From the State Fire Marshal’s Office:
A joint investigation involving investigators from the Office of the State Fire Marshal and the Aberdeen Police Department has resulted in charges of; Manufacture, Possession and Use of Destructive Device and Malicious Destruction of Property being placed on two adults and four juveniles from Harford County.
A total of nine rural style mailboxes in the Aberdeen area have been damaged as a result of the suspect’s actions. One mailbox was exploded three times and another was exploded twice. Seven other mailboxes were also exploded during a criminal spree that occurred on three separate nights this month.
Alex E. Brainard (18) of Aberdeen, Andrea L. Siedlarczyk (18) of Abingdon and four juveniles from Aberdeen are facing twelve counts of each previously listed charge. The two adults will be served with criminal summonses and the juveniles were charged and released into the custody of their parents.
Such devices are referred to as, “Improvised Explosive Devices.” The penalty for each device is twenty-five years imprisonment and/or $250,000 in fines. Malicious Destruction of Property has a penalty of sixty days imprisonment and/or $500 in fines. Twelve devices were detonated in the nine mailboxes.
The construction of these devices in this and similar incidents have been misrepresented as pranks, however, the destructive effect and potential of serious bodily injury is extremely high.
so how do you make one,
all yall need to chill it was a works bomb and yea we paid the price but no we did not want to hurt nowhon….just sayen
Are they actually referring to a Dry Ice bomb or Mentos Soda BOMB as an IED? I think the penalty for that may be a little harsh lol, especially since no one got hurt. Just kids being mischievous.
Wow. HC finests strike again. Here these kids are caught red-handed and released to their parents. The McDonald’s incident? They had no evidence whatsoever, and those boys sat in jail for 33 days. Where is the justice in this? Gotta love this county.
Guilty People typically sit in jail. A chemical bomb is far more serious than a dry ice mailbox explosion, not to mention it was MDOP, not assault 1st, huge difference in these two cases. Im not sure what kind of justice you are looking for HCS.
until evidence show that they were not guilty and the charges were dismissed
They plead guilty they spend time in jail. That is justice. These kids have yet to go to court.
and they said there were 9 mailboxes blown up. This is no isolated incident. It’s a pattern of repeat insanity (doing things over and over). So, how many more before they blew up someone’s car, pet, child, property? At least the FM office had proof this time. But go figure, 18 year old adults (caught red-handed) released to parent, 16 and 15 year old (no evidence) sent to jail for 33 days. HC law enforcement – priceless!
the 18 year olds where not released to parents. they where arrested the adult way.
they were not arrested they were issued a summons
HCS,
Thi is a serious matter and not a prank. While this resulted in property damage, the potential of serious bodily injury was extremely high.
If you read the article, you will see that the adults in this case were served w/criminal summonses and the JV’s were released to their parents. This is a common result of certain cases in law enforcement. Proof is not considered at this time, rather, PROBABLE CAUSE is the standard at the charging point.
Why are you so angry at HC law enforcement? HC law enforcement has done nothing wrong on this matter. The Court Commissioner can choose to detain with a high bail or release the adults and JV’s in this matter. The State’s Attorneys Office also has a responsibility to seek a high bail if they feel it is appropriate. Please learn about how the justice system operates and stop looking for a scapegoat in cops. If you are unhappy w/the HCSO leadership, get out and vote!
So, if these “kids” ran into a mall and starting shooting guns but no one got hurt, would going to jail for 20+ plus years still be a little “harsh”? This county needs to wake up — your not some small little bumble f**k town. There needs to be more cops actively patrolling each town/area — the county sheriff is not going to cut it anymore. These guys should go to federal pound-me-in-the-a** prison just for tampering with the mail, regardless of their age.
WOW! Call the Dept of Homeland Security! We have real domestic terrorist in custody! Give me a break, a soda bomb in a mail box….really?
