Man and woman found dead
City homicide detectives are investigating an apparent murder-suicide of a man and woman whose bodies were found yesterday evening in an apartment in the Uplands Park community near the Baltimore County line.
Their names and relationship were withheld pending notification of family members.
Shortly after 6 p.m., Southwestern District police responding to the Ten Hills Apartments in the 200 block of Atholgate Lane for an undetermined call were unable to enter the dwelling and notified the Fire Department.
Once inside, police and firefighters discovered the bodies, said Agent Donny Moses, a police spokesman.
Moses said that each was pronounced dead at the scene from at least one bullet wound and that a preliminary investigation indicated a murder-suicide.
It was not known for how long the two had been dead, he said.
Moses said homicide detectives were awaiting the results of autopsies to determine who was murdered and who committed suicide.
Richard Irwin
Man gets 50 years for murder
An Edgewood man convicted of second-degree murder and use of a handgun in a violent crime was sentenced to 50 years in prison by a Harford County Circuit Court judge yesterday.
Sean Nelson Smith, 28, showed little reaction as Judge Stephen M. Waldron imposed the maximum sentence, 30 years for second-degree murder and 20 years for handgun use.
In January, a Harford County jury found Smith guilty in the shooting death of Samuel David Horne, 25, of Edgewood in an Aug. 11 confrontation in the 1800 block of Brookside Drive in Edgewood.
During yesterday's sentencing, defense attorney John Janowich told the judge that Smith grew up in a troubled environment. He was beaten by a stepfather and exposed to drug-abusing relatives, Janowich said.
Smith's friends asked the judge for leniency, saying the defendant is not a violent man. Ravon Watson, who was initially charged with conspiracy in the killing of Horne, told the judge that Smith was "put in a bad situation." Charges against Watson were dropped.
"He showed no remorse. There is no opportunity to rehabilitate him," Lewis said, referring to Smith's criminal history, which includes drug possession, distribution and a charge of eluding police.
Smith could become eligible for parole after serving half of his sentence.
For the victim's family, the 50-year sentence was small consolation. "He had no remorse whatsoever," Horne's mother, Mildred Samy, said after the sentencing. "I had expected him to say 'I'm sorry.'
"Nothing will ever bring Sam back, but I do believe someone who commits a crime should go to jail and contemplate what they did."
Madison Park
Man, 23, is fatally stabbed
A 23-year-old Windsor Mill man was fatally stabbed early yesterday in a parking lot after a dispute in a bar, county police said.
Marcus Ellis of the 2400 block of Barnesley Place was found in the parking lot of a gasoline station at Liberty and Croydon roads, police said.
He was killed after a dispute that broke out about 1:30 a.m. between two groups inside the Sisters Bar on Liberty Road at Old Court Road, police said.
After the groups were told to leave the bar, they continued to fight in the bar's parking lot, then drove to the gas station where Ellis was stabbed, police said. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Anyone who has information about the incident can call Metro Crime Stoppers at 866-7-LOCKUP. Callers do not have to provide their names, and all calls are kept confidential.