Assault Charge For Beat-Down On Mom
OCEAN CITY — An Ocean City man was arrested on assault charges last week after allegedly attacking his mother during a domestic dispute that also involved his grandmother.
Around 2:15 p.m. last Wednesday, an Ocean City Police Department (OCPD) officer responded to a reported domestic assault at a residence on Harbor Drive. The officer arrived and met with a male suspect, identified as Christopher Krummel, 41, of Ocean City, who told police he had come home from drinking and found his mother arguing with his grandmother, all of whom lived in the same residence.
According to police reports, Krummel said he saw his mother and his grandmother in a verbal argument that turned physical when his mother grabbed his grandmother’s shirt with both hands in the shoulder area. Krummel told police he was not going to stand for anyone attacking his grandmother and dragged his mother down the hallway and away from the verbal argument.
At that point, the officer interviewed Krummel’s mother and observed a bloody T-shirt on the floor of the main hallway along with a pool of blood on the carpet. The officer observed the victim had blood coming from her nose, all over her face, in her hair and all over the front of her shirt. The victim was being seen by Ocean City EMS.
The victim told police Krummel had dragged her down the hallway and punched her in the head several times and kicked her in the ribs while she was on the ground. Ocean City EMS told the officer that the victim needed to go to the hospital and the officer’s interview with the victim ended at that point. The officer interviewed the grandmother, who said he had been in an argument with the victim when Krummel came home, but everything happened so fast and she didn’t remember any physical altercation.
When the officer interviewed Krummel again, Krummel said again he would not stand for anyone attacking his grandmother and that the victim’s actions had justified the injuries he had inflicted on her. At that point, the officer had determined from the testimony and evidence that Krummel was the primary aggressor and he was taken into custody and charged with second-degree assault.
The officer then went to Atlantic General Hospital to continue his interview with the victim. The victim told police she had been sleeping when Krummel came home and she heard him arguing with his grandmother. The victim told police she got out of bed and was attempting to diffuse the situation and get the grandmother back into bed.
The victim told police at that point, Krummel dragged her down the hallway, stripping her clothes off as he did so and that she ended up naked on the kitchen floor. The victim told police Krummel then struck her non-stop in the face at least 30 times as she pleaded with him to stop. The victim said he curled up in a ball on the floor in an attempt to protect her head but Krummel continued to kick her in the head.
The victim said she able to make it back to her bedroom and told Krummel she was going to call the police. According to police reports, Krummel had the victim’s phone and would not let her have it. The victim told police it was Krummel who actually called the police and when he hung up, he began beating her again. According to police reports, the victim said Krummel told her, “If I’m going, I’m going to go good,” and continued to punch her in the head.
According to police reports, the victim said “I can’t explain how much he man-handled me,” and “He pounded me like he would pound a man at the bar.” The victim also told police she believed if Krummel had access to a weapon, she thought he would have killed her. The officer later listened to the 911 call placed by Krummel during which he requested Ocean City EMS to respond to assist the victim for “falling.”
Construction Fall
OCEAN CITY — An unidentified man fell two stories from a building under construction in north Ocean City around mid-day last Friday, but the victim was not seriously injured.
Around 11:30 a.m. last Friday, Ocean City Communications received a call reporting a two-story fall in the 10-block of 141st Street. Ocean City emergency services responded and found the victim to be conscious, alert and breathing upon arrival. The victim was transported by Ocean City EMS to Peninsula Regional Medical Center in Salisbury with injuries not believed to be life-threatening. The Maryland Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) was notified and is investigating the incident as it was a construction accident.
Downtown Fight Over Sharing Alcohol
OCEAN CITY — A West Ocean City woman was arrested on assault and theft charges last weekend after allegedly “jumping” another woman near a downtown convenience store and swiping her backpack.
Around 6:45 p.m. last Friday, an Ocean City Police Department (OCPD) officer was dispatched to the 7-11 convenience store at North Division Street for a reported assault. The responding officer met with a male victim who told police he had been in an alley and had gotten jumped and that the assailant also assaulted his wife. The victim provided descriptions of the couple who had allegedly assaulted him and his wife and the OCPD officer recognized the descriptions as two individuals he was familiar with from a recent theft from auto case including Jessica Lee Frey, 26, of West Ocean City, and a male suspect known to police as Maurice Hughes III.
The victim told police he and his wife were part of a larger group sitting on the ground at Caroline Street when Frey jumped his wife and began hitting her. The victim told police Hughes also hit his wife, and when the victim tried to help, Hughes punched him in the face, according to police reports. The victim told police Frey and Hughes then took his wife’s backpack and ran northbound through an alley.