Let’s keep this in context. 2-18 year old kids (yes kids) and 2 other kids with a soda bomb in a mailbox. Now take a look into your goody two shoes past and think about some of the stupid things you did as a kid. I rest my case.
And for all the Dudley Do Rights who never did anything stupid when they were a child: stop lying to yourself.
it never said it was a soda bomb!
Perhaps the article did not, but the 24-point type in the headline certainly does.
It says soda bottle which does not mean it was soda in the bomb
I’m sure you would change your tune if these terrorist put a bomb in your mailbox and it blew off your hand or even killed you. They should be charged with attemped murder as well.
And I didn’t do anything stupid as kid — which is why I have a great job and a full scholarship into a doctoral program. I don’t know why the parents in Harford County expect so less of their children.
Attempted Murder? Please stop, you are making this an embarrassing place to post things. Take your doctorate and exchange it for some good ol fashion common sense, keep your extremism to yourself. Your comments are ignorant and ridiculous.
So you are saying that someone has to get hurt or killed before something can be done? Take this as another event in the decline of Harford County youth. Believe me, I have taught in the area and I know how bad things are getting. You can continue being blind and thinking that it’s all just “kids being kids” until the kids become adults and do something they will regret forever.
Someone has to step up and hold people to a higher standard or you will continue being ignorant and behind the rest of the country. And you are…believe me.
Actually you dick I deal with people like this everyday. If your so big and bad Ill be more than happy to give you my badge and my gun and you can go out and deal with the REAL BAD GUYS. Im sorry but soda bombs just aren’t on my list of serious shit that needs to be struck down with the force of God right now. No, Im not saying anyone has to be hurt for this to be taken seriously. Im saying that acting like these KIDS burnt your house down in a cocaine induced rage and burning them at the stake is ludicrous. If the police were to go out and treat this like you want it to be treated they would all be chastised for harassing teenagers that were just having some innocent fun(IM NOT SAYING THAT IS THE CASE HERE)and the police would be told to go and find some real badguys. There’s kids selling drugs, hanging pitbulls from trees, and bullying children into suicide, and beating them to death on the side of the road, and your too damn concerned with your mailbox. SO again I understand how you could be mad at this, what I dont get is the extremes you are taking it to. Kids have been cherrybombing mailboxes for decades, and this is a cheaper version of exactly that. So don’t tell me that Im ignorant and behind the country. I do the job your too scared to do. O yeah, and I find Bombs, and dry ice in a soda bottle placed in your mailbox at 3am is not an IED,Ive got some friends that have some first hand experience with those if you want to take a look at what a real bomb can do. Get over yourselves, you sound ridiculous.
And how much overtime money was wasted to catch our little domestic terrorist cell in Aberdeen? Was the rapid responce people called in? APD, our little crack anti terror squad in an evil world. Are they still protecting our train station?
it was federal property (mailboxes) so no overtime on Aberdeen’s part. Sorry you can’t blame APD for everything that happens in Harford County like people tend to do. Heck, there can be a robbery in Bel Air but somehow APD is to blame. LOL
The mail boxes we place on out personal property LOL are not Federal property. Second I happen to know the parents of one of the children involved. The are hardworking decnet people. They are involved in every aspect of thier childs life as most caring parents are. I agree they should be punished as do thier parents. However I agree with most everyone else the charges are way way over the top. We all did dumb stuff as kids. Most grow up Mature and lead decent lives. Hopefully these kids will too.
“The USPS Domestic Mail Manual states that “no part of a mail receptacle may be used to deliver any matter not bearing postage, including items of matter placed upon, supported by, attached to, hung from, or inserted into a mail receptacle.” In other words, the mailbox may not be used for anything other than for pieces of mail with postage attached. The USPS Domestic Mail Manual goes on to states that it is a federal offense and there is a significant penalty for violating this law.
“Homeowners need to be aware that even though they purchased and maintain the residential mailbox, the mailbox belongs to and is controlled by the USPS (United States Postal Service). That means that any tampering of the mailbox is a federal offense.”
Now this was off a Web site and not out of the USPS manual, but it is pretty straight forward.
Well Damm I just hung ballons off mine for a Birthday party, Guess I broke the law too. Thanks for that bit of Info. Wasn’t aware.
Also, “tampering” would refer to altering/defacing etc. a mailbox other than your “own”.
I googled the question and only got answers that indicate that the box is indeed considered federal property once it is installed and in use… tampering with the box is considered a federal crime and is in fact a felony. They really are quite titchy about it… by the way, I chose “fedup” after I didn’t see anyone using that moniker several months back… have I stepped on your name or you on mine?
Even political candidates are informed that if they knock a voters door and they don’t answer that it is a crime to stick their literature in the voters mailbox
Someone lock up the Baltimore Sun paper boy!!! It was raining and he put my newspaper in my mailbox!!! That darn felon!
The paper can go in your mailbox on Sundays and holidays. I picked up that tidbit as well on my Google search.
No Fed Up I am the one who took your name LOL. It just seemed to fit this situation. I am now Wonder Woman. Hope no one else has that. Have a Great Day.
May be the next time.the soda bomb’s will destroy the do gooders mail box. and let’s see what kind of response we get.
Steve Bodway – AEGIS article. I think the most resent editorial article regarding crticism of Steve Bodway for attending a Memorial Day Ceremony at American Legion Post 39 in Bel Air was unwarranted.
I know Steve Bodway served this Country in the US Army and is a proud veteran. I am quite sure Steve’s intent was to honor our fallen Military heros and in no way should his actions be considered disrespectful. Steve, like myself and others who are seeking the position of Sheriff in the 2010 election, work hard to get out in the community and get name recognition. We each attend many public events, display our signs or wear our our candidates shirts.
Some indviduals will use the AEGIS or Dagger to support their candidate and discredit other candidates. While I fully support an indviduals First Ammendment Right to publish their own thoughts or beliefs, readers must be careful to sort out their intent, especailly during an election campaign period.
What does this have to do with the story?
I agree, where did this post come from? Did I miss something?
Me thinks Roger Sheets either a can not read or meant to write this somemwhere else and didn’t know he had the wrong story. I am going for the second option.
I have to disagree with you Mr. Sheets. I think Bodway and Preston used extremely poor judgment in displaying their election signs and wearing their shirts. I know all the candidates need to get their names “out there”, but to cheapen the meaning of Memorial Day with their wardrobe selection and signs was appalling. Will Bodway be wearing his tshirts to church? To weddings? There is a time and a place for everything and if Bodway and Preston are that clueless, no way in hell would I trust their capability to make sound judgments as public officials.
Extremely poor judgement. I can’t go to the grocery store without seeing a campaign sign or shirt for the countless candidates now that election season is here. If it were a good idea, Bodway and Preston would not have been the only two to do it. The other candidates obviously have more respect for the meaning of the day. Stefano you said it best…these two are clueless!
Hey Vet, do you think that we should line these kids up in Festival Park and execute them as domestic terrorist? Don’t you think charging them with manufacturing an IED is a little too much? Maybe a MDOP sure but I don’t thing the IED charge is keeping with the spirit of the law or its intent.
But then I guess you were an angel when you were a kid.
This seems to me like a targeted thing. If it were random acts they wouldn’t have kept it in the same area. I am glad they are being charged. Oh and this just proves my point that we should have an active, legally written curfew so they could be charged with that as well. Kids shouldn’t be running around in the middle of the night anyways but that’s a whole different post about bad parenting.
Agreed — so why did these juveniles released into the custody of their parents? Their parents weren’t paying attention to what they were doing in the first place! Great job releasing these domestic terrorists back on the street!
Jerseygirl, I am glad you are a little perfect angel. Congrats on that, and I hope you stay high and mighty.
Domestic terrorists? Really? Give me a break. They were essentially making fizz come out of mailboxes. Vanadals would clearly be a more appropriate label. Not to mention, these were not booby traps set to explode when a mailbox is opened, as you insinuated in an earlier comment. They were vandalizing mailboxes, end of story.
Escalating these charges to constructing IEDs is clearly overzealous police work. I highly doubt charges like this will make it through court at that level.
If juvenile services would do their job effectively they wouldn’t have been released. 99% of the time JS won’t come get the kids. It is beyond crazy how they work hence why kids in Harford County continue to do dumb crap like this and essentially get away with it. Oh and if they have a clean record,most likely they wont really get in trouble at all. How’s that for the justice system.
What is wrong with you people? Kids in Harford County are the only ones doing dumb crap? Come on now, this stuff goes on everywhere. Also, who is to say these kids were out with their parents’ knowledge? Do you not think kids sneak out in the middle of the night?
No one is condoning these actions, but it boils down to kids being stupid and making choices. This is a learning oppurtunity, and if they lock these kids up and throw away the key, more harm will be done than good, especially considering what was really going on here.
I’m not saying they should be in jail. I am however saying they should be getting more than just a lecture. This wasn’t just a one time thing. They did this multiple nights within a week. The 9 mailboxes just refers to the ones that actually blew up and were not just damaged. If I thought for a minute these kids “snuck” out of the house maybe I would have more sympathy but I don’t believe that.
And I am only speaking about kids in harford county because that is where we live.
Oh, come on now you really think they will “lock these kids up and throw away the key”? I don’t think so. The two adults are recent grads and athletes at the high school. They won’t get locked up, but they should have to learn some kind of lesson. They need to learn that other people’s property is not theirs to mess with…even with soda.
Dudley do right. read very carefully. IED Improvised explosive device. must have been one of your’s running lose un super vised.
…I am pretty sure we aren’t talking an IED as in terms of Iraq…
Come on, did they actually blow up or were they simply damaged. No doubt a soda bottle rupturing can be very scary but to say that the explosive force was life threatening is a little bit of a reach. A soda “bomb” should not be classified as an IED and children should not classified as domestic terrorist for a soda “bomb”.
Just another over reaction and knee jerk reaction by our fine residents who don’t believe children sometimes make mistakes.
They are not just children. They are going to college and they need to learn that actions have consequences. It’s better for them to learn it now, rather than with something more serious that they really regret.
And I bet if someone covered your mailbox in soda and you have to clean it up in this heat, you would be saying something different.
Domestic terrorist? Good lord please turn off fox news and cnn for 5 minutes a day. This is nothing but dumb kids doing dumb things and getting caught. The article leaves out quite a few details and your comments make it to look like these kids were putting pipe bombs in playgrounds or something.
This isn’t any worse than bashing a mailbox with a baseball bat and you people are so afraid of the outside world you think al quaeda is gonna come get you if you leave your living room.
Not saying the kids should not be charges with SOMETHING, but labelling them as terrorists by charging them with these outrageous felonies? Welcome to the united states of fascism.
I agree calling them terrorists is very much going to extremes. They are just kids but they did commit a crime and should have some kind of punishment. There were mailboxes damaged and mailboxes destroyed. The 9 only refer to the ones destroyed.
I’am not going to condone the action’s of two eighteen year old’s who should know better. the prison’s are full of eighteen year old’s who blame the system for putting them there.
Sandi, my point exactly. Not to mention the extreme lack of detail and questionable source of this article really leaves it closed to debate. If you don’t have all the facts of course everyone is going to interpret it differently. Those jumping straight to wanting to lynch these kids really have a distorted view of justice. Whatever happened to ‘innocent until proven guilty’? Obviously they were caught red handed, but was there really malicious intent here or is it just a summer joyride gone bad? Were the ‘bombs’ made to inflict bodily harm with shrapnel or something? It could be an M80 in a bottle for all we know. The fact they did it at night is a sign that they weren’t looking to hurt someone.. if they wanted to hurt someone don’t you think they would have been a bit more sophisticated in their methods? Answer these questions and then form your opinion.
