Charles Village Court Watch

Last April 2, I wrote the following in an email:

On Saturday, May 7, 2011 at about 2:15 a.m., Thomas D Green hit and nearly killed two Johns Hopkins undergraduates at 33rd and St. Paul Streets.  He then continued westbound on 33rd Street, and he was stopped and arrested on Art Museum Drive.

On February 10, 2012, Green plead guilty to leaving the scene of an accident involving serious bodily injury (a felony) and to causing life threatening injuries by driving while impaired by alcohol, and he received a suspended sentence of 3 years minus one day time served at the time of his arrest.  The original deal was to be for 4 years, but the victims preferred a second count showing responsibility for the accident and were willing to have the time reduced to 3 years.  In return, Green made his plea an Alford plea (where the defendant does not admit guilt by admits that the prosecution has enough evidence to convict him).  He was placed on 3 years supervised probation, and a special condition of his probation was that for one year, there be an interlock device (to prevent driving when there was any alcohol on his breath) on any car driven by him.

Subsequently, Green's license was suspended for one month.  During that month, he was charged three times with driving during suspension.  In the first case, in Baltimore County on August 17, 2012, he was also charged with failing to stop for a stop sign.  In District Court, he prayed jury trial, and that case is scheduled for trial in Circuit Court in Towson on May 23 at 9:15 a.m.  In the remaining two cases in Howard County, dating from September 4 and September 9, 2012, Green plead guilty to driving during suspension.  In the first case, he received probation before judgment, and in the second, he received a sentence of one year with all but 30 days suspended.

In addition, Green attempted to drive on 6 occasions when the interlock device prevented him from driving.  This and the charges of driving during suspension were the bases on which Green was charged with violation of probation, and Green was required to post bail.

On February 11, 2013, Green first appeared before Judge Barry Williams on the charge of violation of probation.  At that time, it was noted that he had attempted to drive under the influence and that the charges of driving during suspension were pending.  The case was postponed to this morning, and Judge Williams revoked Green's bail and had him taken into custody.

This morning at 10:24, Green was led into the courtroom by a Correction Officer.  At 10:35, his case was called, and his attorney stated that he would plead guilty to violation of Rule 4 (the rule requiring someone on probation to obey all laws), not to violation of any special condition.  In other words, the probation before judgment and the conviction in Howard County for driving during suspension would be the basis for the guilty plea.

Green was sworn in by the Court Clerk, and the usual questions were asked to make sure that Green understood what he was doing by pleading guilty, that he understood what rights he was giving up, and that he was entering his plea freely and voluntarily.  Incidentally, when asked his age, he said that he was 38.

The prosecutor noted that Green had twice been pulled over for driving during suspension and had received probation before judgment and a guilty verdict in the two cases.  The state was asking that Green receive the balance of his sentence.  The prosecutor noted that Green has traffic convictions and a case pending in Baltimore County [the other case of driving during suspension].

Green's attorney stated that Green's life has been impacted.  He lost a good job [as a paralegal in the Office of the Public Defender], and he had to get a job with a lot less pay.  He had to drive to get to his job.  He had custody of two kids, a 17 year old daughter about to start college and a 14 year old son, and he has lost custody.  He has significant health issues, a heart attack 2 years ago and a weak heart.  Judge Williams stated that Green appears to think that he can do as he pleases.  Green's attorney agreed that he should not drink and drive, but stated that he had to provide for his family's needs and to buy medications.  She noted that the day after Green's bail was revoked, he was offered a good job with an unnamed brokerage firm.  He had never been incarcerated before.  After two months in jail, he should have another opportunity.

It was now Green's opportunity to speak if he wished to (and most defendants choose to remain silent).  Here, I will summarize what he said using the first person:  I didn't make the best decision.  I learned about my use of alcohol.  I see people from happy hour, and that was me.  The breathalyzer is not perfect.  I lost my job, and I lost my income.  I was between a rock and a hard place.

Here, Judge Williams told Green that he was making excuses.  Green replied:  I hope you don't have the impression that I don't care.  Judge Williams said:  But I do.

In the end, Judge Williams said that he was imposing the entire suspended sentence of 2 years, 11 months and 29 days.

Also attending the hearing and sitting next to me was Joy Lepola of Fox 45 News.  She has done a fabulous job of covering this case from the beginning.  I look forward to seeing her report tonight at 10 (and it should be available later online).

My comments:  It is sad to see someone wreck his life the way that Green has done, and it is sad to see him jailed.  At the same time, we need to be protected from his drunk driving, and he needs to take much more responsibility for his actions (think of his original Alford plea).  For those reasons, I very much commend Judge Williams for the sentence he imposed this morning.

This morning, Thomas Green appeared initially before Judge Vicki Ballou-Watts in what appears to be a misdemeanor reception court in Baltimore County Circuit Court.  His case was called at 10:35, and a minute later he was brought into the courtroom.  His attorney, Gabriel Sanderson, announced that he was electing a bench trial.  He was questioned to make sure that he understood that he was waiving his right to a jury trial and what that waiver entailed.  At 10:41, Judge Ballou-Watts announced that Judge [John] Nagle was available for trial, and Green was led out of the courtroom.

