Ridge Drive in Mechanicsville, for the reported large outside fire threatening a fence with injuries. While firefighters responded to the scene, 911 dispatchers advised multiple callers...
Read More »

Lexington Park Man Found Passed Out at Gas Pump Arrested for Drug Possession

Lexington Park Man Found Passed Out at Gas Pump Arrested for Drug Possession

On December 31, 2024, Austin Darling, 30, of Lexington Park, was arrested and charged with drug-related offenses after police responded to a report of a man unconscious behind the wheel of a vehicle at the Quick Shop on Great Mills Road in Lexington Park. Deputy Ryan McLean of the St. Mary’s County Sheriff’s Office...
Read More »

AUDIO: 38-Year-Old Male Flown to Trauma Center After Firework Detonates in Hand

AUDIO: 38-Year-Old Male Flown to Trauma Center After Firework Detonates in Hand

On Sunday, January 5, 2025, at approximately 10:13 a.m., police, firefighters and emergency medical services responded to the 6500 block of Marion Adams Place in Bryan’s Road, for the reported shooting. Prior to the arrival of First Responders, the 911 callers then clarified this incident was NOT a shooting, it was a firework related...
Read More »

UPDATE: Snowfall Estimates Increase for Maryland’s Incoming Winter Storm: The Latest to Know

UPDATE: Snowfall Estimates Increase for Maryland’s Incoming Winter Storm: The Latest to Know

UPDATE 1/5/2025: Estimates for total snow accumulation have now increased! St. Mary’s County is now anticipated to get 8-12” of snowfall, with the potential for 13” Snowfall will begin tonight (Sunday 1/5/2025) around 9:00 PM and continue through the early hours Tuesday (1/7/2025) morning. Winter Storm Warning beginning at 6:00 PM tonight (1/5/2025) and...
Read More »

Woman Cited for Driving Without License After Flipping SUV in Lexington Park

Woman Cited for Driving Without License After Flipping SUV in Lexington Park

On Thursday, January 2, 2025, at 9:45 p.m., police, firefighters and emergency medical services responded to the area of 20510 Poplar Ridge Road in Lexington Park, for the serious motor vehicle collision with one overturned and entrapment. Crews arrived on the scene to find a single vehicle in the roadway on its side after...
Read More »

VIDEO RELEASED: Teen Dies from Injuries After Crash in Charles County While Fleeing in Stolen Car

VIDEO RELEASED: Teen Dies from Injuries After Crash in Charles County While Fleeing in Stolen Car

UPDATE 1/03/2025: The Independent Investigations Division (IID) of the Maryland Office of the Attorney General today released body-worn camera footage from the fatal collision that occurred Tuesday, December 3, 2024, in La Plata, Charles County, Maryland. The decedent has not been identified in accordance with juvenile privacy laws. UPDATE 12/16/2024: The involved officers have...
Read More »

Nanjemoy Man Sentenced to 25 Years in Prison for Child Sexual Abuse and Second-Degree Rape

Nanjemoy Man Sentenced to 25 Years in Prison for Child Sexual Abuse and Second-Degree Rape

Tony Covington, State’s Attorney for Charles County, announced that on Friday, December 20, 2024, Charles County Circuit Court Judge Monise A. Stephenson sentenced, 38, of Nanjemoy, to 25 years in prison for Sexual Abuse of a Minor and Second-Degree Rape. Upon release, Skinner will be on supervised probation for five years. Skinner must also...
Read More »

19-Year-Old Arrested After Fleeing Police and Crashing Dirt Bike in La Plata

19-Year-Old Arrested After Fleeing Police and Crashing Dirt Bike in La Plata

On Wednesday, January 1, 2025, at 3:16 p.m., officers observed a male operating a dirt bike on Crain Highway near Port Tobacco Road in La Plata. Officers initiated a traffic stop at the traffic light, but the driver fled, immediately lost control of the bike, and crashed. The driver, who was not injured, was...
Read More »

Charles County Sheriff’s Office Welcomes 6 New Officers Following Graduation from Southern Maryland Criminal Justice Academy Session 54

Charles County Sheriff’s Office Welcomes 6 New Officers Following Graduation from Southern Maryland Criminal Justice Academy Session 54

Charles County Sheriff Troy D. Berry is proud to announce six new officers will join the Charles County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO) after their graduation from the Southern Maryland Criminal Justice Academy (SMCJA) Police Entrance Level Training Program. The officers were among 17 candidates – four from Calvert County and seven from St. Mary’s County...
Read More »

NAS Patuxent River Moves to 100% ID Checks Effective Immediately

NAS Patuxent River Moves to 100% ID Checks Effective Immediately

NAS Patuxent River has suspended Trusted Traveler and has implemented 100% ID checks at all gates effective immediately per direction from U.S. Naval Forces Northern Command. Passengers who do not possess a valid DoD Common Access Card or DBIDs Pass/Credential, must display a valid REAL ID-compliant identification ( www.dhs.gov/real-id ) and comply with escorting requirements in...
Read More »

Surveillance and Search Warrants Lead to Drug Charges for Two Lexington Park Brothers

Surveillance and Search Warrants Lead to Drug Charges for Two Lexington Park Brothers

Juwan Deontre Ford, 21, and James Sylvester Ford Jr., 23, both of Lexington Park, were formally charged with possession with intent to distribute cannabis and possession of cannabis exceeding civil-use limits. According to court documents, a search warrant was executed on January 17, 2024, at a residence on Windsor Drive where Juwan Deontre Ford...
Read More »

UPDATE: Maryland State Police Investigating Serious High Speed Crash in Lexington Park, Two Flown to Trauma Centers

UPDATE: Maryland State Police Investigating Serious High Speed Crash in Lexington Park, Two Flown to Trauma Centers

UPDATE 1/3/2025 – Maryland State Police Press Release: On Thursday, January 2, 2025, at approximately 11:48 am, Troopers assigned to the Maryland State Police Leonardtown Barrack responded to a serious motor vehicle collision on Three Notch Road at Corporate Drive, Lexington Park. Preliminary investigation revealed a collision involving three vehicles. The driver of the...
Read More »