So just because they didn’t mean to hurt someone, nothing should be done? That’s also a little extreme.
This is just merely a sophisticated form of mailbox bashing. You guys are acting a little extreme over this. Nothing blew up, there was no explosion, it was merely pressure being released. I know a little something about IED’s since I find them for a living, never had to deal with a big bad dry ice bomb before. I’m not saying you shouldn’t be pissed if this was your mailbox. Domestic Terrorism? Get a life if that’s what you think this is. Im sure they will plea out to criminal mischief.
Are we going to start labeling water balloons as IED’s as well? How bout if I throw an egg at you? I admit these kids should know better, but some of you are outright ridiculous. HSC and Jerseygirl have a twisted view of what the legal system should do to these kids, I hope you never find your kids in a situation like this, but then again Im sure you are absolutely perfect parents and this would never happen to you. Id rather my local PD spend time removing the drug dealers, prostitutes and homeless drunks from my streets than the bored teenagers doing stupid things on hot summer nights. Im not condoning what they did but for the love of god this was not that serious, get a grip, there’s real bad guys out there you actually be afraid of.
Yeah, but you have to realize that if nothing is done there is possibility that they will become those people you are actually afraid of. I am sure that not all of those drug dealers and homeless people you are talking about did not start out that way. They all made choices that got them to where they are now, and if no one gets involved and deters these kids from making further bad decisions, they will think they can do what they want. There are hard lessons to learn in life, but if people actually learn from them, it will help them become stronger.
Theres a possibility that lots of kids will grow up to be bags of trash. Theres plenty of smart kids that never cause any problems, and get straight A’s, and go to super smart colleges like Virginia Tech, and then they buy guns and kill all of their classmates, or they beat there girlfriends to death because they have a bad day. All Im saying is mischief in teenagers is pretty common, and in my experience I wouldn’t be too concerned with these vicious soda bombs. Now if they leave one on your doorstep or next to your car, or outside of a daycare then maybe we have a problem. All the domestic terrorists weren’t soda bomb placing juvenile delinquents either, Tim Mcveigh was a decorated Army Vet (bronze star) and he committed the worst act of terrorism in the US to date before 9/11. These kids don’t need jail time, they need a kick in their ass from there parents, and better hobbies on the weekends. You clearly recited whatever rhetoric you use to teach “learning from your mistakes will make you stronger” blah blah blah. Ill take you on the streets with me for a night and introduce you to the 13 year olds that carry mac 11’s and glock 27s, and I bet you will be begging for a big bad dry ice bomb by the end of the night.
I really don’t think you are talking about Harford County when you are talking about 13 year olds with mac 11’s. I agree that they need a swift kick, and I never said that they need jail time.
And if you want your teachers to not believe what they teach about learning from your mistakes, then what kind of rhetoric do you want me to teach? You are obviously very angry about your life, but that does not mean that this should not be taken seriously by the community at large.
The Virginia Tech incident is a good point. If someone would have stepped up and actually punished the kid for some of the stupid stuff he did leading up to killing his girlfriend, then she would probably be alive. Excuse me for wanting some help from people in the community to help educate kids and help them develop into better people. You have no idea how much these actions could impact a school and the kids in it if it is not dealt with. Just because there are bigger and more serious issues elsewhere does not mean that this should be ignored.
Overall your attack is weak, and makes no sense. O, and calling people names like “dick” is never productive in an argument. Multiple paragraphs would also help your jumbled, nonsensical response too. We are making two different points and coming from to different points of view. Don’t just get angry and call people names, you should have grown out of that when you were 5.