At 11;31, after another defendant had had his time in court, Assistant State's Attorney Stephanie Porter asked for time to phone her witness.  The witness, Police Officer Barber, arrived at 11:43, Green was led into the courtroom at 11:45, and court resumed  at 11:47.

Officer Barber was sworn in, and he testified that he was on routine patrol on August 17, 2012.  While Officer Barber was watching a stop sign at about 5 p.m., he saw a vehicle slow but saw that the tires did not come to a complete stop.  He pursued the driver, made a traffic stop, requested license and registration, and ran those documents through MVA.  What came back revealed that the license had been suspended for an interlock violation on July 24, 2012.  He printed out the MVA record later at the precinct, gave the defendant a citation, and arranged to have the car picked up.  The MVA record was entered at state's exhibit #1.

On cross examination, Officer Barber stated that the defendant had been cooperative, had said he had an interlock, and had blown into the breathalyzer (part of the interlock device) while stopped.  There was no redirect.  That was the state's case.

The defense attorney moved for an acquittal.  He said that the defendant had no knowledge of the suspension and that there was no notice of the suspension in the record.

The prosecutor stated that it was clear that on July 7, a notice of the suspension had been mailed to the defendant.  This was in addition to a notice of revocation.  Judge Nagle denied the motion.

The defense attorney now called his client to the witness stand.  Green was sworn.  He testified that the breathalyzer had rung and that that had led him to take his foot off the brake at the stop sign.  The officer had asked if he had known his license was suspended, and he had said he had not known.  He had been told the suspension would be in abeyance until after an MVA hearing.

Defense exhibit #1 was a letter from the MVA stating that Green was in jeopardy of revocation but could stay it by paying $125 to request a hearing.  Exhibit #2 was a receipt from the MVA.  Green had shown his license at the MVA.

Green had told the officer that he was unaware of any suspension.  The next day, he had called the MVA and had been told his license was suspended until October, 2012.

On cross examination by the prosecutor, Green was shown state's exhibit #1 (the MVA driving record).  It showed a letter for a hearing on August 30.  Every 28 days, Green was to have an interlock report downloaded.

The defense attorney renewed his motion for acquittal.  The prosecutor mentioned a letter dated July 9 but had no information on what was in it.  If Green had received the letter on the interlock by July 24, he would have complied.  The state could have gotten that letter.

The prosecutor said to look back to April 11 when a point system revocation letter had been returned.  There was no return of a letter about the interlock.  The interlock and the points were two parallel issues.

Judge Nagle ruled that the state had met its burden beyond a reasonable doubt.  Green was found guilty of driving during suspension and of failing to stop for a stop sign.

After a two minute recess for Judge Nagle to make a phone call, court reconvened at 12:21.  The defense attorney asked for probation before judgment or probation.  The prosecutor will say that Green was involved in an accident, but Green was trying to maintain his license.  There were issues of alcohol and leaving the scene, but Green was trying to return to the scene [See my comment below].

In allocuting, Green stated that he had not gotten the letter but had known he would be under scrutiny.  He had not tried to leave the scene but had stopped too far from the scene.

The prosecutor stated that on February 12, 2012, Green had been sentenced to 3 years suspended and had been ordered to have an interlock device.  He should be under scrutiny, and incarceration may be warranted.  He is presently serving 3 years which started October 11, 2012 for violation of probation [stated to be an interlock violation, but actually for two instances of driving while suspended in Howard County].

Judge Nagle sentenced Green to 90 days with all but 60 days suspended, and with the 60 days concurrent with the other [violation of probation] sentence.  Green is to be on 18 months supervised probation upon his release, and he is to continue being required to have an interlock upon his release.

My comments:  Green was arrested on Art Museum Drive, about 3 blocks from where he had hit the two Johns Hopkins students, and I have been told that he was attempting to make a U-turn at that time.  But I believe that the U-turn was a last attempt to avoid arrest.  Certainly, when Green plead guilty to leaving the scene of an accident involving serious bodily injury, he made no claim that he was trying to return to the scene.  Hence, I just do not believe the claim he made earlier today.

What is good about the outcome of this case is that Green will have to use the interlock device for a longer period of time.  Unless he gets over his addiction to alcohol and begins to drive more carefully, he will remain a menace to the rest of us.

Let me mention that I saw what appeared to be two teenagers in court, and my guess is that they are Green's children.  They looked a lot like him.  I wish that Green would straighten his life out, because his children deserve a lot better.


Tomorrow morning at 11 in room 420 Courthouse West is the scheduled trial in reception court of James Cureton.  He is charged with the murder of Tanise Ervin and with the attempted murder of two others (who appear to have been the targets) on Gorsuch Avenue in Better Waverly March 12, 2011.  Because the previous date in reception court was 11 days earlier, I expect that this case is headed for a jury trial soon.  On the other hand, 500 juror numbers have been summoned for tomorrow, and that is the usual number.  Since for a first degree murder trial, there need to be at least 45 jurors left after members of a jury panel have been eliminated for cause, i.e. 30 for the peremptory challenges, 12 to be selected for the jury, and at least 3 alternates, my instinct says that any jury selection will be next week or later.  Also, I would be surprised to see a jury selected just before a holiday weekend.  Nonetheless, we may see preliminary motions tomorrow.  Or, it is always possible that we will see another postponement.  In other words, anything may happen.