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For the first part of this series, we will focus on the background behind the story.
Pictures can be deceiving, as demonstrated in the two shown above. Looking at those photos, one would surmise that the chief law enforcement officer in Baltimore County, States Attorney Scott Shellenberger, County Executive, John Olzsewski Jr., and newly appointed chief of police would take their oaths of office seriously.
The Post believes the recent image of Johnny O walking through the Middlesex neighborhood with his new police chief, Melissa Hyatt, is a façade that makes it look like the county executive is concerned about actually protecting citizens. These constant images of Johnny O create nothing more than photo ops.
Case in point: Mr. Olszewski’s recent announcement about police records revealing that African-Americans were stopped for traffic violations more often than their white counterparts indicates that he is more concerned about pandering to the PC culture than upholding the law.
Our goal with this column is to give insight about how declaring Baltimore County a sanctuary county is negatively impacting its citizens, sometimes with fatal results.
Once again, we’re focusing on the I-795 accident that took the life of a Baltimore County citizen. What makes this crime particularly heinous is the fact that that both Mr. Shellenberger and Johnny O would both be in violation of the federal law regarding the “harboring of certain aliens.
The Baltimore Post was contacted by the victim’s family after the fatal car crash that occurred on February 16, 2019. The Post spoke to three members of the family in heart-wrenching interviews as they described the loss of their loved one and the ramifications of Baltimore County’s status as a sanctuary for illegals.
Family members told the Post the only way they found out that the suspect failed to appear at his arraignment was by reading the accounts published by the Post. The grieving family also advised the Post that they were brushed aside by the Maryland State Police when they attempted to find out information regarding the suspect. The family also stated that they became frustrated with the months-long MSP investigation.
Out of pure frustration, the family decided to search the Internet for any possible information on the suspect: Carlos Danielle Gonzales Rabines. That is when they discovered that Mr. Gonzales Rabines quite possibly was an illegal immigrant.
The Baltimore Post immediately raised red flags after reading the MSP press release and encountering a wall of silence surrounding an investigation that, under most circumstances, would have been wrapped up quickly. The Post checked with acting and former retired crash investigators who said that, based on the fact the suspect was taken into custody at the scene, this particular investigation should have taken no longer than a week to complete.
In actuality, from the date of the offense until the announcement of the indictment by Mr. Shellenberger’s office, more than five months had elapsed.
The Post made phone calls on a weekly basis to gain some insight into the background of the suspect only to be rebuffed time and time again by the MSP Media Relations office.
Finally, the Post filed an MPIA request for a copy of the crash report. This public information request was also met with resistance from the MSP and Baltimore County State’s Attorney Scott Shellenberger. What was rather ironic was that Mr. Shellenberger refused to comply with the request by claiming it was an ongoing investigation.
What is even more egregious is that we still have not received a reply from our public information request; a reply is mandatory by state law.
It is also a violation of state law to deliberately interfere with an MPIA request.
To wrap up this column, we share an email that the Post sent to Johnny O’s office. After receiving an automated response indicating it could take several days to respond, and given the seriousness of this issue, the Post followed up with a phone call requesting a reply. We were advised that we would receive a reply by the end of the business day.
RE: Seeking comment on a recent homicide
Mr. County Executive,
Before responding to this request for comment, I ask that you review the following articles published by The Baltimore Post regarding a fatal accident that happened on Interstate 795 earlier this year:
https://thebaltimorepost.com/?s=I-795
The Post was contacted by the victim’s family members, including his widow, after the suspect in the case, an illegal immigrant, failed to appear in court. The loss of the family’s patriarch has been devastating, but the fact that the suspect won’t face justice has increased their anger and grief exponentially.
Hopefully, you can understand the frustration and heartache caused by your administration’s continuance of Baltimore County’s sanctuary status. As a result of the I-795 incident, the family has lost their loved one and their main means of emotional and financial support.
The ultimate irony of this issue is that the victim and his family members are also immigrants, but they are legal immigrants.
The Post wants to offer you the opportunity to provide words of condolence to the family, specifically his widow. She was married to the victim for 25 years, and her husband had worked steadily for 29 years to support his family. The couple raised their children to become college-educated, productive citizens of Baltimore County.
We welcome and await your response.
In part two of this Post Investigates series, we will share an interview with the victim’s family members, including what Johnny O and Mr. Shellenberger said in response to their plea for closure.
Stay tuned, folks.
