Ex-MD Police Chief Guilty Of Attempted Murder, Arson: Report

ELLICOTT CITY, MD — A former Maryland police chief has been found guilty of purposely setting a string of fires targeting the homes of people he believed slighted him, according to a report by The Baltimore Banner.

A Howard County jury on Thursday convicted David Michael Crawford, 71, of eight counts of attempted first-degree murder and two counts of arson, according to the Banner. The verdict followed a six-day trial.

Crawford, the former Laurel police chief, was accused of setting at least a dozen fires spanning six counties between 2011 and 2020. Several of the homes were occupied, including by children, according to the Maryland State Fire Marshal's Office.

Authorities began investigating Crawford in 2019 after noticing a connection between several arsons. Crawford was charged in Frederick, Howard, Montgomery, and Prince George's counties. He reportedly set fires in Anne Arundel and Charles counties but was never formally charged.

During his trial, prosecutors said Crawford had a list of intended targets and would plot revenge against anyone who challenged his authority, according to multiple reports.

During opening arguments last week, prosecutors said nine of the 11 people on the list were associates or relatives of Crawford, and all were victims of intentionally set fires at their homes.

Targets included Crawford's chiropractor, his successor as Laurel police chief, Laurel's city administrator, and former colleagues in the Prince George's County Police Department, the Banner reported.

According to court documents, Crawford first set fire to his stepson's home in Clarksburg in 2016. The stepson wasn't home then, but the flames spread to an adjacent property while the neighbors were inside.

Prosecutors said he set his stepson's unoccupied home ablaze again in 2019. A third fire was set in a garage behind the stepson's other house in 2020.

During his trial, defense attorneys argued that prosecutors couldn't connect Crawford to the fires or prove he intended to kill anyone, the Banner reported.

“Just because he’s bad at murder, he doesn’t get a pass,” Assistant State’s Attorney Scott Hammond said in response, according to WBAL.

Last March, Crawford entered an Alford plea in Frederick County Circuit Court for one count of first-degree arson. In an Alford plea, a defendant does not admit guilt but concedes that the prosecution has enough evidence to get a conviction.

In addition to his role as Laurel police chief, Crawford was a former major of the Prince George's County Police Department and a former chief of the District Heights Police Department.