MAN CHARGED IN FIRE THAT KILLED MOTHER, 5 CHILDREN

Baltimore Woman Had Crusaded Against Drug Dealers In Area

BALTIMORE - A man was charged with first-degree murder and arson Thursday
in a row-house fire that killed five children and their mother, who had
crusaded against neighborhood drug dealers.

Police said the suspect, Darrell Brooks, 21, lives near the three-story
home where Angela Dawson and her children died early Wednesday. Ms.
Dawson's husband was in critical condition with third-degree burns and
injuries suffered when he jumped from a second-story window.

The home had been firebombed Oct. 3, but the family escaped injury. The
(Baltimore) Sun reported that the family declined an offer of witness
protection.

In a handwritten account given to police, Ms. Dawson described escaping the
first fire.

"My husband and I gathered our babies and led them to safety," she wrote.
"Before getting out of the ... [house], we experienced choking from the
smoke and could hardly see how to get to the door. The heat was very
intense coming from the kitchen. ... Every time I threw water on the fire,
it flared up even more. I finally got the fire under control and went
outside with my family."

A neighbor said Ms. Dawson had argued for weeks with teenage boys dealing
drugs on the street corner in front of their homes.

"They had words, they had confrontations. She was threatened," Gerlena
Jackson said.

Ms. Dawson was "a concerned mother, just like us all," she said. "She stood
up to them. She didn't want them around her kids."

State Sen. Nathaniel McFadden joined neighbors Wednesday night outside the
home to express outrage over the deaths.

"We've been fighting this thing, it's an ongoing battle," Mr. McFadden
said. "We're talking about terrorism around the world. We've got terrorism
right here with some of these drug dealers."

Killed in the fire were Ms. Dawson, 36; Carnell Dawson Jr., 10; Juan Ortiz,
12; twins Kevin and Keith Dawson, 9; and LaWanda Ortiz, 14.

"In one swoop, to lose an entire family - it's just devastating," said
Lucretia Coates, principal of the elementary school where four of the
children were enrolled.