Three people were arrested on drug charges when a search and seizure warrant was served in the 15000 block of Nighthawk Lane in Bowie earlier this month. According to the Bowie Police Department, marijuana, cocaine and drug paraphernalia were confiscated in the raid.
The investigation and the warrant services were conducted by members of the Bowie Police Department. Not long ago, these tasks would have been handled by the Prince George's County Police Department, but the Bowie force is increasing its role.
"As the department moves forward and grows we will continue to work toward expanding our capabilities," said Bowie Deputy Police Chief John Nesky. "One of our objectives for the fiscal year is to begin establishing an investigative division, and we are moving steadily toward that goal."
The Metropolitan Council of Government released its Annual Report on Crime and Crime Control 2009 last week. The good news for the D.C. region is that the more serious crimes (known as the part 1 crimes) are down nearly 8 percent from 2008 to 2009. However, the statistics reported by the City of Bowie Police Department show a 12 percent year-over-year increase for Bowie. The Maryland jurisdictions included in the study had an 11% decrease in part 1 crimes, compared with 6.2% for D.C. and 4.0 for Virginia. The report credits cooperation among law enforcement agencies as one of the contributing factors for the decrease.
Continued cooperation and communication among agencies throughout the NCR will further enable jurisdictions to work toward continued reductions in major crimes. The use of innovative technologies, including License Plate Readers, and computers and GPS in police cars, as well as other enhanced data sharing technologies available to officers, such as LInX, has enabled the NCR to improve its crime reduction efforts during this period of economic downturn.
Former Bowie High School Principal Dies Former Bowie High School Principal John M. Hagan passed away Monday. According to a posting on Facebook, a memorial service will be held on Saturday March 20, 2010 from 1:00pm to 3:00 at the Beall Funeral Home, 6512 Crain Highway, Bowie, MD 20715. Click this link to see the Beall Funeral Home listing for Principal Hagan. Additional details can be found in a Bowie Star/Gazette article
Reality Show Over for Bowie Woman Shawne Morgan of Bowie joined with her friend Monique Pryor to compete in this season of the CBS reality TV show The Amazing Race, but the pair was eliminated from the competition after three weeks when they were unable to master a mock polo competition in Argentina. More details can be found in a Bowie Star/Gazette article.
$2 Million in Damages from Old Bowie Fire The cause of an early morning fire at a construction site in Old Bowie on Sunday is still under investigation. A Prince George's County Fire/EMS Department press release described the incident as follows.
The first fire occurred just before 4:00 AM, Sunday, March 7, 2010, in Bowie. Firefighters were alerted to a fire on a construction site in the 12900 block of 11th Street. Fire/EMS units encountered a fire involving a small structure, 3 cement trucks and large amounts of debris. About 30 firefighters worked for about 45 minutes to knock down the bulk of the fire. AMTRAK officials worked with firefighters as the site was adjacent to the tracks. No injuries were reported. The cause of the fire is under investigation and fire loss is estimated at $2,000,000.
Some area residents heard explosions early Sunday morning near Old Bowie. The following comments were posted on the Bowie Crofton Community of Blessings group page on Yahoo.
Member 1: Last night I awoke about 2 or 3 am to what sounded like an explosion. I'm in Old Bowie on 9th St. Then there were a series of explosions and one time I even saw a flash of light over the trees by the railroad followed by another explosion. Half hour later fire departments from all over were coming. Does anyone know what happened near the railroad by the antique district? I can't find anything on the news.
Member 2: Intersting, I heard an explosion and thought the clock said 4:32 (maybe it was earlier). I am off Hillmeade and 450 in Glenn Dale so it must have been big! I hope everyone is ok.
Firefighters/Medics Install Carbon Monoxide Detector in Bowie Home Firefighters and medics returned to a home on Maycheck Lane in Bowie to install a carbon monoxide detector two weeks after treating Naila Ferkic in the same home for carbon monoxide poisoning. Ferkic originally thought she had the flu, but rescuers detected carbon monoxide samples in her home that were more than ten times acceptable levels. Additional details can be found in a blog post on the Prince George's County Fire/EMS blog site.
