MD - Andrew F. Wilkinson, 52, state circuit court judge, shot and killed in home driveway, Pedro Argote, 49, suspect - Hagerstown, 19 Oct 2023

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Marysmith said:
It’s way too easy to look people up though. There’s a reason some DV victims don’t register to vote.
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I fully agree 1,000%

Years ago, I assisted a a victim of domestic violence who had recently been divorced. Her ex husband was abusive, astute and worked in IT.

I was shocked to see that there were about 15 or more online sites offering basic "people finding" searches. One creepy website in particular had warm pictures of college and high school rediscovering each other and embracing- yeah, right.

Anyways, many offered free trial searches. Other companies offered really advanced searches, but required a subscription- then, $450.00 a year- probably more now.

The people finding services did allow a person to block their name. But.... as many were headquartered in India, I dont know how diligient they are about removing names. And..... you need to renew it every year for each site. I ended up referring the woman to a sheltger where a parish friend worked as a counselor.

Public tax records can also serve as a means to "people find". As a result, a certain number of people in high risk, or lawsuit prone professions have their homes registered to trusts etc.
 
Cryptic said:
I fully agree 1,000%

Years ago, I assisted a a victim of domestic violence who had recently been divorced. Her ex husband was abusive, astute and worked in IT.

I was shocked to see that there were about 15 or more online sites offering basic "people finding" searches. One creepy website in particular had warm pictures of college and high school rediscovering each other and embracing- yeah, right.

Anyways, many offered free trial searches. Other companies offered really advanced searches, but required a subscription- then, $450.00 a year- probably more now.

The people finding services did allow a person to block their name. But.... as many were headquartered in India, I dont know how diligient they are about removing names. And..... you need to renew it every year for each site. I ended up referring the woman to a sheltger where a parish friend worked as a counselor.

Public tax records can also serve as a means to "people find". As a result, a certain number of people in high risk, or lawsuit prone professions have their homes registered to trusts etc.
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Totally! I have an injunction against someone, who tried to kill me when I wanted out of our relationship, and I am sooo careful. And I know other people in similar circumstances who don’t register to vote, and like me are afraid to own a home, etc… for regular people like most of us these protections are really costly as well.
ETA: I’m talking about the US. Other countries it can be much harder to find someone via property searches, etc..
 
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Cryptic said:
Though I do sympathize with the sentiments, I dont think such a law would pass the constitutionality test due to the following amendments.

- The sixth amendment guarantees a public trial. One can make a pretty good argument that a trial presided over by a "masked" judge is not truly "public".

- The sixth amendment also allows one to face their accusers. One could extrapolate that this concept also applies to the ability to "face one's judge" as well.

- The 5th amendment guarantees "Due Process". One could argue that a "masked" judge prevents the defendant from examining whether he or she is biased and asking for a new judge (very rarely granted- but constitutional law is probably loaded with questions that are largely hypothetical). Thus, the defendant is denied their due process.
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this:
The Daniel Anderl Judicial Security and Privacy Act, named for the son of U.S. District Judge Esther Salas, is a narrowly tailored bill that would protect judges' personally identifiable information in federal databases and restrict data aggregators from reselling judges' personal information.Jul 14, 2021

Judiciary Affirms Need for Bill to Protect Federal Judges​


on the state level... makes addresses private.
 
acutename said:
this:
The Daniel Anderl Judicial Security and Privacy Act, named for the son of U.S. District Judge Esther Salas, is a narrowly tailored bill that would protect judges' personally identifiable information in federal databases and restrict data aggregators from reselling judges' personal information.Jul 14, 2021

Judiciary Affirms Need for Bill to Protect Federal Judges​


on the state level... makes addresses private.
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I would support the second option of making addresses essentially private for everyone. Records that are required to be public should not be accssible le via mass data mining.

Rather, queries must be made individually at a terminal located in a vital records office. If possible, search methodology should be in formats that make obtaining the subject's current address more difficult, or preferably, blocked.

But.....

I am very opposed to the bill designed to protect the address and personal information of just federal judges.

The bill is well intentioned. US Judges, however, need to fully live in and amongst the people they serve. That means assuming the same general risks as regular citizens.

In short, "Barbara Ordinary", the big box store employee who fears being harmed by her abusive ex husband should receive the exact same level of address protection as a federal judge- or the same lack there of. Position should not matter.
 
Search near Williamsport done, but suspect in slaying of Washington County judge at large

Wilkinson was found shot around 8 p.m. in the driveway of his home on Olde Waterford Road, which is off Long Meadow Road north of Hagerstown. He was taken to Meritus Medical Center east of Hagerstown where he was later pronounced dead.

