Southern Maryland News Net

UPDATE: Waldorf Man Sentenced to 10-Years After High Speed Crash Claims Life of Lusby Woman in Mechanicsville

UPDATE 3/28/2025: State’s Attorney Jaymi Sterling announced today that Michael Anthony Carlucci, 50, of Waldorf, Maryland, has been sentenced to serve seven years in prison in connection with a multi-vehicle high-speed crash that claimed the life of a mother of four, Jaleisa Wilcox, 33, and injured another individual. During the sentencing hearing, the State requested the maximum penalty of ten years in prison, despite the Maryland sentencing guideline range only calling for a sentence between three months and four...
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Lexington Park Man Arrested After Stabbing Dog Multiple Times During Domestic Incident

On Tuesday, March 25, 2025, at approximately 9:24 p.m., police responded to the 21400 block of Exquisite Court in Lexington Park, for the reported domestic involving a knife. Multiple 911 callers reported a domestic disturbance involving a knife with the suspect attempting to kill the dog. According to court records from the District Court for St. Mary’s County, Corey A. McDowney, 46, of Lexington Park, has been formally charged with aggravated animal cruelty, multiple counts of animal cruelty, and...
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UPDATE: Police Investigating a Fatal Crash Involving Box Truck and Occupied School Bus in Prince Frederick

UPDATE 3/26/2025 @ 1:00 P.M.: On Wednesday, March 26, 2025, shortly after 9 a.m., deputies from the Calvert County Sheriff’s Office Patrol responded to a report of a serious motor vehicle collision involving a school bus on Rt. 231 near Sea Gull Beach Road in Prince Frederick. Upon arrival, deputies found that the school bus was occupied by 12 students and a driver. Emergency response crews promptly assessed the individuals on board, resulting in two (2) students being transported...
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Lexington Park Woman, Britny Lee Blankenship, Wanted by Police for Escape

UPDATE 3/26/2025: The St. Mary’s County Sheriff’s Office is seeking the whereabouts of Britny Lee Blankenship, 35, of Lexington Park, for escape. On March 22, 2025, Deputies responded to the 21000 block of Liberty Street in Lexington Park for the report of tampering on Blankenship’s ankle monitor. The monitoring device was found to have damage to the band, indicating that it had been cut. Blankenship is a white female, 5’5”, 205 pounds, with blue eyes and strawberry blonde hair....
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UPDATE: Lexington Park Man Identified in Fatal Single Vehicle Collision in California

UPDATE 3/26/25: The St. Mary’s County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a fatal single-vehicle collision that occurred Tuesday afternoon. On March 25, 2025, at around 1:15 p.m., First Responders responded to the 44000 block of St. Andrews Church Road and Pops Way in California, MD, for a report of a crash. A preliminary investigation determined that a 2018 Hyundai Elantra left the roadway and struck a concrete barrier. The driver, Calvin Coolidge Edwards Jr., 76, of Lexington Park, was found unresponsive...
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UPDATE: Virginia Man Dead After Motor Vehicle Collision in Waldorf, Charges Pending Investigation

UPDATE 3/26/2025: On Tuesday, March 25, 2025, at approximately 5:13 p.m., Troopers from Maryland State Police La Plata Barrack along with deputies from the Charles County Sheriff’s Office responded to United States Route 301 (Crain Hwy) at Holly Lane for a report of a serious motor vehicle collision. Due to the circumstances, the Maryland State Police CRASH Team responded to assume the investigation. A preliminary investigation conducted by Troopers from the MSP La Plata Barrack and the MSP CRASH...
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Hollywood Woman Charged with DUI and Multiple Traffic Violations Following Late-Night Stop

A Hollywood woman is facing multiple traffic charges following a late-night incident along Three Notch Road in St. Mary’s County. According to court documents filed on March 25, 2025, Kaylee Alyssa Burnett, 26, of Hollywood, was cited by the St. Mary’s County Sheriff’s Office after being stopped near the intersection of Three Notch Road and Airport View Drive at approximately 10:59 p.m. on March 24, 2025. Burnett has been charged with driving or attempting to drive under the influence...
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Two Transported to Trauma Center After Serious Head-on Collision in Indian Head Leaves Two Trapped

On Tuesday, March 25, 2025, at approximately 6:40 p.m., police, firefighters and emergency medical services responded to the area of 4800 Livingston Road in Indian Head, for a motor vehicle collision with unknown injuries. The first 911 call came from an automatic crash notification which could only advised a female was heard in the background, the second 911 caller reported a serious head-on collision with one overturned and multiple trapped. Crews arrived on the scene to confirm a two...
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Pursuit of Justice – Cold Case Files: Detectives Seek Public’s Help in Identifying Serial Sex Offender

Charles County Sheriff’s detectives and Forensic Science personnel are seeking to identify a serial sex offender. Here are the facts of the cases: Between November 1996 and August 2003, an unidentified male targeted women in Prince George’s County and Washington, DC by offering them a ride under false pretenses. Once inside his vehicle, the suspect engaged victims in conversation, distracting them with personal details before deviating from their intended route. He would then drive to a remote area in...
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UPDATE: Callaway Man Arrested After Attempting to Enter Little Flower School and Assaulting Staff, Police Officers

