County police have arrested and charged Duane G. Davis with leaving a toilet - festooned with newspaper clippings, an electronic transmitter and a cell phone — outside the historic Baltimore County courthouse Monday morning, triggering a police reaction that included a bomb-sniffing dog and a small robot.
Though there did not appear to be any threats of violence or indications that the toilet was intended to be perceived as a possible bomb, Davis has been charged with having a "phoney [sic] destruction device" and "false statement - destruction device." He's being held on $200,000 bond, records show.
The Sun's June Torbati reported today that Monday's incident shows how vigilant security officials and the public have become on potential threats, said Ellen Cornelius, a law and policy analyst with the University of Maryland's Center for Health and Homeland Security. "I think people have become more aware, and there have been effective public awareness campaigns" by governments.
We'll have more on this later on line and in print. Here is a copy of the police charging document so you can decide for yourself what crimes he allegedly committed: