Tag Archive for: Maryland

District of Maryland | Pasadena Man Sentenced to Over Four Years in Federal Prison for Possession of Child Pornography

/in


Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Ellen L. Hollander sentenced Raymond Martin Shamer, III, age 21, of Pasadena, Maryland, late yesterday to 50 months in federal prison, followed by 45 years of supervised release for possession of child pornography.  Shamer admitted that he also distributed child pornography.  Judge Hollander also ordered that, upon his release from prison, Shamer will be required to register as a sex offender in the places where he resides, where he is an employee, and where he is a student, under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (“SORNA”). 

The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron and Special Agent in Charge James C. Harris of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Baltimore.

According to his guilty plea, from at least July 7, 2019 through June 24, 2020, Shamer used online accounts to communicate with others about child pornography, to distribute child pornography, and to collect child pornography.  Many of the files Shamer collected documented adults sexually abusing of infants and toddlers while they are bound and subjected to other violent conduct.

Shamer admitted that he used a secure communication application to upload images of children engaged in sexually explicit conduct, and that he shared links to those images with a group of users with whom he engaged in group chat conversations.

On June 24, 2020, a search warrant was executed at Shamer’s residence and investigators seized Shamer’s cell phones and computer.  A subsequent forensic examination of the devices revealed a total of more than 1,000 images of child pornography on Shamer’s devices.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by the United States Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims.  For more…

Source…

DVIDS – News – Maryland Air Guard exercise skills to be ready for warfare

/in



The Maryland Air National Guard conducted a readiness exercise involving Airmen in a simulated deployed environment across Martin State Air National Guard Base from March 2-5.

The exercise, designated Operation Lucky Strike 2023, was built to test and demonstrate the 175th Wing’s ability to survive and operate in a near-peer conflict while executing unit-level critical tasks. All training activities were observed and monitored by unit subject matter experts and the inspector general’s office, which provided feedback to leaders and participants.

“Operation Lucky Strike is a full-scale readiness exercise designed to test our Airmen’s ability to ensure mission essential tasks are met in a contested, degraded, operationally limited environment including CBRN, chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear environments,” said Maryland Air National Guard Capt. Sara Nittinger, 175th Wing director of inspections. “Everything is driven by the new Air Force generation concept, AFFORGEN. It is how we prepare our Airmen for deployments, where they have to be able to demonstrate that they can accomplish their core mission essential tasks in a variety of threat levels.”

During the exercise, wing Airmen had to operate during simulated cyberattacks, power outages, hazardous material accidents, force protection events, and severe weather. The exercise also took place at multiple locations, including Aberdeen Proving Ground and Ft. Meade, testing the wing’s ability to demonstrate agile combat employment, known as ACE.

“In the future, we could be operating in a hostile combat environment that is contested or degraded against an adversary that has peer capabilities – in other words, as capable as us and in some cases maybe more capable,” said Maryland Air National Guard Col. Richard Hunt, 175th Wing vice commander. “They are going to threaten us as much as we threaten them. In order for us to survive, operate, and be effective in a high-risk combat scenario, we need to have the ability to forward deploy to conduct combat operations for a very limited…

Source…

Democrats Cave After Maryland Rejection: Ballots & Boundaries

/in


Maryland lawmakers hastily redrew congressional district lines after a surprise court ruling killed a map that could have led to an all-Democratic delegation. A more Republican-friendly version is on track for passage later today.

It’s a victory for the GOP because one district could make a big difference; with an overall net of just five seats in this year’s elections, control of the U.S. House of Representatives would flip.

Of the states that haven’t completed redistricting, Missouri‘s likely voting today; we’re on override watch in Louisiana; a veto might be coming from New Hampshire; and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) delivered his promised veto today.


Maryland’s new map proposal would restore a Republican-friendly district for Rep. Andy Harris, the only Republican in Maryland’s eight-member House delegation. It would reduce the Democratic leanings of Rep. David Trone‘s 6th District, which runs from Montgomery County near Washington to the western edge of the state.

The other six districts, including the 5th District of Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, would remain overwhelmingly Democratic.

Republicans said the new option still isn’t fair enough. “This map, while prettier, is nothing more than lipstick on a pig,” state Sen. Michael Hough said during today’s floor debate. — Greg Giroux

(Was this newsletter forwarded to you? It’s free. SUBSCRIBE)

NEW HAMPSHIRE: STALEMATE
With only two congressional seats, how hard could it be to revise the lines to keep up with population shifts?

Pretty hard, actually.

The legislature targeted 1st District Rep. Chris Pappas (D), who was re-elected by 5 percentage points in 2020, and would make Rep. Ann Kuster (D) more politically secure. Gov. Chris Sununu (R) has said he’ll veto it and proposed his own version. Sununu’s map would make Pappas’ district marginally more Republican-leaning and Kuster’s district a little more Democratic-leaning.

It’s not clear yet if the legislature will vote on the governor’s proposal. – Greg Giroux

MISSOURI: END IN SIGHT?
Today’s calendar in the Missouri’s House of Representatives includes a Senate-passed congressional map, so redistricting could be completed before…

Source…

Katrin Verclas Sentenced in Maryland to Nearly Two Years – STL.News

/in


German Citizen, Katrin Verclas Sentenced in Maryland to Nearly Two Years in Federal Prison for Charges Related to a Scheme to Defraud the U.S. State Department

In a Related Action, Corporation Controlled by the Defendant Will Pay $500,000 to Settle a Related Civil Complaint

Greenbelt, MD (STL.News) U.S. District Judge George J. Hazel sentenced Katrin Verclas, age 52, a native and citizen of Germany residing in Washington, D.C., today to 728 days in federal prison for obstruction of a federal audit and for causing a financial institution to fail to file a suspicious activity report (SAR).  Verclas previously pleaded guilty to those charges, which were related to more than $1.2 million in U.S. State Department grant funds awarded to MobileActive, a corporation that Verclas controlled.  To settle a related civil complaint filed against MobileActive, the corporation will pay $500,000 to the United States within five days of the Court accepting the consent judgment, or today’s sentencing, whichever is later.

The sentence was announced by Acting United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Jonathan F. Lenzner and Special Agent in Charge Mike Speckhardt of the U.S. Department of State Office of Inspector General, Office of Investigations.

According to the plea agreement, on December 17, 2009, the U.S. State Department’s Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor (“DRL”) publicized a Request for Proposal (“RFP”) that solicited grant proposals under the title “Promoting Freedom of Expression and the Free Flow of Information through Technology and Access.” The submission deadline for grant proposals was January 22, 2010.

As detailed in the plea agreement, Verclas, who was residing in Amherst, Massachusetts at the time, had worked for non-profit organizations in the field of social activism through the use of technology since about 1996.  In preparation for a response to the DRL RFP, on January 15, 2010, Verclas converted a project known as MobileActive into a Delaware corporation, and on January 22, 2010, electronically submitted a grant proposal to DRL on behalf of MobileActive.  On September 20, 2010, MobileActive was awarded a grant from the U.S. Department of…

Source…