Around 2 a.m. Oct. 16, a then-unidentified male reportedly broke the glass front door of a Baltimore jewelry store with a brick.

The problem for the male? The store owner was inside the building — and he was armed with a gun. The store owner fired a warning shot and said, "Freeze!" WJZ-TV reported, adding that the intruder ducked, then popped back up, and the store owner opened fire at him.

The jewelry store owner lives above his business, WJZ said in its video report.

Officers arrived at the scene in the 2200 block of Fleet Street to find a 39-year-old man suffering from gunshot wounds, WJZ said in a follow-up story, adding that police said he was taken to a hospital, where he later died.

Baltimore City State's Attorney Ivan Bates on Monday identified the man as Richard Rolfe — and said no charges will be pursued, WJZ reported.

"Based on the facts of this case, we believe that this shooting meets the requirements of self-defense in the State of Maryland," Bates said in a statement, according to the station.

WJZ said Maryland law stipulates that self-defense or defense of habitation applies if use of force is accompanied by the following five factors:

the suspect attempted to enter a home or property;
the property owner believed the suspect intended to commit a crime that would lead to death or serious injury;
the property owner believed the suspect intended to commit a crime;
the property owner believed that use of force was necessary to prevent death or serious injury;
the property owner reasonably believed force was necessary.

The jewelry store owner lives above his business, WJZ said in its video report.

The state's attorney's investigation found that Rolfe entered or tried to enter a person's home, and the homeowner believed Rolfe intended to commit a crime that would lead to injury or death, the station said.

The investigation also found the homeowner believed the force used against Rolfe was necessary to prevent death or injury, WJZ said.

The homeowner also believed Rolfe was armed, the station said, citing the findings of the investigation.

While it was later discovered that Rolfe did not have a gun, Bates said in a statement that "it is reasonable that the homeowner believed Mr. Rolfe was armed," WJZ reported. Bates added that "it can be said that the homeowner was acting appropriately under the defense of the habitation doctrine," the station added.

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Male reportedly shatters glass front door of jewelry store in middle of night. His problem? Armed store owner is inside.

A yet-unnamed male reportedly broke the glass front door of a Baltimore jewelry store with a brick in the middle of the night last week — and it proved to be a fateful choice, as the store owner was inside at the time.

A friend of the store owner shared the following account of Thursday's incident with WJZ-TV on his behalf. The station said:

The store owner was watching a movie around 2 a.m.
The store owner said someone broke through his glass front door with a brick, so he fired a warning shot and said, "Freeze!"
The intruder ducked, then popped back up, and the store owner shot him.

Baltimore police described it as a commercial burglary at the intersection of Fleet and Madeira Streets that resulted in the fatal shooting of a 39-year-old man, WJZ said.

'There are very much viable defenses for someone in the business owner's — the jewelry store owner's — shoes right now.'

The station added that the shooting was caught on video and shared with a WJZ reporter. While the camera owner declined to allow WJZ to publish the images, the camera owner did share them with police. The station said the silent video shows a man at the store's entrance who appears to enter the business — and seconds later, he falls to the pavement.

WJZ noted in its Friday story that "bullet holes remained in two windows at the store" and that the broken glass in the store's front door "has since been covered." The station added that the store's owner reportedly lived above his shop.

In a follow-up story, WJZ reported that the shooting has raised questions regarding when — and where — lethal force is allowed when you believe you are in danger.

The station said the standards differ in Maryland depending on if you are in your home or in public. WJZ said the law gives you more latitude to use deadly force if you're at home and have a "reasonable" fear that your life is in danger — a.k.a. the Castle Doctrine.

But the station said if you are in public, you have a "duty to retreat" and only can use deadly force as a last resort — and the force should be proportional to the threat.

Attorney Warren Alperstein — who is not affiliated with the jewelry store case — noted to WJZ that "if you're in an alley up against a brick wall at a dead end, and there's no way to get out ... there's no way to retreat — that would be an exception to the requirement."

The station said in the case of Thursday's fatal shooting at the jewelry store, the store owner lived in the same building as his business. Alperstein added to WJZ that "if it's determined it was in his home, then he does not have to first prove that he retreated before he used the deadly force."

