WASHINGTON –Authorities say the longtime top prosecutor in Carroll County
is dead of an apparent suicide.
Jerry Barnes, 66, was found around 10:30 a.m. Saturday morning at a home in
Westminster with an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. Barnes was taken to
a hospital, where he died.
Barnes was a longtime local resident and Vietnam Veteran whose friends and
family said was humble and generous and passionate about his work. He was a
two-time Bronze Star winner after serving in Vietnam as a Green Beret.
Barnes had served as state’s attorney for Carroll County since 1994, but lost
his bid for re-election in this year’s Republican primary.
According to The Baltimore Sun, Barnes had
begun his career as
assistant state’s attorney in Carroll County in 1977, and also worked for
several years in Frederick County, Md., before his 1994 election.
“Jerry was a very humble and gracious man. He was very generous and he did
everything he could do to help other people, and he will be very sorely
missed,” said Carmen Amedori, Barnes’ first wife and former state delegate,
told the paper.
“Jerry was not only a good friend of mine, but he was also a great political
mentor. He taught me what it meant to be a gracious politician.”
Barnes was awarded a governor’s citation from Gov. Parris N. Glendening in
1997 for forming an office dedicated to prosecuting domestic violence cases.
According to The Baltimore Sun, the number of guilty verdicts in domestic
violence cases the year he opened the office increased from 55 percent to 68
percent.
Capt. Richard Hart of the sheriff’s office confirmed Barnes’ death. Hart said
he could not release any further information beyond a short, emailed
statement. He says Barnes’ death is under investigation.
“He was very gung-ho about fighting domestic violence throughout the county.
I’m going to miss the guy,” Gary Coffin, who was the first investigator in the
unit, told the paper. “He’s going to be missed throughout the county, and he’s
going to be missed in law enforcement as well.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report
