The Baltimore Sun from Baltimore, Maryland • A4

THE BALTIMORE SUN NEWS TUESDAY, MARCH 25, 2014 Brother of police shooting suspect Aberdeen woman gains injunction to halt demolition of 'historic home' held on drug charge The brother of the man accused of shooting off-duty Baltimore Police Sgt. Keith Mcneill was ordered to be held in custody on a federal drug charge after a brief hearing Monday. Federal authorities have con firmed that Lamont G. Thomas spoke to city police as officers hunted for his brother Gregg Thomas earlier this month, but have not and forth about the property. According to city documents, Aberdeen's Unsafe Building Committee ruled the house was in violation of city code "because it is unsafe, in danger of collapse and is unfit for human habitation." The Grants were given until March 16 to complete significant improvements to the structure, or the city would tear it down and place a lien on the property "for expenses incurred," according to the document.

The Grants have been working to get the home recognized as a historic property, said Maryanna Skowronsld, director of the Historical Society of Harford County. Janice Grant said she wants to renovate the house to provide a home for homeless female veterans and their children. Before Monday, she sent out emails asking supporters "to surround the house and lock arms" until her husband could confirm that the injunction had been filed. "Save our black history and our historic home," she said in the email. Monday morning, the Rev.

Cortly "CD." Witherspoon president of the Baltimore chapter of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, and his wife, Sherelle, held a bulldozer crew at bay until Aberdeen Police Chief Henry Trabert got word from Harford County Circuit Court that the injunction had been issued. A hearing is scheduled for April 24, Braveboy said. Aberdeen Public Works Director Matt Lapinsky said Monday the decision to demolish a property "is a long, drawn-out and we exhausted that." By Bryna Zumer Baltimore Sun Media Group Aberdeen civil rights activist Janice M. Grant pulled off a last-ditch effort Monday to stop the city from demolishing her family's 84-year-old house. Grant, who contends the house is a local historic site, rounded up supporters and got a court injunction to stop the demolition, just as a bulldozer was set to tear down the Edmund Street home.

The injunction is the latest round in a more than decade-long battle between Grant and the city of Aberdeen over the house, which has been vacant for years and which officials say poses a public safety risk. Built in 1930, the home gained prominence when Grant's aunt, who lived there during the Depression, helped feed and care for the area's poor and homeless. First lady Eleanor Roosevelt reportedly visited the home on a trip to Aberdeen Proving Ground, according to Grant. "During the civil rights era, the home was used by the NAACP for organizing meetings," said Grant's attorney, Aisha Braveboy, a state delegate from Prince George's County. "This home has been pretty significant over the last century." Grant, 80, and her husband, Woodrow, 76, don't live in the house.

The city of Aberdeen condemned it in 2004, then deferred demolition when the Grants said they were going to renovate the structure. Since then, the two sides have gone back said whether there is a connection between the two cases. Mcneill remains in critical condition with injuries from the March 14 shooting. After watching the federal court hearing, Gilbert Thomas, the two men's father, said his sons had done nothing wrong. "They're both innocent to me," he said.

State troopers stopped Lamont Thomas, who was driving a red Ford F-150, on Interstate 95 in Cecil County on March according to charging documents. Troopers searched the car and found about $160,000 worth of cocaine in a hidden compartment installed in the back seat, the court papers said. Thomas and another man riding in the truck were initially charged in Cecil County. They were picked up on the federal charges after they each posted $500,000 bail. The second round of charges was filed the same day that Mcneill, a 19-year veteran, was shot while sitting in his Toyota Tundra at a Belair Road auto shop.

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Deputy Commissioner John P. Skinner, the commander of the Intelligence and Investigations Bureau, plans to leave the agency. He has served as a second-in-command under both current police Commissioner Anthony W. Batts and former commissioner Frederick H. Bealefeld III.

Baltimore police spokesman Lt. Eric Kowalczyk confirmed Skinner's intentions, adding that no exact date had been determined. Skinner was the highest-ranking holdover when Batts became commissioner in the fall of 2012 and, at the time, oversaw all investigations and patrol operations. He was first promoted to deputy commissioner in 2011, when he oversaw the police administration including the department's $350 million budget, hiring and recruiting. Batts expanded the number of deputy commissioners from two to three.

Skinner's departure leaves Jerry Rodriguez, a recruit from the Los Angeles Police Department who oversees the Bureau of Professional Standards, and Dean M. Palmere, who commands the Neighborhood Patrol Bureau, as Batts' remaining deputies. In his tenure, Skinner has served as police's chief of patrol and the commanding officer in charge of the Western District, Central District and the Intelligence Section, according to Advanced Leadership Consortium, a private police consulting firm where Skinner is listed as an operating partner. He was promoted to the rank of major in 2001 after about eight years on the force. Justin George wj; Coverage of the day's stories, breaking news and First Warning weather WJZ at 4 p.m., 5 p.m., 6 p.m.

and 11 p.m. constituent asked him to take action. As many as 900 communities across the country have passed similar laws, including several jurisdictions in Maryland. In February, Baltimore County banned smoking near playgrounds, dog parks and athletic fields and within 30 feet of recreational buildings. Violators in the county face a $50 fine.

Anne Arundel, Howard and Harford counties also have imposed bans. Smoking also is banned at Bank Stadium and Oriole Park. In other business, the City Council postponed a vote on legislation that would stop employers from asldngjob applicants if they have a criminal record until a conditional job offer has been extended. The so-called "Ban the Box" legislation was put on hold while the bill's sponsor, Councilman Nick Mosby, drafts an amendment. Baltimore Sun reporter Brandi Bottalico contributed to this article.

ywengerbaltsun.com twitter.comyvonnewenger could bring a fine of up to $500 under a ban the City Council approved Monday. Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake is expected to sign the legislation, which would make Baltimore the latest local government to ban lighting up near places where children play. The ban would not apply to all of the city's parkland, but would prohibit smoking within 50 feet of recreational areas, such as a schoolyard, baseball diamond or basketball court. Rawlings-Blake supports the measure as "a common-sense piece of legislation that will make our city much healthier, particularly for Baltimore's children," said Kevin Harris, a mayoral spokesman. The bill's sponsor, City Councilman William H.

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