The attorney also told the station that "there are very much viable defenses for someone in the business owner's — the jewelry store owner's — shoes right now."

WJZ said Baltimore police and the state's attorney's office declined interview requests.

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Bouncer caught on video smashing male's head through car window, putting him in chokehold. But cops get a break in the case.

A viral video out of Baltimore shows a bouncer putting a male in a chokehold outside a bar — and then smashing the male's head through the window of a car parked on the street's curb.

The 51-second clip has garnered views climbing toward 10 million as of Thursday afternoon.

'Learn to de-escalate, communicate, and walk away.'

In the video, the rather large bouncer is standing on a sidewalk telling a smaller male to "leave."

Soon the smaller male's hand appears to make contact with the bouncer's chest, and the bouncer advances toward the guy — who soon appears to bump the bouncer in an attempt to walk by him.

Immediately the bouncer grabs the male around the neck from behind and puts him in the chokehold. About seven seconds later, the male taps repeatedly on the bouncer's arm — a commonly known "I give up" signal in MMA fighting.

But the tap doesn't work on this Baltimore street.

The chokehold continues, the bouncer wrenches the male's neck a few times while spinning him around, and there are more taps on the bouncer's arm.

"He tapped! He tapped! Let him go! Let him go!" one person is heard pleading in the clip.

Then the bouncer ups the ante and smashes the male's head through a car window.

"Yo! Chill out!" a person is heard yelling at the bouncer, who by this point has taken the male behind the vehicle — now missing one window — as a second bouncer approaches.

Finally, the 33-second chokehold ends, the pair of bouncers restrain the male against the back of the vehicle in question, and they appear to let him go into the street as the clip ends.

WJZ-TV reported that the incident occurred on East Cross Street in the city's Federal Hill neighborhood near the Cross Street Public House restaurant.

A restaurant spokesperson told the station the establishment doesn't employ the bouncer in question and that Ace Event Services Group provided security. WJZ added that the restaurant and the security company "have since parted ways."

Baltimore Democrat Councilman Isaac Yitzy Schleifer said that "both Bouncers/Security guards need to be held accountable."

Baltimore police initially told WJZ they were aware of the video and attempting to figure out what went down; by Monday, police told the station they were trying to identify the bouncer in the video.

On Wednesday, Baltimore police announced that 41-year-old Kevin Weaver turned himself in — and is facing a first-degree aggravated assault charge.

Baltimore Police on Thursday told Blaze News, "We are unable to share a mugshot [of Weaver] at this time."

In the aftermath of the viral video, WBFF-TV reported that some in the neighborhood are unsettled about the incident.

"I mean, the kid's not 21, but that doesn't mean you get to rough 'em," one person told the station.

Another added to WBFF that "in security, you have to take some abuse from the public, but you don't hit his head into a window ... that's disgusting."

The station said police have yet to confirm the identity of the person who was placed in the chokehold.

Kim Klacik — host of "Kim Klacik Live" on WCBM-AM and a former candidate for the U.S. House who ran as a Republican — noted to WBFF in a follow-up story that "when it comes to police saying there is no report yet, I don't believe this is something uncommon in these scenarios, considering that that young man that had his head rammed through the car window could have possibly been a minor."

Pete Brazil — who worked security at another bar — told the station in a separate story that the bouncer's actions were over the top: "For 30 seconds — I do not condone that. He tapped, so he shoulda let him go."

WBFF said Brazil recognized the bouncer and described him as usually "a pretty cool, calm, collected dude" who "just had a bad day."

Brazil added to the station that "fights happen every day. I'm just happy that no one really got hurt."

Another area bouncer told WBFF that those working security at bars need to "learn to de-escalate, communicate, and walk away."

Mark Crosby — a pro-life Baltimore resident who was brutally beaten up in front of a Planned Parenthood in the city, only for admitted culprit Patrick Brice to walk away without any jail time — told Blaze News the chokehold and car-window smash were "horrific."

Crosby added to Blaze News that all the much-larger bouncer had to do was "smack him once, and that would've been enough."