UPDATE 3/25/2025: St. Mary’s County Sheriff’s Office Deputies responded to a report of a disturbance at Little Flower School in Great Mills at approximately 7:45 a.m. on March 25. A 911 caller reported that a male suspect had assaulted a staff member at the school before fleeing the area on a bicycle. Responding deputies located a subject matching the description provided by the school and attempted to make contact. The individual charged a deputy before engaging in a brief...
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Lexington Park Man is Third Person Charged in Connection with Shootout in the Streets of St. Mary’s County

A months-long investigation into a March 2024 shooting on Ronald Drive has led to the arrest and charging of three individuals, all connected to a complex series of events involving gunfire, surveillance footage, and alleged retaliation. The incident began in the early hours of March 2, 2024, when deputies from the St. Mary’s County Sheriff’s Office responded to Ronald Drive in the Countryside neighborhood for a report of a shooting. Upon arrival, they located Dakarai Amon Mason, 18, of...
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Helicopter Requested After Serious Two Vehicle Collision in Leonardtown, Budds Creek Road Closed

On Monday, March 24, 2025, at 9:50 a.m., police, firefighters and emergency medical services responded to the area of Budds Creek Road and Big Chestnut Road in Leonardtown, for the serious motor vehicle collision with one overturned. 911 callers reported a two-vehicle collision with one patient being semi-conscious with a possible compound fracture to the leg. A helicopter was placed on standby. Crews arrived on scene to find a two vehicle head-on style collision with no vehicles overturned, all...
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No Injuries or Structures Damaged After Large Woods Fire in California

On Sunday, March 23, 2025, at 8:32 a.m., firefighters from Bay District, Leonardtown, and Hollywood were dispatched to the Salem State Forest located at 22343 Indian Bridge Road in California, for the reported large woods fire. The 911 call came from couple who drove to the State Forest for their morning walk, a short time after they arrived, they located a large woods fire which was actively spreading. They remained on scene to give information to the arriving units....
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Elderly Driver Flown to Trauma Center After Causing Serious Rollover Collision in Mechanicsville

On Sunday, March 23, 2025, at approximately 10:59 a.m., police, firefighters and emergency medical services responded to the area of Three Notch Road and Mount Zion Church Road in Mechanicsville, for the serious motor vehicle collision with one patient trapped. Crews arrived on the scene to find two vehicles involved in a T-bone style collision with one patient trapped. Firefighters from Mechanicsville Volunteer Fire Department extricated the patient in under 15 minutes. A helicopter was requested to land nearby...
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UPDATE: St. Mary’s County Man Indicted Federally for Being a Felon in Possession of a Firearm

UPDATE 3/21/2025: Although Taylor was originally charged with 10 counts of various felonies and misdemeanors, a federal grand jury has returned an indictment charging Jerod Adam Taylor, age 39, of Lexington Park, Maryland, for being a felon in possession of a firearm. The indictment was returned on February 27, 2025. The defendant had an initial appearance on March 17, 2025, in U.S. District Court in Greenbelt before U.S. Magistrate Judge Gina L. Simms and was ordered detained. The indictment...
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Illegal Alien Indicted for Fentanyl, Firearm, and Immigration-Related Crimes

A federal grand jury has indicted Sarah Maud Jess, 61, of Capitol Heights, Maryland. Jess is charged with conspiracy to distribute fentanyl, two counts of distribution of fentanyl, one count of possession with intent to distribute fentanyl, possession of a firearm and ammunition by an illegal alien, and reentry of an alien removed after...
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Maryland State Police Searching for Critical Missing Person in Leonardtown

Troopers from the Maryland State Police Leonardtown Barrack are actively searching for a critically missing person, 51-year-old Joseph Herbert Swann, who was last seen on the morning of Wednesday, March 26, 2025. Swann reportedly left his residence on Gunnell Drive in Leonardtown at approximately 11:03 a.m. and was observed getting into a black Nissan...
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UPDATE: Missing Waldorf Man, Richard Wilson Jr, Located Deceased in Prince George’s County

UPDATE 3/27/2025: On March 27, 2025, at approximately 2:00 p.m., Charles County Sheriff’s detectives were notified by the Prince George’s County Police Department that Richard Wilson, Jr., age 86, who had been reported missing from his Waldorf home on January 25, 2025, was located deceased in the water near Mariner Drive in Fort Washington,...
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MDOT SHA to Resurface Portion of Southbound MD RT 2/4 in Calvert County

The Maryland Department of Transportation State Highway Administration will resurface southbound MD 2/4 (Solomons Island Road) between Cox Road and MD 263 (Plum Point Road) starting Thursday night, March 27. The work is expected to be completed by mid-summer, weather permitting. Drivers can expect overnight single-lane closures Sundays through Thursdays from 9 p.m. to...
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VIDEO: Vehicle Fire at California Car Dealership Quickly Extinguished by Firefighters