Obviously you are sensitive to name calling, sorry to hurt your feelings. Where exactly do I come off as angry about my life? And are you not using the same tactics as my name calling by baiting me with comments like ” should have grown out of that when I was 5, and angry about my life?” Clearly I struck a nerve by calling you a naughty name. Maybe I should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law for slandering you!!
My argument makes plenty of sense and more than half of the people posting on here agree with me, or have similar points. I think I made my point very clear let me restate it so you understand it better.
I agree totally that MDOP and usual teenage mischief *can* lead to other, serious crimes. However, when my friends and I were teens we were known to bust a few mailboxes, snowball some cars, egg a couple houses, and on several occasions, throw water balloons at the town drunks. There was no intent to injure or hurt anyone, the property damage caused was minimal, and no one was ever in any real or perceived danger.
Were these actions wrong. Absolutely they were. Should I have been arrested, eh maybe. Should I have been forced to apologize, pay for the damage I caused, and personally help repair what I had done? That would sound appropriate.
My parents were great parents. My father was a local police officer, and my mother was twice as scary as he could ever be. I got good grades in high school, I new right from wrong, I was a captain on the teams I played for. I went to a great college. I have beautiful children, and the best job in the world. You cant blame my parents for the asshole in me. Sometimes kids do dumb stuff, its why they are kids, it makes life interesting, especially when its innocent.
These kids may very well be bad apples. It’s more likely that they are average, everyday, highschool kids that got bored and decided to have some fun at someone else’s expense. I don’t think its that big of a deal. They got caught. Now they have their parents, friends parents, teachers, and community to face, not to mention the police. Lets put the pitchforks and shovels down for a minute and remember what it was like to rabble rouse when you were 17.
So no my post is not ignorant. I have experience on both sides of the fence here. As a Police Officer I know what my job is and I take very seriously, and I do it very well. But I also remember what is was like to be 17 and do dumb shit just for fun. So I’m out of your league “educator”. Find someone else to string up before one of these kids come by your house and call you an unkind name and make you relive your sad childhood that clearly lacked any fun or lasting friendships, just like I did to you.
I didn’t grow out of calling people names until I was 52!
EDUCATOR & SANDI
Not one person has suggested no punishment so why do you keep repeating that? These kids did a stupid thing they should be punished but not to the extent that it effects thier ability to get into a good college. I Hope you are not an educator in Aberdeen.
I think they should be sent to Guantanamo Bay. Oh wait, never mind.
All in all, the people in Harford County have to wake up and realize that there are things going on around them that need to be taken care of. Parents have to actually parent their children and not dismiss everything as either “kids being kids,” or that the police department is misguided. Obviously, there is something wrong no matter how you look at it. There has been more than one case of kids making homemade bombs, and then using them in public areas. That is a problem.
You can’t just let kids do what they want and never make them think about being punished, because that’s not how the world works. You are actually hindering them by making them believe there are no consequences, and then sending them out into the world unprepared.
This doesn’t happen everywhere. Stop blaming the people trying to keep the peace and start figuring out how you can stop it before it happens again.
if you do a google search. we can see in most states setting off a soda bomb is a second degree felony.it’s not taken litely.
Good point. A bottom line has to be drawn somewhere if you want to keep some kind of order in your community.
So, will kids with water balloons also be charged with “Improvised Explosive Devices.” ????
What would you say about the idiots that leave these on playgrounds under play structures where children can find them. That’s what’s happening in Ann Arbor and if when these punks get caught, I don’t care if they are kids. They need to learn about consequences and if their parents can’t get through to them, the law will have to. This is not a harmless prank.
Again MayBerry USA I wonder if they let BPB have any live ammunition? I hope not. Remember cops carry guns to protect themselves not the citizenry. They can not respond fast enough to help in an emergency. Carry your own! Destroying mail boxes has been around for years in the country!As far as Federal property? they did not buy mine I did so it is personal property! The Feds are about done anyway. Lets do everything electronically and Jesse,s Idiots can run Radar? Maybe they can get that Right?