Stevensville Murder Trial Takes Possible Back Seat After Porn Charges

A former Baltimore police officer accused of killing his neighbor is now charged with possession of child pornography. Charges were filed last week against 67-year-old “Pete” Richter. He was earlier charged with murder in the April 2011 shooting death of his neighbor, Mark Xander. Xander was fatally wounded during an altercation after his dog went on Richter’s Stevensville property. The Queen Anne’s County Sheriff’s office says that while searching Richter’s home following the shooting, deputies found evidence of child pornography. The statute of limitations for filing charges was one year from the date the evidence was collected. Richter’s murder trial was scheduled to begin last week, but was delayed when his lawyer had a medical emergency.