Maryland
Maryland board to vote on $2.9 million in compensation for wrongfully convicted Baltimore man
The Maryland Board of Public Works will vote on whether to award $2.9 million in compensation to a Baltimore man who served 31 years in prison before he was exonerated.
Gary Washington, 63, was convicted of first-degree murder and use of a handgun in a crime of violence in the 1986 fatal shooting of Faheem Ali and sentenced to life in prison. After a Baltimore City Circuit Court judge vacated his convictions in 2018, he was freed from prison and the Baltimore City State’s Attorney’s Office dismissed the charges against him in early 2019.
The three-member Board of Public Works — composed of Democrats Gov. Wes Moore, Comptroller Brooke E. Lierman and State Treasurer Dereck Davis — is scheduled to vote Washington’s compensation at its May 1 meeting, according to an agenda posted online Friday.
An administrative law judge found that under the statute, Washington is entitled to $94,991, or the current median household income in Maryland, for each of the 31 years or “11,459 days” he was erroneously confined.
Key to the ruling that led to the reversal of his conviction was testimony from a 12-year-old witness, Otis Robinson, who recanted in 1999 and said police forced him to identify Washington falsely.
In a federal lawsuit filed in 2019 against five former Baltimore Police officers, Washington said detectives investigating Ali’s death coerced Robinson and a 13-year-old girl into testifying by threatening to take them away from their parents. Robinson said police told him: “If I didn’t cooperate, I would never see my mother again,” according to Washington’s lawsuit.
A U.S. District Court judge ruled in favor of the officers last year, finding that legal questions about Robinson’s credibility were long settled and could not be used to continue the lawsuit. Washington’s attorneys have since appealed the case to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, where it is still pending.
Although the original lawsuit named five detectives, the Baltimore Police Department, the mayor and the city council, only claims against three officers remain as part of the ongoing appeal. Renee Spence, Washington’s attorney in that case, declined to comment Friday.
If the state board approves Washington’s compensation, he would receive the first payment by June 4 and the rest in installments over two and a half years. The Maryland Department of Budget and Management approved that “expedited” payment timeline, according to the board’s agenda.
Washington would become the 14th person to receive compensation under the Walter Lomax Act, a 2021 law the Maryland General Assembly passed to clarify how money should be awarded to people wrongfully convicted of crimes. The law was named for Walter Lomax, who spent nearly 40 years behind bars for a murder he didn’t commit and then fought for years to receive compensation from the state.
The board has awarded more than $9.2 million since the Lomax Act went into effect, not including compensation given out before that to 11 people after 2017 legislation expanded the eligibility of wrongfully convicted people, according to the board.
An administrative law judge granted Washington’s petition for compensation in January, finding that Washington did not shoot and kill Ali and was not involved in the crime as an accomplice or accessory. After the Baltimore City State’s Attorney’s Office requested that a judge review that finding, Baltimore Circuit Court Associate Judge Troy K. Hill upheld the administrative law judge’s decision on April 5.
MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Md. (7News) — A Maryland man was shot and killed following an argument inside a car in downtown Silver Spring on Friday afternoon, and police said the suspected shooter, a relative of the victim, was arrested just hours later.
Fallou Galass Fall, 20, of Laurel, faces first-degree murder in the shooting death of Babacar Mbengue, 22.
The Montgomery County Police Department said 3rd District officers and Fire Rescue personnel were called around 2:07 p.m. on Nov. 21 to Richmond Avenue near Fenton Street for a report of a shooting.
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First responders found Mbengue lying in the street with a gunshot wound to the chest. He was rushed to a nearby hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Homicide detectives quickly discovered and identified Fall as the gunman.
Investigators said Mbengue and Fall were inside a red Tesla when an argument broke out. The verbal dispute escalated, and both men reportedly got out of the car and kept fighting in the middle of the road. During the altercation, police said Fall pulled out a gun and shot Mbengue before driving away in the Tesla.
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Fall was taken into custody shortly after 6 p.m. when officers in Laurel stopped him as he was driving away from his apartment. He was taken to the Montgomery County Central Processing Unit and served a warrant for first-degree murder. As of Saturday, Fall was awaiting a bond hearing.