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'Stop talking and get to work': Trump blasts Democrat Gov. Wes Moore over Maryland crime

Maryland Gov. Wes Moore appears eager to paint a rosy picture of his state and to downplay the severity of its crime problem. President Donald Trump simply isn't buying what the Democrat is selling.

The president announced on Aug. 11 that he was federalizing the Washington Metropolitan Police Department and deploying the National Guard in order to "re-establish law, order, and public safety" to the national capital.

FBI statistics show that Baltimore has 'the fifth-most instances of violent crime on a per capita basis, [and the] fourth-highest murder rate.'

Despite complaints from Democrats and other leftists, the initiative has been tremendously successful. In the first week, D.C. saw a 19% drop in property crimes and a 17% drop in violent crimes when compared with the previous week. The city also enjoyed at least 10 days without a murder.

Trump indicated at the outset that he has a mind to similarly bring law and order to other crime-ridden cities, including Baltimore, a city of fewer than 570,000 people, which has a 1 rating on Neighborhood Scout's crime index where 100 is safest. Trump's threat of a life-saving federal intervention did not sit well with Moore.

Less than two weeks after offering a knee-jerk critique of the president's deployment of the National Guard, Moore suggested in an Aug. 21 letter to Trump that his state and the city of Baltimore are making progress where crime is concerned, citing a supposed 20% drop in homicides statewide since he took office two and a half years ago and a 22% year-over-year decrease in Baltimore homicides in the first six months of 2025.

Moore suggested that Baltimore was "on track to have the lowest number of homicides" since the city began officially keeping crime statistics, then invited Trump to attend a "public safety walk" in September.

Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

The Democratic governor followed up his letter with an interview on Sunday with CBS News' "Face the Nation," where he vowed not to authorize the Maryland National Guard to be utilized for Trump's law and order initiative; characterized the deployment of the National Guard as "unconstitutional"; and claimed that Trump was both "living in this blissful ignorance" and engaging in "1980s scare tactics" on the crime issue.

Baltimore's Democrat mayor, Brandon Scott, has similarly suggested that Trump is pushing a false narrative about the crime problem in Maryland, stating, "When it comes to public safety in Baltimore, [Trump] should turn off the right-wing propaganda and look at the facts. Baltimore is the safest it's been in over 50 years."

'Stop talking and get to work, Wes.'

Despite signaling an aversion to federal troops in Baltimore and suggesting things have improved in his city, Mayor Scott has called for "additional resources for Baltimore's ATF, DEA, and FBI field offices."

Moore did not argue with talking head Margaret Brennan when she acknowledged that FBI statistics show that Baltimore has "the fifth-most instances of violent crime on a per capita basis, [and the] fourth-highest murder rate," but he rejected Trump's strategy in D.C. as a possible remedy, calling it "purely performative."

Trump punched back on Sunday, writing on Truth Social, "Governor Wes Moore of Maryland has asked, in a rather nasty and provocative tone, that I 'walk the streets of Maryland' with him. I assume he is talking about out of control, crime ridden, Baltimore? As President, I would much prefer that he clean up this Crime disaster before I go there for a 'walk.'"

"Wes Moore's record on Crime is a very bad one, unless he fudges his figures on crime like many of the other 'Blue States' are doing. But if Wes Moore needs help, like Gavin Newscum did in L.A., I will send in the 'troops,' which is being done in nearby DC, and quickly clean up the Crime," continued Trump. "After only one week, there is NO CRIME AND NO MURDER IN DC! When it is like that in Baltimore, I will proudly 'walk the streets' with the failing, because of Crime, Governor of Maryland. P.S. Baltimore is ranked the 4th WORST CITY IN THE NATION IN CRIME & MURDER."

"Stop talking and get to work, Wes. I’ll then see you on the streets!" added the president.

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Bus rider gets upset at fellow passenger for being impolite, soon shoots him to death, authorities say. Jury returns verdict.

Baltimore police said officers responded to the unit block of South Eutaw Street for a report of a shooting around 2 p.m. on Nov. 30, 2024.

Police said officers located an unidentified male suffering from apparent gunshot wounds, and medics transported the victim to an area hospital where he died.

'I'm not going to let you live.'