Bowie Police Officer Shoots Dog A Bowie police officer shot a dog after being attacked twice Monday night. The following text appeared in a Bowie Police Department unusual occurrence report (PDF).
On 3/8/10 at 1945 hrs, the Bowie Police responded to the 14800 block of London Lane for a lost property report. As the Officer was approaching the dwelling the Officer noticed a large dog attempting to get out of the door as the owner was exiting the dwelling. The Officer advised the owner to secure his extremely large dog (weighing approximally (sic) 100 lbs) at which time the dog ran past the owner, lunged at the Officer latching onto her left leg. The Officer freed herself from the dog and attempted to retreat at which time the dog attacked her a second time, biting her in the right leg. The Officer again attempted to retreat at which time the dog charged her again, fearing for her personal safety, the Officer drew her duty weapon and fired one shot, striking the dog. The Officer was transported to Bowie Health Center where she received treatment for a dog bite and released.
The homeowner transported the injured dog to 6700 Laurel Bowie Road for emergency treatment. The dog is in stable condition at this time.
Bowie Man Indicted for Mortgage Fraud Scheme Rolando Alonzo Cousins was indicted for his part in a scheme that took advantage of homeowners who were behind in their mortgage payments. Some victims were left homeless. More details can be found in a UPI.com article.
World War II Pilot Back in the Cockpit Ninety-one year old World War II pilot Wayne Fogelman of Riva was given the opportunity to fly again after Bowie car salesman Lew Gilinsky and Freeway Airport owner Stanely Rodenhouser arranged to have Fogelman pilot a 30 minute trip with flight instructor Matt Linquist. Click this link to read the story in the Bowie Blade.
Snow started falling heavily around 9:00 this morning in Bowie, and there was about five inches of the white stuff on the ground by 7:00pm.
I stopped by Best Buy at the Bowie Town Center, and it was the first time I found parking in front and no line at the register. I almost didn't recognize the place.
The snow-covered Bowie bushes
Old Chapel Road. The roads were very slippery.
Snow plow on Route 197 in front of Benjamin Tasker Middle School. The blade works better when it's down.
City of Bowie plow on Mitchellville Road - with the blade down.
An accident on Laurel Bowie Road (Rt 197) at Old Chapel Road. Apparently car(s) coming down the hill on Old Chapel Road couldn't stop in time.
Four Bowie Police officers work the scene.
The view from the top of the hill on Old Chapel Road
Police closed off Old Chapel Road at Laurel Bowie Road
Audrey Scott The Maryland Republican Party overwhelmingly selected former Bowie Mayor Audrey Scott as their new party chairwoman at a convention held Saturday in Bowie at the Comfort Inn Conference Center. Rumor has it that party faithfuls were impressed by the many elephant trinkets that Scott has on display in the Republican safe haven that she calls home. The elephants were featured in an Audrey Scott promotional video on YouTube. Scott's colorful opponent, Daniel "the Whig Man" Vovak, posted his own promotional video featuring inspirational music from the movie Rocky. An unidentified source claims that after the loss, Vovak was seen on the steps of the conference center yelling, "Adrian!"
Despite big party financial problems and claims by some that the Republicans are having trouble finding talented candidates for 2010, the Maryland GOP displayed optimism at Saturday's event.
Read more details about the convention in this Baltimore Sun article. The Sun describes Chairwoman Scott as "spunky."
Maryland Democratic Party Chairwoman Susan Turnbull issued a "bring it on" style congratulations to Scott shortly after the convention. Turnbull's statement can be read here on Maryland Politics Watch.
Bowie Police Department Plans Icy Water Dip for Charity Members of the Bowie Police Department plan on participating in the 14th annual Polar Bear Plunge to raise money for Maryland Special Olympics. The department's team will be dipping into the icy Chesapeake Bay waters at Sandy Point State Park on January 30, 2010. Click here to make a donation or to track the team's fund raising progress. They are still looking for donations and additional team members. According to the team's page, Bowie Councilwoman Diane Polangin will also be taking the plunge.
