A 17-year-old Cape St. Claire youth remained in serious but stable condition in the Maryland Shock Trauma Center last night with injuries from a severe beating Friday night, one of two incidents county police said may have been related.
Jason C. Ford, 17, of the 900 block of Blue Ridge Drive was jumped about 11 p.m. as he was talking with friends in the parking lot of the Cape St. Claire Shopping Center in the 1300 block of Cape St. Claire Road.
He suffered a fractured skull, multiple fractures of his right eye socket and the right side of his nose, and several chipped front teeth, police said.
The beating occurred an hour and a half after as many as eight youths attacked Timothy R. Kiffer, 16, as he was on his way to his job at a Denny's restaurant in the 800 block of College Parkway East, less than a mile from the shopping center. He received cuts and bruises in the attack but refused medical treatment, police said.
Sgt. Robert Johnson, a police spokesman, said officers have two suspects in the beating of the Ford youth but have not charged them yet. Police said late yesterday that no arrests had been made.
Officer Sharon L. McAllister found the Ford youth lying semiconscious in front of Cape St. Claire firehouse, across the street from the shopping center, about 11 p.m. He was incoherent and could not give police any information, the officer wrote in her report. County paramedics took the Ford youth to the Anne Arundel Medical Center, where he stayed until being transferred to Shock Trauma Sunday afternoon, hospital officials said.
Witnesses told Officer McAllister that young Ford had been talking with four other youths in the shopping center parking lot when a blue Dodge Caravan pulled onto the parking lot and stopped behind the youths. Two youths got out of the van and talked with one of the Ford youth's friends. After a few moments of conversation, during which they pushed the first youth, the assailants walked up to young Ford and punched him several times in the face, police said.
The Ford youth ran toward the shopping center with the two assailants in pursuit. Later, one of his friends found him lying in front of the firehouse.
Witnesses reported seeing one of the assailants running from the firehouse toward the shopping center, police said.
The Kiffer youth was riding his bicycle in the 800 block of College Parkway Eastabout 9:30 p.m. when the youths came out from behind the Denny's restaurant. One asked young Kiffer if he had a dollar, then all of them started kicking and punching him, police said.
The assailants knocked young Kiffer off his bicycle. He got up and ran, toward a restaurant, but the assailants caught him and resumed the attack, police said. The Kiffer youth managed to run inside the restaurant. His attackers threw his bicycle near a trash bin behind a 7-Eleven. Young Kiffer called home, and his mother and sister went to the restaurant.
Police searched the area but could not find the assailants, authorities said.