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The Gazette
Musical lays bare the transition from adolescence to adulthood. A-11
DAMASCUS | CLARKSBURG
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Wednesday, February 19, 2014
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Damascus man charged with killing son denied bail n
Adopted boy, 3, had injuries to the brain, police said BY KRISTA BRICK STAFF WRITER
A Damascus man charged with murder for allegedly killing his 3-year-old son is being held without bail. Brian Patrick O’Callaghan, 36, of 25230 Conrad Court in Damascus, is charged with first-degree murder and child abuse resulting in the death of Hyunsu O’Callaghan, a son he adopted from Korea. On Feb. 2, detectives from the Montgomery County Police Major Crimes Division were notified that Hyunsu was at Children’s National Medical Center in Washington,
Sunday, O’Callaghan was arrested in connection with the boy’s death. According to charging documents, Hyunsu had been in the U.S. since October. O’Callaghan told police during an interview that the boy had bonded with his wife, Jennifer, but not with him. In January, he said, his wife went back to work and he stayed home to care for the boy. According to charging documents detailing an interview with police, O’Callaghan said that on Jan. 31 his son had slipped in the bathtub, fallen backward and hit his shoulder after taking a shower. He told police the boy then went to bed. The next morning, O’Callaghan took Hyunsu and his 6-year-old biological son
D.C., where he was unresponsive and had multiple injuries. Investigators learned that the toddler’s injuries, including trauma to the brain, indicated that the boy was recently beaten. Police said O’Callaghan could not explain why O’Callaghan the boy had the injuries. Hyunsu died of his injuries Feb 3. The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Washington performed an autopsy and determined that the toddler’s death was caused by multiple blunt impact injuries, according to police. During the investigation, O’Callaghan told police he had complete care and custody of Hyunsu on Jan. 31 and Feb. 1. On
See KILLING, Page A-7
On the edge
GERMANTOWN
SPATE OF DEADLY STABBINGS RAISES QUESTIONS ABOUT MENTAL ILLNESS, TREATMENT AND THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
GAITHERSBURG
DAN GROSS/THE GAZETTE
DAN GROSS/THE GAZETTE
Brian Patrick O’Callaghan, charged by Montgomery County prosecutors with first-degree murder in the death of his 3-year-old son, Hyunsu, lives on Conrad Court in Damascus.
GAITHERSBURG
DAN GROSS/THE GAZETTE
DAN GROSS/THE GAZETTE
JANUARY 29 7400 BLOCK OF LAKE KATRINE TERRACE
JANUARY 17 19000 BLOCK OF CHERRY BEND DRIVE
JANUARY 23 9051 SNOUFFER SCHOOL ROAD
Zakieya Avery, 28, and Monifa Sanford, 21, each face two counts of first-degree murder, accused of stabbing to death two of Avery’s children — 2-year-old Avery Sanford Zyana Harris and 1-year-old Norell N. Harris — in an attempted “exorcism.”
Shaun D. King, 36, of Bladensburg faces one count of first-degree murder, accused of fatally slashing and stabbing Abdul Ghaffar, 63, of Gaithersburg 75 times at the 7-Eleven store where he worked. Prosecutors believe King suffers from schizophrenia and asked that he be King evaluated to determine if he is competent to stand trial.
Police say Christopher Stirkens, 25, stabbed his mother, Denise Stirkens, 53, to death at their Gaithersburg home. In an effort to save her, his father, James Stirkens, an off-duty Montgomery County police officer, shot and killed their son.
Stirkens
POLICE CALLS RELATING TO MENTAL ILLNESS
BY
ST. JOHN BARNED-SMITH
A
STAFF WRITER
mid a spate of unusual and violent killings in Montgomery County last month, authorities are investigating what they say is a common thread: mental illness. • In Germantown, two women were accused of stabbing two young children to death in an attempted exorcism. • In Gaithersburg, police said, a man stabbed a 7-Eleven clerk to death less than a week later.
• Police said an off-duty sergeant shot his adult son to death as the son was stabbing his mother to death. The two women and the 7-Eleven defendant were transferred to a psychiatric hospital in Jessup for mental evaluation and treatment. The slayings prompted Montgomery County State’s Attorney John J. McCarthy to highlight local law enforcement’s role in dealing with and caring for the mentally ill. He talked about the lack of funding for treatment and the need for more resources and funding. “The larger issue for us in the community is: How do we deal with people who
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have persistent mental health issues and intersect with the criminal justice system?” McCarthy said in a press conference last month. He said it’s an “open secret” that jails are one of the largest providers of mental health care and treatment nationwide. Statistics show a growing problem. According to data from the county prosecutor’s office, the number of “intakes” — people who were arrested — at the Montgomery County correctional facilities decreased from 9,256 in 2010 to 7,879 in 2013.
See MENTAL, Page A-10
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RECYCLE
B-13 B-5 A-2 B-7 B-9 A-11 A-8 B-6 B-1
Suicides include attempts. 6,000
2010
2011
2012
2013
4,323 4,440 4,697 5,256 5,000
4,000
SUICIDES:
264
240
121
176
SOURCE: MONTGOMERY COUNTY POLICE DEPARTMENT
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