Defense seeks to suppress statements by man charged in slaying

Whether a man indicted for the 2008 murder of a Hagerstown woman asked to call his wife or attorney after his 2010 arrest and what happened to his cellphone were the subjects of testimony during a hearing Wednesday in Washington County Circuit Court.

The defense is seeking to suppress statements Darrol Chris Sands, 43, made when he was taken into custody on Aug. 11, 2010, by Washington County Narcotics Task Force agents and turned over to Hagerstown police homicide investigators.


Sands, 43, formerly of Hagerstown, was indicted last year for the April 19, 2008, killing of Carol Marie Brown, 22, who was found dead in the bathtub of her Mitchell Avenue home. At the time of her death, Sands — who is now serving an unrelated prison sentence on drug charges — lived across the street, Assistant State’s Attorney Gina Cirincion said earlier this year.

Brown, the mother of two, died of a combination of stabbing and asphyxia, Public Defender Eric Reed said at an April hearing for Sands.

In the April hearing, Judge John H. McDowell ruled that detectives had read Sands his Miranda rights protecting him from self-incrimination during the recorded interview and that he had not been threatened or received any inducement to talk.

Wednesday’s hearing focused on whether Sands requested to call his wife to contact an attorney before the Aug. 11 interview. Assistant Public Defender Brian Hutchison contended at the April hearing that police might have ignored Sands’ request to contact an attorney.

Detective Randall C. Yonkers and retired detective Steve Hoover both testified Wednesday that they did not recall Sands asking to call anyone prior to the interview.

Deputy 1st Class Brian Burke, a narcotics task force agent, testified Sands was turned over to detectives minutes after he was arrested by task force agents.

Burke did not recall Sands having a cellphone when arrested, but testified one could be seen taken from Sands in a videotape of the arrest. The phone was not listed in the task force property report, but was secured by another agent, he testified.

“It’s not common, but it happens sometimes,” Burke said. The agent filed a supplemental property report, he testified.

That agent and another present at Sands’ arrest were not available to testify Wednesday. Burke testified he could not recall what, if any, conversations they had with Sands before he was turned over to the detectives.

McDowell recessed the hearing until July 21 so that the other agents might testify.

Sands’ trial on charges of first- and second-degree murder and manslaughter is scheduled for five days beginning Oct. 31, according to court records.

In the recorded interview Sands denied killing Brown. However, the detectives told him his DNA was found in her body and his palm print was on the bathtub.