Family Of Va. Teen Found Dead In Baltimore Ask Police To Reopen Case
BALTIMORE (WJZ)-- The parents of a teenager from northern Virginia found dead in a Baltimore City housing project almost a decade ago are calling for a new investigation into their daughter's death.
The parents of Annie McCann are renewing their allegations that Baltimore City police botched the case.
Dan and Mary Jane McCann wrote Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan a lengthy letter asking state police to take over the investigation.
City police have maintained that Annie's death was a suicide.
"Annie was thrown away in the garbage like she was nothing and it's not a crime in Baltimore," Mary said.
The nightmare for the McCann family began in November of 2008. Police found 16-year-old Annie behind dumpsters in the Perkins Homes projects near Fells Point. Over the past decade, they say they've been stunned by how police mishandled the investigation.
"We have to remind ourselves that the Baltimore City Police Department are not the ones who killed our daughter, but they sure as hell have victimized us," Dan said.
Police have long believed Annie killed herself by drinking the disinfectant Bactine she had with her after getting her ears pierced, but there have been questions about how she ended up in Baltimore from her home in Virginia.
In the letter to Gov. Hogan, the McCann's call the justice system in Baltimore a cesspool and ask that state police take over the case.
They claim there were more than 20 abrasions on Annie's body, a hemorrhage on her skull, skin found under her fingernails that was never tested for DNA and signs she was a victim of human trafficking.
Her autopsy was leaked to the media before her parents ever saw it and an officer accused of coaching a member of the disgraced Gun Trace Task Force, at one point, handled her case.
The McCann's also fault police and prosecutors for not doing enough to investigate and prosecute the teens who left her body by these dumpsters and took the family Volvo for a joyride.
"You don't think the community of Baltimore is outraged at dumping a body and going for a joyride?" Dan said. "What kind of statement does that say about Baltimore?"
Gov. Hogan's office released the following statement:
"The governor deeply sympathizes with the McCann family and the tragedy they have experienced. He has forwarded the materials to the Maryland State Police for discussion with the new Baltimore City Police administration."
"It's terribly difficult to figure out when incompetence ends and cover up, cowardice and corruption begin," Dan said.
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