Police: Shopping in Towson Is Safe

Baltimore County police and local officials aimed to reassure residents that malls are still safe in the wake of at

"Our shoppers are safe in Baltimore County," police Chief James Johnson said at a media briefing Tuesday afternoon. "We want our citizens to come out and feel safe with their family and children and, again, we're optimistic that we will clear this case."

Shortly after 6:20 p.m. Monday, police were called for a report of a shooting to the sidewalk outside where 19-year-old lay dead.

Police have not said where Pridget lived, except to say the "Baltimore area." Court records show that someone by that same name and age had two residences listed: the 1000 block of Halstead Road in Hillendale and the 4800 block of Althea Avenue in Baltimore, according to court records.

Police have released little information on the crime, but have said it was not random. Police believe the victim and shooter were both in the mall before the incident, Johnson said.

"We know now, based on our investigation so far, that this absolutely was not a random act of violence. This was absolutely not a robbery," Johnson said. "We have hardworking detectives and field personnel that are running out many leads at this point in time."

Mall customers still showed up for another day of holiday shopping, as traffic moved in and out of Towson Town Center's garages.

The incident was the first homicide at Towson Town Center since 2005, when St. Paul's teacher and administrator William Bassett was gunned down in a botched robbery.

The 2005 shooting shocked the county and motivated then-County Councilman Kevin Kamenetz to draft a bill mandating security cameras in shopping centers with 15 or more stores.

Johnson would not say what the mall's security cameras had captured.

In a statement, Charles Crerand, the mall's senior general manager, pledged the mall's support to efforts to find the shooter.

“The safety and security of our shoppers, retailers and employees are our top concerns every day, not just when incidents occur," Crerand said. "We are thankful for the cooperation and support of the Baltimore County Police Department on property last night, and throughout their investigation of this incident.”

The statement did not provide information on what steps the mall would be taking in response to the shooting, but Johnson noted that the department has holiday deployment procedures, including rescheduling officers and canceling leave. Those procedures were in effect Monday.

Pridget, the victim, had been charged with several burglaries and robberies in Baltimore City in 2010. He was ultimately given probation before judgment on one burglary charge. Johnson declined to comment on whether his death was related to any of those incidents.

County Councilman David Marks has been staying in touch with Johnson and Towson precinct commander Cpt. Jonathan Trentzch since the shooting. Marks has high hopes the crime will be solved and stresses to residents that it was an isolated incident.

"I've been trying to tell people that, while we can't limit bad elements from visiting our malls, that our public places in Baltimore County are still very safe and, I suppose, as a result of this incident the mall management is going to be taking their security up a notch and that place will be very safe for the rest of the holiday season," Marks said.

Pat France, a Knollwood resident and the vice president of Towson Area Citizens on Patrol, is far more cautious. Since the 2005 shooting, she's avoided the mall's garages and said she isn't sure when she'll visit the mall again.

"More than likely it won't happen again but I would have said that in 2005," France said. "However I would suspect that the mall is going to upgrade their security a lot because they don't want to keep people out of there."

Jeanette Coury, a West Towson resident, said news of the shooting was "disturbing" and that she wants to see if mall management will react with security upgrades similar to those made in 2005.

"It's a large area to control and when I shop there I'm really not very afraid ever," Coury said. "I don't even think about it. I don't think about crime there. It's just sad."