Wilkinson


Albert said at the Friday news conference that Wilkinson's wife and son were home when the shooting occurred. The wife and son are "OK," Albert said in an interview.

Asked about Argote's wife and children Saturday, Albert said they were under protection.

"They’re well protected,” he said.
 
www.nbcnews.com

Suspect in Maryland judge's slaying may have left the 'immediate area,' officials say

The sheriff’s update came after Pedro Argote's silver Mercedes was found in Williamsport, not far from where Judge Andrew Wilkinson was fatally shot. Argote has ties to New York, Florida, North Carolina and Indiana.
www.nbcnews.com www.nbcnews.com
'Anyone with information on the location of Argote is urged to contact the Washington County Sheriff’s Office at 240-313-2170 or the U.S. Marshals Service at 1-877-WANTED2'
1698080018865.png

Pedro Argote. Washington County Sheriff's Office, Maryland via AP

Oct 23, 2023 #news #maryland #judge
Police are searching for Pedro Argote after he allegedly shot Judge Andrew Wilkinson multiple times in his driveway last week
 
Police said 49-year-old Pedro Argote has been on the run since Thursday after he allegedly shot and killed Judge Andrew Wilkinson outside his home, just hours after the judge awarded Argote's estranged wife full custody of their children. The judge also barred Argote from having any contact with his ex-wife and their four kids, unless she approved.

"We think Judge Wilkinson was targeted," said Washington County, Maryland, Sheriff Brian Albert.

Argote's 2009 silver Mercedes SUV was found in a wooded area about eight miles from the scene of the murder.

"We'll pull the computers, GPS is from it. And then the contents obviously if we find anything in the vehicle," Sheriff Albert said.
[snip]
Officials are offering a $10,000 reward for any information leading to an arrest. The suspect has ties to multiple states, like New York and Florida, and authorities said he should be considered armed and dangerous.
Search ramps up for man accused of killing Maryland judge after divorce proceeding

Wilkinson was shot multiple times in his driveway at about 8pm on Thursday while the judge’s wife and son were inside the family’s home. He later died of his injuries at a local hospital.
Police widen area of search for man suspected of killing Maryland judge
 
tlcya said:
or it was preplanned and he disappeared into the woods on foot to trek across the border into West Virginia.
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And... perhaps to a bus stop in West Virginia?

Though the "Grey Dog" may be over looked in recent years, but Grey Hound and competitors are still a viable way to travel. And... one can buy a Grey Hound ticket with alot less ID and a lot less scrutiny than one can buy an airplane ticket.
 
Cryptic said:
And... perhaps to a bus stop in West Virginia?

Though the "Grey Dog" may be over looked in recent years, but Grey Hound and competitors are still a viable way to travel. And... one can buy a Grey Hound ticket with alot less ID and a lot less scrutiny than one can buy an airplane ticket.
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depending on how much premeditation went into this he could also have previously purchased a nondescript used car privately and simply not taken the title to DMV to put the vehicle into his own name. He could have had the vehicle that can't be traced back to him waiting just across the state line ready to hop into and hit the highway. By the time LE arrives at the scene of shooting he is 8 miles up the road dumping his SUV, a trek through the woods across state line to where second vehicle is waiting could have happened before LE had even determined he was their likely suspect. By the time they found his SUV he could have already been on the road in the second vehicle.
 
tlcya said:
depending on how much premeditation went into this he could also have previously purchased a nondescript used car privately and simply not taken the title to DMV to put the vehicle into his own name. He could have had the vehicle that can't be traced back to him waiting just across the state line ready to hop into and hit the highway.
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Good point. An unregistered car offers alot more flexibility than a bus ticket. Also, avoids having to use the uhhmmm..... "less than pleasant" bus station bath rooms.
 
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Do we know what kind of job he has? Wondering about his financial situation and if he did preplan this how much money he has available to him. This is a terrible situation for his family and the Judges family.
 
bestill said:
Question, how do they know it was Argote that did the shooting?
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Good question.

Judge Wilkinson's house had a ring doorbell that caught Argote's car driving up ?
Neighbor cams ?
LE seems to be confident Pedro was the shooter.

I keep checking here to see if they've caught him.
He has to know he's going away for a looong time; I mean, murdering a judge ?
Not that an innocent passerby would be any less horrid, but I think bumping off a court employee would carry more severe penalties ?
Imo.

Ugh !!!!!
Omo.
 
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