Damien Berry Arrested Again

A former Baltimore Ravens reserve running back who missed a court date in Maryland has been arrested in Florida after speeding in an ATV on a city street, police said.

Damien Jamaar Berry, 27, was being held Tuesday in the Broward County jail on charges of driving with a suspended license, carrying a concealed firearm and an out-of-state hold, according to jail records.

Berry has a no-bond warrant from Howard County, where he failed to appear in Circuit Court in August for a pre-trial settlement conference in a case where he's accused of writing a bad check to buy a 2015 Land Rover Range Rover.

A police officer in Pembroke Pines, Fla., saw Berry driving a 2014 Honda four-wheeler on a city street on Sunday night and pursued him for about a mile before pulling him over, according to a police report.

The officer said Berry was speeding and appeared to be trying to avoid being pulled over. When Berry was arrested, he told police that he had a gun in his backpack. Officers found a loaded Springfield XDS .45-caliber pistol in the bag. Berry does not have a Florida concealed weapons license, police said.

It's not yet clear when Berry will be returned to Maryland. If Berry fights extradition, it could take weeks, said T. Wayne Kirwan, a spokesman for the Howard County State's Attorney's Office.

"He will be extradited back and when he's brought before a judge, he won't be able to bond out because it's a no-bond bench warrant," Kirwan said.

A Howard County judge issued the warrant for Berry after neither he nor an attorney showed up in court on Aug. 24. He has no attorney listed in Maryland court records and no one answered Berry's phone on Tuesday.

In the Howard County case, Berry is accused of writing a bad check from a closed account for $106,024 to buy a 2015 Land Rover Range Rover from a Clarksville car dealership, according to the Howard County State's Attorney's Office. He's charged with theft of more than $100,000, writing a bad check of more than $100,000, vehicle theft and unauthorized removal of property.

Berry initially was charged in March in Howard County District Court, was picked up on a warrant in Lee County in Florida in May and was extradited to Maryland. He showed up for a court date in District Court and asked for a jury trial, which moved the case to Circuit Court.

Berry is a native of Belle Glade, Fla., and played for the University of Miami before being signed by the Ravens in 2011. He spent time on the practice squad and injured reserve before being released in 2013.


(baltimoresun.com)