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Anyone with more information is asked to call the Montgomery County Police’s Homicide Section. Anonymous tips can be submitted through Crime Solvers at 1-866-411-TIPS.
The Michigan Wolverines remain in must-win mode with two games remaining. The Wolverines barely eked out a win over Northwestern this past week, but Michigan survived and advanced to a new week.
Despite being ranked No. 18 in the latest College Football Playoff rankings, if Michigan can get by Maryland this weekend, the Wolverines would be in a position to capture the best win in all of college football this season.
The top-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes will come to town, and in the past four meetings, Michigan has had the Buckeyes’ number. If the Wolverines can go 2-0 in the next two weeks, Michigan is in a great position to re-enter the College Football Playoff after missing it last year.
But first, Michigan has to take care of Maryland. The Wolverines are a double-digit favorite entering the game. And here is how CBS Sports’ panel sees the game going.
Both Chris Hummer and Brad Crawford see Michigan taking care of business in College Park. In fact, both analysts have the Wolverines covering the spread. Both Hummer and Crawford see Michigan’s defense turning up the pressure on freshman Malik Washington and the Wolverines’ defense will get the job done.
Chris Hummer: Michigan 27, Maryland 14
“Mike Locksley is safe in College Park. But that doesn’t make this game with Michigan any easier. The Wolverines are going to run the ball repeatedly against a Maryland defense that ranks 79th nationally in yards allowed per carry. An inefficient Terps run game is also going to run into a wall on the other side of the ball. Expect Michigan DC Wink Martindale to bring pressure against true freshman Malik Washington with regularity — Michigan ranks ninth nationally in blitz rate — as the Terps fall behind the chains.”
Brad Crawford: Michigan 31, Maryland 17
“Have the Terps given up this season? They’re winless since a 4-0 start, but Maryland gave coach Mike Locksley some that the program would make a sizable investment in NIL. That means nothing for Saturday’s game with Michigan, but it offers optimism toward the future in College Park. This is a battle of high-end freshmen quarterback Bryce Underwood and Malik Washington, but the better defense clearly belongs to the Wolverines.”
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BALTIMORE (WBFF) — Federal authorities have arrested a Florida man accused of using TikTok to issue violent threats while he was living in Maryland, according to an indictment unsealed Wednesday by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland.
Arsham Rashidi Dizajgan, 27, of Gainesville, Florida, has been charged with six counts of transmitting threats to injure another person across interstate or foreign commerce.
Dizajgan was taken into custody in Gainesville on the same day the indictment was unsealed.
Kelly O. Hayes, U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland, announced the indictment with Special Agent in Charge Jimmy Paul, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) – Baltimore Field Office; Special Agent in Charge Jason Carley, FBI – Jacksonville Field Office; Police Chief Amal E. Awad, Anne Arundel County Police Department (AACOPD); and Chief of Police Nelson Moya, Gainesville Police Department (GPD).
Threats to the safety and security of American citizens will not be tolerated, particularly when such threats adopt the language and tactics of violent extremists and foreign terrorist organizations,” Hayes said, via press release. “We will investigate and prosecute such violations to the fullest extent of the law.
According to the indictment, Dizajgan lived in Arnold, Maryland, from September 2024 through March 2025.
During that period, he allegedly used TikTok to post photos and videos of Americans with upside-down red triangles placed over their heads — an image federal prosecutors say is used in Hamas propaganda videos to mark impending targets.
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The indictment states that these posts were accompanied by threatening language.
The FBI takes all threats seriously and will investigate each and every potential threat brought to our attention,” Paul said, via press release. “Swift collaboration between the FBI’s Baltimore and Jacksonville Field Offices, as well as the Anne Arundel County and Gainesville Police Departments, led to this arrest. We continue to encourage the public to report any concerning messages to law enforcement.
Authorities also allege that during the same timeframe, Dizajgan posted additional content condemning Americans and non-Muslims and praising violence against them.
This arrest reflects our unwavering commitment to protecting our communities,” Carley said, via press release. “When an individual uses social media to issue violent threats and signals support for a foreign terrorist organization, the FBI will hold that individual accountable. We take these threats seriously and will move quickly to ensure online rhetoric does not turn into real-world harm.
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If convicted, Dizajgan faces federal penalties for each of the six counts.
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