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Maryland Natural Resources Police Blotter
Anne Arundel County – On Monday, Sept. 17, Harvey Branston Burroughs, Jr., 55, of Pasadena stood trial in Anne Arundel County District Court for two counts of felony theft, operating a tree expert business without a license, and false advertising or soliciting an unlicensed tree expert business. The charges were the result of an investigation by the Maryland Natural Resources Police (NRP) and the Maryland Forest Service (MFS).
Burroughs, who owns All American Tree Service & Landscaping of Pasadena, entered into a contract for services with two separate clients from the Crownsville area. Burroughs required deposits of $3,800 and $1,000 from the clients but did not perform or complete the work or provide a refund.
The investigation discovered that at the time of one of the incidents Burroughs' license was under a suspension ordered by an administrative law judge for taking deposits of over $1,000 and not performing work or providing a refund. He was consequently also charged with the two natural resources violations.
Under a plea agreement, the State, the victims, and Burroughs agreed to put all charges on the stet or inactive docket provided that Burroughs pays back $2,800 and $500 of the money owed to the complainants in $500 increments to be paid monthly starting October 2007 through April 2008. Under the agreement, if payment is not made in any given month, the State will re-activate all four charges and resume criminal prosecution. Burroughs is also still subject to possible administrative charges related to his license to practice regarding the incidents.
Baltimore County – On Sunday, Sept. 16, the Maryland Natural Resources Police charged four individuals with wildlife and reptile sales violations at the Mid-Atlantic Reptile Show in Timonium.
Paul A. Gritis, 54, of Coopersburg, Pa. was charged with offering a game mammal for sale. Gritis was allegedly attempting to sell a bobcat skull. A person may not sell, offer for sale, barter, or exchange, at any time within the State any game bird or game mammal taken from the wild, in the State or in another state, territory, or country.
Dennis John McNamara III, 31, of Norfolk, Va., and Willie Carl Gilmore, 48, of Suffolk, Va., were charged for allegedly attempting to sell corn snakes without a permit. Michael Jason Baylin, 39, of Fallston, was also charged for allegedly attempting to sell corn snakes and coastal plain milk snakes without a permit.
Garrett County – On Monday, Sept. 10, the Maryland Natural Resources Police charged Wesley Daved Massey, 51, of Oakland with taxidermy and hunting violations. The charges were the results of an inspection by NRP of Massey’s taxidermy business, ICE Taxidermy.
During the inspection, officers uncovered multiple record keeping violations and untagged specimens. Massey was charged under the taxidermist and fur tanner's license requirements with three counts of failing to keep and maintain records. He was also charged with two counts of possession of untagged deer, and one count of possession of untagged turkey. NRP seized as evidence three black bear hides, two whitetail deer hides and one bearded wild turkey.
A court date of Jan. 17, 2008, has been scheduled for Massey in Garrett County District Court.
Garrett County – On Thursday, Sept. 20, at 4:30 p.m., the Maryland Natural Resources Police investigated a hunting accident that occurred on private property off of Sang Run Road near McHenry.
Roger Carpenter, 64, of Bel Air was attempting to enter his tree stand and fell approximately 15 to 20 feet to the ground. He was not wearing a safety harness. After his fall, Carpenter called the Garrett County 911 Center on his cell phone for assistance. Carpenter was flown to Memorial Hospital in Cumberland with non-life threatening injuries. NRP continues to investigate the incident. Foul play is not suspected.
Northern Garrett County Rescue Squad, Deep Creek Volunteer Fire Department and the Maryland State Police assisted NRP with the incident.
Harford County – On Tuesday, Sept. 18, Charles David Blanford, 26, of Colora pleaded guilty to false advertising or soliciting an unlicensed tree expert business in Harford County District Court. The charge was a result of a joint investigation by the Maryland Natural Resources Police and the Maryland Forest Service (MFS).
MFS received a complaint that business cards for Blanford's business, alternately called Blanford's Tree Removal, Blanford's Tree Specialist, and Blanford's Tree & Landscape, were distributed at a restaurant in Bel Air. During the investigation, Blanford's advertisements were found on-line and in Cecil County circulars as well. A check of Departmental records revealed that Blanford is not a licensed tree expert and is not working under the license of a licensee.
Blanford was sentenced to the maximum penalty of $1,000 fine and one year in jail. The one-year sentence was suspended unless he violates his three-year supervised probation.
September 21, 2007The Maryland Natural Resources Police (NRP) is the enforcement arm of the Department of Natural Resources (DNR). With an authorized strength of 280 officers and a dedicated staff of civilian and volunteer personnel, the NRP provide a variety of services in addition to conservation and boating law enforcement duties throughout the State of Maryland. These services include homeland security, search and rescue, emergency medical services, education, information and communications services on a round the clock basis. NRP is the only police force aside from the Maryland State Police that has statewide jurisdiction.
Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is the state agency responsible for providing natural and living resource-related services to citizens and visitors. DNR manages more than 449,000 acres of public lands and 17,000 miles of waterways, along with Maryland's forests, fisheries and wildlife for maximum environmental, economic and quality of life benefits. A national leader in land conservation, DNR-managed parks and natural, historic and cultural resources attract 12 million visitors annually. DNR is the lead agency in Maryland's effort to restore the Chesapeake Bay, the state's number one environmental priority. Learn more at www.dnr.maryland.gov