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Havre de Grace Homicide: Juniata Street Man Stabbed In Chest

Homicide Investigation

On August 31,2008, at 10:43 am, the Havre de Grace Police Department received a report from the Department of Emergency Operations that a female subject called and was reporting that a stabbing had just taken place in the 400 Block of South Juniata Street.

Upon the arrival of police, a male subject was found with a knife wound to his chest. The Havre de Grace Ambulance Corps transported the injured subject to a waiting Maryland State Police Medevac Helicopter where he was transported to the University of Maryland Shock Trauma Center.

Further investigation by police led to the arrest of Shirley Elaine Spruill, age 61, of the 400 block of South Juniata Street. She has been charged with reckless endangerment, 1st and 2nd degree assault, 1st and 2nd degree attempted murder. Police did recover a knife at the scene of the incident. She is presently being held in the Harford County Detention Center.

The victim in this matter is identified as Bartley Adolphus Spruill, age 53, of the 400 block of South Juniata Street. Mr. Spruill was pronounced deceased at the Trauma Center during the evening hours of August 31, 2008. A post mortem examination will be conducted on September 1, 2008 at the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Baltimore.

The investigation is continuing.

The accused murderer, Shirley Spruill, has previously been charged with second-degree assault in 2003 and again in 2006. In June 2008, she was charged with failure to control vehicle speed on a highway to avoid collision - and then failure to appear when she didn’t attend the court date.

The deceased, Mr. Spruill, also has a criminal history. In 1996, he was charged with possession of a drug other than marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia. In 1998, he was charged with second-degree assault. In 2006, he was charged with driving under the influence and driving on a revoked or suspended license.

Mr. Spruill has also been the complainant in a second-degree assault case in 2000 and the complainant in a theft less than $500 case in 2005 and has been involved in a judgement from a wage garnishment case with General Motors dating back to 1991.

Comments

16 Responses to “Havre de Grace Homicide: Juniata Street Man Stabbed In Chest”

  1. RichieC on September 1st, 2008 9:19 pm

    Another sunday in the hood !

    This makes 4 in a row !

  2. RichieC on September 1st, 2008 9:37 pm

    Heres a troubling stat….are you ready !

    Recently Baltimore had 48 murders per 100,000 people in one year.

    The 4 murders in the HdG / Aberdeen area alone in the last month translate to 192 murders per 100,000 people in a year, (adjusted for population and time).

    What the F is going on?

    Go Dagger !

  3. RichieC on September 1st, 2008 10:02 pm

    4 murders in 30 days.
    25,000 people.
    25,000 x 4 is 100,000.(4 is the multiplier used to compare apples to apples(per 100,000))
    4 x 4 = 16 (16 is the adjusted number for comparison) in a month per 100,000.
    16 x 12mos = 192

    Our murder rate is 192 per 100,000 (adjusted at this rate of carnage)

    At this rate we will top Iraq’s 2006 rate of 101 per 100,000.

    Go dagger !

  4. ~ Terri ~ on September 2nd, 2008 7:46 am

    This is VERY disturbing!! Murder seems to be becoming the “in” thing in Harford County!! This one happened just down the street from my house and I learned of it yesterday when my sister and I walked to Royal Farms and the Detective (the one who spoke on Channel 13 news last night) was standing on the porch. This house is next door to the Havre de Grace Royal Farms so, it’s amazing to me that a lot more people didn’t know about it sooner!!
    What happened to the days of having a dispute and taking it out to the back yard, IF you felt it necessary, duking it out or just having your say, and moving on? No guns, no knives … we just read or heard about people being arrested for disturbing the peace because they were fighting, or assault because they actually fought it out?
    I have to ask, also … WHAT IS GOING ON???

  5. columbian necktie on September 2nd, 2008 8:43 am

    Can’t we just all get along!?

  6. RichieC on September 2nd, 2008 11:26 am

    Brian…mabey you should just leave the “Breaking News Murder” banner as a perminent fixture…just fill in the blanks.

  7. RichieC on September 2nd, 2008 3:16 pm

    The argument was over bacon….goddam bacon !

    The victom had the nick-name SARGE.

    Go Dagger!

  8. RichieC on September 2nd, 2008 3:41 pm

    As of today sept 2 at 3:41 Mrs Sprull has NOT been charged with murder.

    ( from court records)…

    Case Information
    Court System: DISTRICT COURT FOR HARFORD COUNTY - CRIMINAL SYSTEM
    Case Number: 3R00065299Tracking No:020005956106
    Case Type: CRIMINAL
    District Code: 09Location Code:01
    Document Type: STATEMENT OF CHARGESIssued Date:08/31/2008
    Case Status: ACTIVE

    ——————————————————————————–
    Defendant Information
    Defendant Name: SPRUILL, SHIRLEY ELAINE
    Race: BLACK, AFRICAN AMERICAN
    Sex: FHeight:503Weight:250DOB:07/25/1947

    Address: 409 S JUNIATA ST
    City: HAVRE DE GRACEState:MDZip Code:21078 - 0000

    ——————————————————————————–
    Charge and Disposition Information

    (Each Charge is listed separately. The disposition is listed below the Charge)

