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Prince George's County State's Attorney Angela D. Alsobrooks said Friday she will seek the death penalty for a man accused of an August quadruple homicide that left two women and two children dead in a Lanham garage.

"The killing of innocent, defenseless children is at its very core abhorrent. The murder of two women as well as those children makes this an even more heinous case," Alsobrooks said in a statement. "After careful review and much consideration, I have decided to file the necessary paperwork to seek the death penalty against Darrell Bellard."

Bellard, 43, of Dickinson, Texas, and Tkeisha Nicole Gilmer, 18, of Texas City, Texas, are both charged with four counts of first-degree murder in the fatal shootings of Dawn Yvette Brooks, 38, and her children Shakur Sylvester Sikyala, 4; and Shayla Shante Sikyala, 3; as well as the children's aunt, Mwasiti Sikyala, 41. All four were found dead in a trash-filled living area on the second floor of a detached garage behind a house owned by family members.

Prince George's County police found large amounts of marijuana in the garage where the four were killed and said they believed the four adults were somehow involved the drug trade.

Prosecutors have not decided whether to pursue the death penalty for Gilmer, said Alsobrooks spokesman Ramon Korionoff.

In death penalty cases, Maryland law requires DNA or videotaped evidence or a videotaped confession.

Both Gilmer and Bellard admitted their involvement in the killings to detectives when they were taken into custody, according to police documents filed in circuit court.

Bellard's public defender questioned the motive behind the state's attorney's decision and the evidence against Bellard.

"This notice was filed on the last possible day, without any DNA evidence. It appears to be largely based on a statement made by the defendant that was extracted by a police department with a documented history of obtaining confessions that are later proven to be false," said public defender Janet Hart in a statement. "This seems like a political decision designed to deflect attention, and scarce resources, away from the rising number of homicides in the county this year."

The last time a Prince George's County prosecutor sought the death penalty was in 2005 against Robert Mark Billett, who was convicted of killing county police officer Sgt. Steven F. Gaughan, said Korionoff. Billett was sentenced to life in prison after prosecutors decided not to go forward with the death penalty after consulting with Gaughan's family.

According to the Death Penalty Information Center, there are five Maryland prisoners on death row.

Hart said Maryland has a de facto moratorium on the death penalty because the state legislature has not developed procedures for executions.

anoble@gazette.net