On March 30, 2021, members of the Frederick Police Department's Street Crimes Unit were conducting surveillance on a residence within the City of Frederick to locate a subject wanted for a felony assault. At approximately 10:59 p.m., officers observed a suspicious vehicle leaving the residence. As officers attempted to follow the vehicle to ascertain if the wanted person was driving, the vehicle began travelling recklessly, reaching speeds of over 100 mph on US Route 15 South.
Officers initiated a traffic stop on the vehicle, which pulled over on Route 85. As officers approached the vehicle, the driver exited without being instructed to by the officers. The officers recognized that the driver was not the wanted subject that they were looking for, however they immediately observed a handgun in the driver’s front pocket of his hoodie sweatshirt. The driver was quickly arrested and disarmed by the officers.
The driver was identified as a 17-year-old juvenile. Upon inspecting the handgun, officers found that one round was loaded in the chamber and an additional 8 rounds in the magazine. The serial number of the handgun was also purposefully damaged to make it unreadable.
The juvenile was initially charged as an adult per Maryland law and released by a District Court Commissioner without a bond. Since the arrest, the offender was granted a postponement to obtain a lawyer and the case remains in adult court until his next hearing Aug. 24.
The juvenile’s charges include:
- Wearing a loaded handgun upon their person
- Possession of a regulated firearm under 21 years of age
- Possession of a firearm with an obliterated identification number
An earlier version of the release incorrectly stated that the case was remanded to juvenile court. The case is still in adult court at this time.
Case Report Number: 2021-023234
Author of Release: SGT Jonathan Shatlock