Flowers adorn the front walk at the couple's Crofton home where it is alleged 38-year old Ryan Hollebon fatally stabbed his live-in girlfriend, Jhalandia Butler, and fled the scene.
A neighbor, who does not wish to be identified, says it doesn't sound like the Ryan she knew.
"I never would have ever thought that this is something that he would have been capable of doing to be very honest with you," said the woman.
But it may come as no surprise to those familiar with domestic violence.
"I know that we were out there in December at the same address for a domestic assault, and when we arrived he was not on scene," said Lt. Ryan Frashure of the Anne Arundel County Police Department.
According to charging documents, that incident began when Butler tried to pull her boyfriend out from under a bed where he'd passed out from using heroin.
She told police he put his hands around her neck and attempted to strangle her before punching her in the stomach.
After undergoing a mental evaluation, he turned himself in to police, and Anne Arundel County State's Attorney Wes Adams says that's when his office attempted to stop the cycle of violence.
"My prosecutor stood before a judge really demanded that he be held without bail or, if he was given bail, in a situation where he had no contact with that victim,” said Adams, “We were afraid for her safety then, and it's unfortunate that we are now facing these allegations today."
As is so often the case, it appears Butler did not want her fiance to go to prison, but in this case, a second chance for Hollebon would prove to be her last.
"These are the cases... the very case that we are afraid of---this type of allegation,” said Adams, “Yes, I understand our judicial system is premised on we would rather let nine guilty go free, than hold one innocent person. My responsibility, pre-trial, is to protect my victim."
A neighbor says the couple had been in rehab together until they were kicked out of the program for using drugs.
Hollebon was facing a second degree assault charge at the time of the murder, which in a domestic violence case, can carry a penalty of up to 10 years behind bars.