On Thursday, March 27, 2025, at approximately 6:14 p.m., firefighters from the Bay District Volunteer Fire Department responded to Lexington Park Ford, located on Three Notch Road in California, for a vehicle fire reported to be threatening nearby vehicles. Crews arrived on the scene within two minutes of dispatch and found a single vehicle...
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Maryland and Virginia Remain Under Special Weather Advisory Due to Fire Risk and Dry Weather

Special Weather Statement issued March 27th, 2025, by NWS Baltimore MD/Washington DC. The combination of recent dry weather, relative humidity falling to 15 to 25 percent, and sustained west to northwesterly winds around 10 mph with gusts to around 20 mph may result in an elevated threat for the rapid spread of fires today,...
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St. Mary’s County Health Department Hosting Community Baby Shower for New and Expecting Parents

The St. Mary’s County Health Department invites new and expecting parents who live in St. Mary’s County to a Community Baby Shower. The event will take place on Saturday, May 3, 2025, from 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. at the Spring Ridge Middle School-Based Health Center at 19856 Three Notch Rd, Lexington Park, MD...
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St. Mary’s County Commission on the Environment Announces Annual Earth Day Celebration at Summerseat Farm

The St. Mary’s County Commission on the Environment (COE) is excited to announce the annual Earth Day Celebration will be held on Saturday, April 26, 2025, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Summerseat Farm in Mechanicsville, MD. This family-friendly event will take place rain or shine. Attendees will have the opportunity to meet...
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Potomac Jazz & Seafood Festival Announces Sponsorship Opportunities for the 25th Anniversary Celebration

The Friends of the St. Clement’s Island & Piney Point Museums, organizers of the beloved Potomac Jazz & Seafood Festival, are thrilled to announce that sponsorship opportunities are now available for the landmark 25th anniversary celebration. This milestone event, scheduled for July 10-13, 2025, promises to be the most spectacular festival yet, attracting many...
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Maryland Comptroller Launches New Website and Customer Service Portal

The Office of the Comptroller launched its new website, Marylandcomptroller.gov. The new modernized website showcases a user-friendly interface with improved navigation and connects to the agency’s new customer service portal, MyCOMConnect. “Our new website and our new customer relationship management portal are critical tools that will make our arm of government work better for...
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Jury Finds PG County Man, a Washington D.C. Physician, Guilty of Operating a Pill Mill from His Medical Practice

Ndubuisi Joseph Okafor, M.D., 65, of Upper Marlboro, Maryland, was found guilty by a federal jury in U.S. District Court in connection with illegally distributing prescriptions for narcotics in exchange for cash from his Northwest Washington D.C. medical clinic. The verdict was announced by U.S. Attorney Edward R. Martin, Jr., Matthew R. Galeotti, head...
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Maryland Sergeant Makes Quick Arrest After Witnessing 16-Year-Old Fatally Shoot Victim

The Prince George’s County Police Department’s Homicide Unit charged a teenage suspect in connection with a fatal shooting on Tuesday night. The suspect, a 16-year-old male from Laurel, is charged with the murder of 39-year-old Leo Addison of Largo. The suspect is charged as an adult. On March 25, 2025, at approximately 10:30 pm,...
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Charles County Police Quickly Arrest PG County Teen in Stolen Hyundai After Slow Speed Chase

On Wednesday, March 19, 2025, at 3:25 a.m., patrol officers were responding to the area of Wedgewood Place in Waldorf for the report of an iPhone notification of a crash. As officers approached the scene, an officer noticed a silver Hyundai with front end damage and the driver wearing a ski mask. When the...
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Jury Finds PG County Man Guilty of Felony Strangulation of His Partner

Desmond Fletcher, 37, of Capitol Heights, Maryland, has been found guilty by a jury of one count of felony strangulation and two counts of misdemeanor assault for charges that took place in southeast Washington, D.C., on September 4, 2023, announced U.S. Attorney Edward R. Martin, Jr. and Chief Pamela Smith of the Metropolitan Police...
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Lexington Park Woman Arrested in St. Mary’s County After Two Separate Domestic Incidents

A Lexington Park woman is facing charges in two ongoing criminal cases following separate incidents involving alleged domestic altercations and a protective order violation, according to court documents filed in St. Mary’s County District Court. Nijah Ziniah Briscoe, 23, of Lexington Park, is charged with second-degree assault for an incident that occurred on February...
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Comcast Connects First 5,800 Homes & Businesses in Leonardtown Area

Comcast announced it has connected the first residents in Leonardtown, Maryland to Xfinity and Comcast Business services. These are the first of 5,800 homes and businesses that Comcast is connecting in the Leonardtown area. Read the full announcement, including details on the suite of services that will be available by clicking here. This expansion...
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Brantley Gilbert and Jackson Dean Coming to Calvert Marine Museum June 19th, 2025!

The Calvert Marine Museum (CMM) is thrilled to announce the next installment of the Waterside Music Series, featuring country superstar BRANTLEY GILBERT with special guest JACKSON DEAN on Thursday, June 19, 2025. This highly anticipated show is part of Gilbert’s The Tattoos Tour and will take place at the Motto Mortgage Preferred and RE/MAX...
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