A 25-year-old Pasadena man shot and killed his mother in her home on Beacrane Road on Saturday night, police said.
Neighbors said Rae Neiman Bajus, 53, had been struggling with cancer for about four or five years, and was so weak and frail she couldn?t lift more than a few pounds. But they were doubtful her son, Zachary Thomas Neiman, was motivated by a desire to end his mother?s suffering.
“I don?t think he killed her out of pity. I think he killed her because he was nuts,” said Beacrane Road resident Stephen Mullins, 56.
According to police, on Saturday night at about 9:30, Rae Bajus and her husband, David Bajus, 54, were sitting on their living room couch when Neiman fired a shotgun, striking Rae Bajus. David Bajus fled the home and called the police from a neighbor?s home. Neiman also fled the residence into a nearby wooded area, police said.
When police officers arrived at the Bajus home, they found Rae Bajus in the living room with a gunshot wound to the upper body. She was taken to Baltimore/Washington Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
Police found Neiman about 90 minutes after the shooting near Lake Shore Drive in Pasadena. He will be charged with first-degree murder, police said.
They have not determined a motive for the shooting.
The shotgun was found in the woods behind the Bajus? home on Sunday morning at about 10 a.m. by Travis Mullins, a neighbor.
Standing outside their homes in the heavily wooded Pasadena neighborhood where the shooting occurred, neighbors said Bajus worked for years as an Anne Arundel County teacher before becoming a manager at a local bank.
“She was such a good neighbor,” said Johanna Barnes, 72. Barnes said that when her husband died, Bajus frequently offered to make her dinner. “I don?t know how someone could hurt someone like that,” Barnes said.
Bajus reportedly fought frequently with Neiman, who had numerous run-ins with the police. He has charges dating back to 1999, including possession of drugs and assault, according to court records.
“They argued a lot, to the point where she would call the police,” Mullins said.
Two years ago, Neiman was found guilty of possession and was sentenced to 10 months in Anne Arundel County Detention Center, according to court records.
But Bajus “never gave up on her son,” said her neighbor Betsy Lewis, 51. She said Bajus also spoke highly of her son and expressed hope that he would turn his life around.
