Former Maryland Police Chief Sentenced to Eight Life Terms on Arson Charges After Setting Fire to Several Homes and Cars of People He Believed Slighted Him

The previous Laurel, Maryland, police chief will spend the remainder of his life in a jail cell after he was discovered responsible of setting fireplace to a number of properties and vehicles of individuals he believed wronged him.

Davis Crawford, 71, was convicted of eight counts of tried first-degree homicide, three counts of first-degree arson and one rely of first-degree malicious burning in March, in keeping with WTOP Information.

He was sentenced to eight life phrases in jail plus 75 years for fires he set in 2017 and 2018. In 2021, Crawford was arrested for setting fires between 2011 and 2020 in three counties. The counties he set the fires in have been Howard County, Frederick County, and Prince George’s County. He was convicted of the instances towards him in Howard County that included three home fires and one automotive fireplace between March 2017 and September 2018.

Crawford served as a serious within the Prince George’s County Police Division, chief of the District Heights Police, and chief of the Laurel police division earlier than resigning in 2010.

“What he did was actually ugly, and he deserves each second of the sentence that has been imposed upon him,” stated Howard County State’s Legal professional Richard Gibson in an announcement to WTOP.

Police found it was Crawford with safety footage of a number of the fires. Investigators observed that the fires have been began by related strategies and by an individual carrying the identical clothes in every video.

In response to WTOP Information, police searched Crawford’s dwelling in January 2021 and found a “goal listing” of the victims, who embody authorities or legislation enforcement officers, in addition to a relative and two of his former medical doctors, police stated.

There was a racial animus behind at the very least one assault. NPR experiences one entry on his goal listing stated “White Privilege.” Prosecutors stated Crawford’s spouse had been faraway from a particular advocate program when she disputed the idea of white privilege throughout coaching, and in retaliation, Crawford set a automotive on fireplace on the program director’s dwelling.

“To boil it right down to its core, every of the fires was in response to a perceived comparatively minor slight that most individuals would simply ignore, mud off,” Gibson stated to WTOP.

Howard County Circuit Court docket Decide Richard S. Bernhardt’s determination allowed a number of the life sentences to be served on the identical time. In whole, the sentence quantities to 2 life sentences plus the years for arson.

“These households have waited a number of years for justice, and we’re grateful to play some half in delivering that for them. It’s significantly egregious that somebody who devoted their life to legislation enforcement and was the chief of police sooner or later of their profession would take it upon themselves to interact in conduct that was evil and terrifying in its nature,” stated Gibson to WTOP Information.