At that point, the OCPD officer heard a woman screaming from around the corner at the convenience store. The officer walked around the corner and located the screaming woman, whom he identified as Frey. According to police reports, Frey told the officer she had been the one who had been jumped by the alleged victim. She told the officer she had been talking with a group of homeless people when the female victim, whom she identified as Rebecca Cakar had attacked her and grabbed her by the head.
However, according to police reports, Frey’s story was inconsistent and it appeared she kept changing her story. The officer noted in his report he detected a moderate odor of alcohol on Frey’s breath and person and that she fresh cuts on her left hand. According to police reports, Frey said her had was broken during the altercation.
About five minutes later, another OCPD officer located the suspected victim, Cakar, and brought her back to the convenience store. Cakar told police she had been jumped by Frey, who had also stolen her backpack. Cakar told police Frey assaulted her and started punching her in the face, and when she attempted to defend herself, Hughes kicked her in the ribs and face.
While the officer was interviewing the victim, Frey allegedly began to scream and yell again, agitating the victim and challenging her to fight again. At that point, Frey was placed under arrest for disorderly conduct. Police then interviewed a Caroline Street resident who had observed the entire incident.
The witness said she saw a group of homeless people sitting on the street when Frey approached Cakar and asked if she could have a sip of her alcoholic beverage. When Cakar denied the request, Frey allegedly tackled her to the ground and began punching her, according to police reports. The witness said when Cakar started fighting back and was taking control of the fight, Hughes jumped in and kicked the victim. The witness said Frey grabbed the victim’s backpack and the pair headed north through an alley.
Based on the evidence and testimony, Frey was charged with theft, second-degree assault and disorderly conduct. Hughes was not charged in the incident.
Heroin Possession Charges
BISHOPVILLE — A Delaware man was arrested on heroin possession charges last week after a routine traffic stop near Route 113 in northern Worcester County.
Around 5:40 p.m. last Tuesday, a Worcester County Sheriff’s deputy stopped a vehicle at Route 113 and Bishopville Road for an inoperable brake light. A passenger in the vehicle, identified as Matthew Lawson, 33, of Millsboro, was determined to be wanted by the Maryland State Police in Salisbury and was taken into custody. A search of Lawson revealed 10 envelopes containing suspected heroin as well as two syringes.
Lawson was subsequently charged with possession of heroin and possession of equipment used to administer heroin. He was later released on a $3,000 unsecured bond for the fugitive warrant and was released on his own recognizance for the heroin possession charges.
Suspended Sentence For Indecent Exposure
SNOW HILL — An Anne Arundel County man, arrested in September on indecent exposure charges after exposing himself at the Isle of Wight Nature Park off Route 90, pleaded guilty last week and was sentenced to 90 days in jail, all of which was suspended.
Maryland Natural Resources Police (NRP) in September arrested Michael James Kirchner, 62, of Hanover, after he allegedly exposed himself to park patrons and anglers on the fishing pier while he was seated in his car at the Isle of Wight nature park. Kirchner was charged with indecent exposure and disorderly conduct. Last week, he pleaded guilty to indecent exposure and was sentenced to 90 days in jail, all of which was suspended. He was then placed on probation for two years.
Restitution Ordered
OCEAN CITY — A West Ocean City woman, arrested in December after first taking a shot of liquor from a man in a wheelchair and later damaging a hostess stand in the same establishment, pleaded guilty last week to malicious destruction of property and was sentenced to 60 days in jail, all of which was suspended.
Around 1:45 a.m. on December 6, Ocean City Police Department (OCPD) officers responded to a bar on 8th Street for a reported intoxicated, disorderly female who had broken a wooden hostess stand. When officers arrived, they met with bar staff members who reported the disorderly woman, later identified as Sarah Straka, 29, of West Ocean City, on the sidewalk in front of the establishment.
OCPD officers met with the bartender, who told police Straka had walked into the bar extremely intoxicated and walked over to a patron at the bar who was in a wheelchair with a shot of liquor in front of him. According to police reports, Straka allegedly took the shot from the patron and drank it without his permission. An argument ensued and Straka allegedly became disorderly in the bar.
According to witnesses, Straka went into the restroom briefly and returned, knocking over a chair. She then went to the kitchen area in an attempt to hide from the staff. When she was being escorted from the bar, she allegedly grabbed hold of a wooden hostess stand and intentionally threw it on the ground, causing it to break and come apart, according to police reports. Straka was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct and malicious destruction of property.
Last week, Straka pleaded guilty to malicious destruction of property and was sentenced to 60 days, all of which was suspended. She was then placed on probation for three years and was ordered to pay $259 in restitution to the victim.