Days later, detectives arrested 61-year-old James Richburg of Baltimore in connection with the fatal shooting of 30-year-old William Womack on a bus in the unit block of South Eutaw Street after a dispute, police said.

Richburg was taken to the Central Booking Intake Facility where he was charged with first-degree murder, police said.

It wasn't Richburg's first go-round with the law, WMAR-TV reported, adding that online court records indicate he was sentenced to five years in 2021 for firearms possession and was convicted in connection with a 1996 robbery.

As for last year's case, charging documents indicate Womack bumped into Richburg on the bus without apologizing, the station said, which led to an argument between the pair.

Police said Womack got back on the bus as the argument continued, after which Richburg opened fire, WMAR said.

Richburg fled, and Womack collapsed, the station said, adding that soon witnesses came forward, and police identified Richburg as the shooter.

WMAR reported that a jury last week found Richburg guilty of second-degree murder, use of a firearm in a crime of violence, and possession of a firearm by a prohibited person.

But while prosecutors said Womack was shot in cold blood, Richburg said it was self-defense, WBAL-TV reported.

During Thursday's closing arguments, prosecutors told the jury, "The defendant did kill William Womack with a firearm. He fired a gun from near-point-blank range into Mr. Womack's chest," WBAL said.

The assistant state's attorney said MTA transit bus surveillance video clearly shows Womack bending down to pick up a bottle he dropped and then bumping into Richburg and not saying "excuse me" or apologizing, WBAL reported.

The pair exchanged words, Richburg got off the bus, then got back on, WBAL said, adding that charging documents indicate Womack was annoying Richburg before Richburg said, "I'm not going to let you live."

But Richburg's defense claimed that even if Richburg said those words, he was concerned about his safety, WBAL said.

"Mr. Womack, he has committed a battery under the laws of the state of Maryland. Mr. Womack continues to harangue and harass Mr. Richburg. Mr. Richburg's fight or flight instinct was already heightened because he was on the bus," the defense argued, according to WBAL.

The defense claimed the shooting was in self-defense, WBAL said: "It is Mr. Richburg trying to warn Mr. Womack off. It is in response [to] Mr. Womack continuing to threaten and harangue Mr. Richburg. In the moment, Mr. Richburg understood Mr. Womack coming to harm him."

However, WBAL added that Womack didn't have a weapon.

Richburg's sentencing is scheduled for Nov. 10, WBAL said, adding that he could receive up to 75 years in prison.

Mark Crosby — a pro-life Baltimore resident who was brutally beaten up in 2023 in front of a Planned Parenthood in the city, only for the culprit to walk away without any jail time — told Blaze News that the killing of Womack and how it started is no surprise to him given where it took place.

"There have been so many instances of that," Crosby told Blaze News before adding that Baltimore recently was ranked the third-most dangerous city in the United States.

"Houses are boarded up, there's graffiti on buildings, trash everywhere," Crosby noted, adding that "all I can do is shake my head and say it's business as usual."

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Thug who mercilessly mauled elderly pro-life worker in front of Planned Parenthood gets his sentence

In June, a judge acquitted Patrick Brice of first-degree assault over a brutal assault he carried out against 73-year-old pro-life worker Mark Crosby in front of a Baltimore Planned Parenthood in May 2023.

It was good news for the attacker as he awaited his sentencing, since the acquittal lessened the possibility of jail time.

'It's not equal justice under the law.'

Crosby's attorney Terrell Roberts — retained by the Thomas More Society to assist Crosby amid deliberations — told Blaze News in June that the judge's acquittal was the "most ridiculous decision I've seen in a long while."

All the reasons why were captured on surveillance video outside the abortion facility.

Brice — a decades-younger male who Crosby estimates stands well over six feet tall and weighed about 250 pounds — reportedly was arguing with Crosby's fellow pro-life worker, Dick Schaefer, about abortion that day.

Suddenly Brice is seen on video charging at Schaefer and tackling the 84-year-old backward into a large flower pot.

Image source: Baltimore Police

According to WBAL-TV, a witness said Schaefer was out cold "for several minutes."

As you might expect, Crosby — dressed in a blue and white "pro-life" T-shirt — runs over to help his friend.