Lt. Richard Wohkittle, Chief Katherine Perez and Deputy Chief John Nesky pose in the water for a promotional picture for the fundraiser.
Arrest of Chief Perez Imminent Bowie Police Chief Katherine Perez will be locked up as part of the Muscular Dystrophy Association's annual Lock Up Event on Tuesday, November 17. Click here to make a donation or track the Chief's progress. She still has $2,000 to raise by Tuesday!
Bowie Health Center Temporarily Open Around the Clock The Bowie Health Center is temporarily open 24 hours a day to accommodate a spike in the number of patients seeking treatment. The average number of patients has jumped 74%, and most patients are reporting flu like symptoms. Read more details in this Gazette article.
Schools to Continue use of SchoolMax The Prince George's County Public Schools have decided to stick with the troubled SchoolMax computer system despite well publicized scheduling problems at the beginning of the school year. Many of the problems with the software have been resolved, and switching to a new software package would be very costly. Read more details in this Washington Post article.
Audrey Scott I recently wrote about former Bowie Mayor Audrey Scott vying to be the chairwoman of the Maryland Republican Party. She posted the following campaign video last week to tout her credentials for the job. This is definitely an interesting use of the Internet for an old school politician like Audrey. I love the intro music and the description of her house full of elephant trinkets as a "Republican safe haven." No donkeys in that house!
Northview Fire Station The Northview Fire Station recently opened in Bowie on the corner of Northview Drive and Health Center Drive. According to a Gazette article, this station will be staffed better than most area fire stations.
I snapped the following picture a couple of weeks before the station was operational. An electrician was working on the lights for the station's stained glass tile and mirror mosaic depicting a very happy and diverse workforce.
The mosaic was designed by local artist Cheryl Foster. Right on, Cheryl! Cheryl assembled the mural with help from several volunteers, including a group of elderly assistants from the nearby Bowie Senior Center.
This photo doesn't do the piece justice. The blue circles in the background contain symbols associated with Bowie and Prince George's County. I'll have to go back to the station for a close-up.
The girl featured in the mosaic is a young Rockledge Elementary School student and artist who inspires Cheryl Foster.
You can read more about the Northview Fire Station stained glass tile and mirror mosaic in a recent article published in The Sentinel.
Seven New Police Officers for Bowie It's a good thing that the new Bowie City Hall project has been kicked off. The Gazette recently reported that seven new police officers were sworn in during a recent City Council meeting. It would be a crime to force these new officers to work out of double-wides indefinitely. Plus the new digs for the city may give us the opportunity to have our very own call center to improve Bowie Police response times. Good times. Good times.
BGE Customers to Participate in Obama's Smart Grid Plan Baltimore Gas & Electric will be getting $200 million in federal stimulus money to install new "smart meters" in two million customer homes as a stepping stone to having a more advanced electrical grid. BGE will be kicking in $251 million of its own money for the project.
Each new smart meter will contain a component that is mounted on the inside of a house, and a light signal will help alert customers to upcoming peak energy usage times. BGE will implement a new energy pricing model, and customers will be able to save money by reducing their energy usage during the peak usage periods.
The program is not expected to be completed until 2014.
Aggressive Tree Trimming Continues Aggressive tree trimming continues along Maryland Route 197 in Bowie. I'm sure that there will be more unhappy residents.
Bowie City Elections Next Tuesday Don't forget to vote. Click here for election day information from the City of Bowie web site. I pretty much want the existing team to stay in place.
Lock Up Fundraiser for Muscular Dystrophy The Bowie Baysox are hosting an event to raise money for the Muscular Dystrophy Association. Donations will benefit Bowie and Crofton families. The event is described as follows on the Bowie Baysox web site.
Community and business leaders agree to be locked up "for good" and are asked to raise bail by reaching out to family, friends, colleagues, and vendors are asking for help raising funds for MDA. The Lock-Up will celebrate the Jailbirds’ success in raising money to help send local children to MDA Summer Camp at Camp Maria in Leonardtown, MD. They will receive actual mug shots and a scrumptious lunch donated by Carrabba’s Italian Grill.
