Man Cleared In Alleged Attack

SNOW HILL - A West Ocean City man arrested in July on assault and other serious charges after allegedly threatening family members with a baseball bat had the charges against him dropped this week in Circuit Court because the witnesses in the case have since moved to Florida and were not available to testify.

Shortly before 10 p.m. on July 23, Maryland State Police and Worcester County Sheriff's deputies responded to a residence on Old Bridge Rd. in West Ocean City for a reported assault with a baseball bat involving a man, later identified as John Thomas Shannon, 48, of West Ocean City, a woman and a juvenile. Upon arrival, officers met with the juvenile victim, who said his mother was inside the residence with Shannon, who was enraged and wielding a baseball bat.

After the officers knocked on the locked door and announced their presence, the female victim allegedly let them inside the residence. According to the statement of charges, Shannon, who was allegedly enraged and began screaming and yelling, came at the detectives with a bat and the officers tazed the suspect in an effort to bring him under control. While the officers were attempting to take Shannon into custody, he allegedly resisted arrest and had to be tazed a second time, according to police reports.

According to victim statements, Shannon had been drinking alcohol most of the day and had taken an undisclosed amount of prescription medication. He was later taken to Peninsula Regional Medical Center for treatment before being released and taken into custody.

According to the juvenile victim's statement, the incident began earlier in the evening when Shannon got into an alleged altercation at a neighboring residence. The juvenile victim said Shannon came home and grabbed a baseball bat and attempted to return, but when the female victim attempted to stop him, he allegedly shoved her down. When the juvenile victim interceded, Shannon allegedly pinned him against a wall with the bat before swinging wildly at him, hitting cabinets and shattering windows at the residence, according to police reports on the incident. When the female victim attempted to intercede on her son's behalf, Shannon allegedly pushed her down again with the baseball bat.

Shannon was charged with two counts of first-degree assault, five counts of second-degree assault, reckless endangerment, malicious destruction of property, resisting arrest and false imprisonment. He appeared for trial in Circuit Court on Tuesday, but the charges against him were dropped because the victims have since moved to Florida, according to court records.