Image source: Baltimore Police

But Brice is standing directly in Crosby's path.

Image source: Baltimore Police

And Brice easily knocks the 73-year-old down to the sidewalk and punches Crosby in the head.

Image source: Baltimore Police

Then Brice rears back his right foot and kicks Crosby in the face before finally walking away.

Image source: Baltimore Police

YouTube age-restricted the Baltimore Police video of the attack on Schaefer and Crosby — which may give some indication of its gut-wrenching nature — so you can only view it there.

Here's a local video report, though.

Local pro-life advocate John Roswell told LifeSiteNews at the time of the attack that Crosby’s “plate bone in his upper right cheek is completely fractured” and that he “is bleeding from some unidentified area behind his eye, and the bone eye orbit is completely shattered and will have to be replaced with metal" as a result of the brutal beatdown.

Crosby told Blaze News that he was blind in his right eye "for nine days" after the attack, that he spent three days at the Maryland Shock Trauma Center, that he was "spitting blood," and that a piece of his iris is missing.

He also told Blaze News he still experiences foreign body sensation, which is a "feeling that something's in your eye and you can't get it out. But I can live with that. Babies are being murdered. I give it up for them."

Image source: American Center for Law and Justice, used by permission (left); Mary Crosby (right)

A few weeks after the attack, police released surveillance images of the culprit, but it wasn't until over a year later — July 1, 2024 — that police finally arrested Brice. He was indicted on charges of first-degree assault, second-degree assault, and assault on an elderly person 65 and over, according to the American Center for Law and Justice. He was released on his own recognizance, Catholic Review said.

The criminal trial for Brice took place in February 2025 in Baltimore Circuit Court. Brice's attorney — assistant public defender Matthew Connell — argued that his client didn't intend to cause serious physical injury, which is needed to support a conviction for first-degree assault, the Baltimore Banner reported.

Connell also called Schaefer and Crosby “old white men” who say “the most vile things” to women and see themselves as “religious martyrs," Catholic Review reported. He also said Brice “didn’t mean to hurt them that bad" and “made a mistake," the Banner reported.

The jury convicted Brice on two counts of second-degree assault and reckless endangerment for his attacks on Schaefer and Crosby, the Banner said, adding that jurors acquitted Brice on one count of first-degree assault against Schaefer.

However, the jury couldn't reach a unanimous verdict on the first-degree assault charge for Brice's brutal attack on Crosby — knocking him to the ground, punching him in his head, and kicking him in his face while he was on his back on the sidewalk.

Crosby was then left waiting for justice.

'Legally absurd'

The opportunity came — and went — during June's retrial of Brice's first-degree assault charge for his attack on Crosby. Circuit Judge Yvette M. Bryant — who presided over February's jury trial — presided again during the bench retrial, and she acquitted Brice of first-degree assault, the Banner said in a separate story.

Her reason? The paper said the judge concluded that it was all about Crosby's intent. Does video of the attack show him rushing over to help his friend? Or does it show 73-year-old Crosby running over to fight Brice — a bigger, taller 20-something who had just knocked Schaefer out cold?

The Banner said Bryant agreed that Brice's attack against Crosby was unjustified — but disagreed with the prosecution's contention that it was unprovoked.

"How can you claim a 73-year-old man provoked a man who just knocked out an 84-year-old man? It's legally absurd," Roberts remarked to Blaze News at the time, adding that "any judge would have to find him guilty based on the video."

Crosby added to Blaze News that Bryant stated in court that he could have "gone around Brice to help Dick Schaefer" rather than taking a path directly to his friend to give him aid. "So she's blaming me. ... I'm the bad guy."

A frustrated Crosby also told Blaze News at the time that "now the pro-abort movement will know this, and violence will continue against us."

Brice's sentencing took place Thursday.

What happened at the sentencing?

During the hearing, Roberts read Crosby's victim impact statement, which said, "Due to the brutality of the attack, I respectfully call for the court to impose a lengthy sentence of imprisonment for the defendant in this case."

That didn't happen.