    Charge No: 001Description:ATT 1ST DEG. MURDER
    Statute: CR.2.205Description:ATT 1ST DEG. MURDER
    Amended Date: CJIS Code:2 0910MO/PLL:Probable Cause:X
    Incident Date From: 08/31/2008 To: 08/31/2008 Victim Age:

    ——————————————————————————–
    Charge No: 002Description:ATT 2ND DEG. MURDER
    Statute: CR.2.206Description:ATT 2ND DEG. MURDER
    Amended Date: CJIS Code:2 0920MO/PLL:Probable Cause:X
    Incident Date From: 08/31/2008 To: 08/31/2008 Victim Age:

    ——————————————————————————–
    Charge No: 003Description:ASSAULT-FIRST DEGREE
    Statute: CR.3.202Description:ASSAULT-FIRST DEGREE
    Amended Date: CJIS Code:1 1420MO/PLL:Probable Cause:X
    Incident Date From: 08/31/2008 To: 08/31/2008 Victim Age:

    ——————————————————————————–
    Charge No: 004Description:ASSAULT-SEC DEGREE
    Statute: CR.3.203Description:ASSAULT-SEC DEGREE
    Amended Date: CJIS Code:1 1415MO/PLL:Probable Cause:X
    Incident Date From: 08/31/2008 To: 08/31/2008 Victim Age:

    ——————————————————————————–
    Charge No: 005Description:RECKLESS ENDANGERMENT
    Statute: CR.3.204.(a)(1)Description:RECKLESS ENDANGERMENT
    Amended Date: CJIS Code:1 1425MO/PLL:Probable Cause:
    Incident Date From: 08/31/2008 To: 08/31/2008 Victim Age:

    ——————————————————————————–

    Related Person Information
    (Each Person related to the case other than the Defendant is shown)

    Name:MACNEILL, D
    Connection:COMPLAINANT/POLICE OFFICER
    Agency Code: CAAgency Sub-Code:12Officer ID:7734

    Im wondering whats going on ie: mitigating circumstances?

    Go Dagger !

  9. vietnam vet on September 2nd, 2008 3:58 pm

    Richiec must have been some mighty’ expensive bacon.I’am kind of partial to stuff my self.but it’s not worth all that.

  10. RichieC on September 2nd, 2008 4:06 pm

    Agreed….

  11. RichieC on September 2nd, 2008 4:24 pm

    Havre de Grace woman charged in fatal stabbing of husband
    The Associated Press
    3:52 PM EDT, September 1, 2008
    HAVRE DE GRACE - A woman fatally stabbed her husband during an argument over breakfast, Havre de Grace police said. Police said it is the first homicide in Havre de Grace in six years.

    Maj. John Van Gilder said 61-year-old Shirley Spruill called 911 around 10:45 a.m. Sunday and said she had just stabbed her husband.

    When officers arrived at the home in the 400 block of South Juniata St. they found 53-year-old Bartley Spruill with a knife wound to his chest. He was flown to Maryland Shock Trauma Center in Baltimore, where he died Sunday evening.

    Van Gilder said Spruill was charged with reckless endangerment, first- and second-degree assault and first- and second-degree attempted murder. He said she was charged before her husband died and she will likely face more serious charges.

  12. ~ Terri ~ on September 3rd, 2008 8:03 pm

    I was told by a person who either knows Mrs. Spruill herself or somebody close to her that the argument was over, and I quote, (because I personally do not know either Mr. or Mrs. Spruill), ” Mr. Spruill spending all of their rent money, again”. That is what I was told on Monday. Maybe one day we’ll know what the cause REALLY was, there’s a few different things going around right now, but, no matter the reason, there is just NO EXCUSE for someone choosing to take another person’s life!!! It almost seems as though murder is a contagious disease - it happens once then it spreads like wildfire. Very disturbing!!

  13. RichieC on September 3rd, 2008 11:34 pm

    She still has not been charged with murder ??? sept 3, 08

  14. ~ Terri ~ on September 4th, 2008 6:55 am

    RICHIEC - No. She hasn’t been charged with any crime and it’s very unlikely that she ever will be. There may be some out there who have pity for her but, I know I sure don’t. Whether she took him up there with the intent for this to happen or not - had she not taken him up there at all, it could not have happened so, she should not even have told him she was having a b-day party for Lexie!! Even if there’s no criminal charges ever brought against her, she will always be a culprit in many people’s minds, but still, she did not make kevin pull that trigger. He did that of his own free will, she just put the wheels in place for the motion to occur.

  15. ~ Terri ~ on September 4th, 2008 6:56 am

    OOPS!!! Sorry!!!!!!!!!! I was on the wrong article!!!
    As of this morning, the charges against Mrs. Spruil haven’t changed, as far as anything on the news.

  16. texas12 on September 4th, 2008 9:49 pm

    In a case like this, the state’s attorney can/will apply additional charges. There is no rush here. Shirley isn’t going anywhere. Next step is grand jury for Shirley. She WILL be charged with 1st and 2nd degree murder.

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