Baltimore’s police commissioner has dedicated every available resource to tracking down the killers of former Baltimore City Councilman Kenneth Harris, as new details emerge in the case.
While dozens of officers canvassed neighborhoods in Northeast Baltimore looking for clues in the politician’s death, police are testing crime scene evidence for DNA, such as a Halloween-style mask allegedly worn by one of Harris’ attackers, said city Police Commissioner Frederick Bealefeld.
“We are getting some information from the community, but we need much, much more. I’m confident in the direction we’ve taken so far. We will bring and we have brought to bear all the resources at our disposal to track those responsible down,” Bealefeld said.
At the same time, new details emerged about the sequence of events that led to Harris’ death around 1:30 a.m. Saturday.
According to a source familiar with the case, robbers initially ordered Harris to stand against the wall of the New Haven Lounge in the Northwood Shopping Center, while they forced owner Keith Covington, 54, inside.
Police said they believe Harris, 45, became nervous and made a run for his car, when one of the assailants gave chase, firing one shot at Harris through the passenger’s side window, the source said.
The shot missed the female passenger in Harris’ car, hitting the former councilman in the back, the source said, adding that Harris was alive when his car crashed on the grassy knoll adjacent to a BP gas station off Loch Raven Boulevard.
Police now are reviewing a video taken from a nearby Bank of America security camera. Other surveillance tapes show four assailants involved in a robbery — evidence that appears to corroborate public statements made by Covington.
Detective Donald Diehl has been assigned to lead the investigation, with Detective Robert Patton as the secondary detective. Two investigators relatively new to homicide also have been assigned to the case.
The police department’s 46 homicide clearance rate has been an issue of some contention within the agency this year, as Bealefeld has pushed for better performance from detectives — and replaced some supervisors in the unit.
Friends and family of Harris, meanwhile, gathered to honor him at an evening wake Wednesday at Huber Memorial Church on York Road.
U.S. Sen. Ben Cardin, D-Md., took the floor of Congress Wednesday to praise Harris, speaking of his rise from poverty and his determination to make a difference.
“While on the City Council, Ken championed the rights of his constituents,” Cardin said. “… His death is a tragic loss for all of us.”
