Hundreds of the inmates in the Prince George's County jail are repeat offenders, recidivists who have done time and been released only to find themselves back in trouble with the law years, months, weeks or even days later.
Then there's Sean Hawkins.
On Dec. 14, the Temple Hills resident was charged with assault. Hawkins was taken to the jail in Upper Marlboro, where he appeared before a court commissioner and was released on personal recognizance.
Hawkins then walked out of the jail and, according to police, carjacked a Toyota 4Runner in the parking lot. Arrested in Suitland a short time later, Hawkins told police that he carjacked the vehicle "because he needed a ride home from jail," according to charging documents.
He has been ordered held without bond in the carjacking. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Jan. 12.
Every now and then I meet someone in Manhattan who has never driven a car. Some confess it sheepishly, and some announce it proudly. For some it is just a practical matter of fact, the equivalent of not keeping a horse on West 87th Street or Avenue A. Still, I used to wonder at such people, but more and more I wonder at myself.
Igbal Asghar reached across the counter at Super Halal Meat market and passed two butchered chickens to the man with the familiar face. Then he ducked into the walk-in freezer to fetch the customer's second order, goat meat.
When the butcher stepped out seconds later, the customer's severed left hand lay on the floor by the meat saw. The customer ran down the Springfield store's center aisle and into the front parking lot, leaving a trail of blood and yelling repeatedly that he was "not a terrorist." Outside, the man announced that he had used the meat saw to cut off his hand "for Allah."