Brice got no jail time. Instead, Judge Bryant ordered him to spend one year on home detention and gave him three years’ probation, the Banner reported in a separate story.

In addition, Brice must complete anger management classes, undergo drug and alcohol screening, virtually attend Alcoholics Anonymous or Narcotics Anonymous meetings, and remain in therapy, the paper said.

Blaze News spoke with Crosby and his attorney, Roberts, following Brice's sentencing. As you might expect, both were upset about it.

Roberts said that "clearly justice was not done here. The sentence for this kind of criminal act should be jail time without any question." He added that Brice's attack left "permanent" injuries and that "he fled the scene, leaving Mark and Dick lying on the ground." But instead of jail time, Brice was "walking out without any kind of punishment. It's shameless. And it pretty much means it's open season for any pro-life person working" in front of Planned Parenthood.

Crosby told Blaze News that after the judge handed down her sentence and was walking out the courtroom door, he "screamed out" at her, asking, "What about my well-being?"

He added that the Brice's sentence includes a lot of "easy stuff" and that "it's not equal justice under the law." Crosby noted that he's hoping the federal government will look at the case.

But despite his disappointment, Crosby added to Blaze News that he "couldn't ask for a better gift" than "shedding my blood on the bricks in front of Planned Parenthood and suffering pain for Jesus and the babies."

Crosby also said since the attack, "wonderful things have happened — along with the not-so-wonderful things — but there's no greater joy than saving one of God's beautiful babies from being murdered. It's a great feeling when people come up and say thank you for counseling them — and that their babies are alive and well."

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Violent Crime Began Plummeting in Baltimore Just After Voters Fired Their Soros-Backed Prosecutor. Experts Say That's No Coincidence.

Homicides and other types of violent crime are dropping precipitously in a crime-ridden American city. It started shortly after Baltimore voters fired their progressive Soros-backed prosecutor in 2022—and experts say that's no coincidence.

The post Violent Crime Began Plummeting in Baltimore Just After Voters Fired Their Soros-Backed Prosecutor. Experts Say That's No Coincidence. appeared first on .

Trump DOJ Urges Maryland Supreme Court To Toss Lawsuits Seeking Climate Damages From Oil Companies

The Department of Justice is asking the Maryland supreme court to dismiss three local lawsuits, which accuse the nation's largest oil companies of selling products that they know cause global warming. It represents the first time the Trump DOJ has weighed in on such active litigation, which has become more common in recent years and seeks to extract crippling damages from oil companies.

The post Trump DOJ Urges Maryland Supreme Court To Toss Lawsuits Seeking Climate Damages From Oil Companies appeared first on .

Ruling issued after Baltimore jewelry store owner fatally shoots suspected burglar

Male reportedly shatters glass front door of jewelry store in middle of night. His problem? Armed store owner is inside.

Bouncer caught on video smashing male's head through car window, putting him in chokehold. But cops get a break in the case.

'Stop talking and get to work': Trump blasts Democrat Gov. Wes Moore over Maryland crime

Bus rider gets upset at fellow passenger for being impolite, soon shoots him to death, authorities say. Jury returns verdict.

Thug who mercilessly mauled elderly pro-life worker in front of Planned Parenthood gets his sentence

'Legally absurd'

What happened at the sentencing?

Violent Crime Began Plummeting in Baltimore Just After Voters Fired Their Soros-Backed Prosecutor. Experts Say That's No Coincidence.

Trump DOJ Urges Maryland Supreme Court To Toss Lawsuits Seeking Climate Damages From Oil Companies

Islamist groups in Texas rake in $13M in taxpayer-funded grants amid Abbott’s battle against Sharia law

Justice Alito delivers win to Texas GOP, temporarily restores Republican congressional map

Marjorie Taylor Greene calls it quits after 'traitor' branding by Trump

The imperial judiciary strikes back

Video: Female bully towers over and beats up elderly woman on Florida bus. Victim is left 'battered and bruised': Sheriff.

Is a tariff a tax?

Two Texans allegedly plotted to kill men on island with homeless mercenary force and take women and children as sex slaves

'Legally absurd'

What happened at the sentencing?

We’ll keep you informed with top stories for conservatives who want to become informed decision makers.