Police sergeant accused of misconduct over Cardin proposal

BY: Associated Press
POSTED: November 20, 2009

Baltimore police say a sergeant who authorized the use of the department’s marine unit as part of a Maryland lawmaker’s marriage proposal has been charged with misconduct.

On Aug. 7, police boarded a boat Delegate Jon Cardin and his fiancee were on with friends in the Inner Harbor and pretended to search for contraband until Cardin [...]

U.S. Department of Agriculture to conduct three surveys in Md. 

BY: Daily Record Staff
POSTED: November 19, 2009

The U.S. Department of Agriculture will conduct three major surveys in Maryland, to collect data used to establish final 2009 crop acreage, yield and production estimates, and other important farm information.
According to the Maryland Department of Agriculture, the three surveys are the 2009 County Agricultural Production Survey (CAPS), the December Agricultural Survey and the December [...]

Fraser Smith: Time for a difficult conversation 

BY: C. Fraser Smith
POSTED: November 19, 2009

If image is everything, the conversation about how to treat the mentally ill just got more difficult.
Army Major Nidal Malik Hasan took care of that when, allegedly, he killed 13 soldiers and wounded dozens more at Fort Hood in Texas. The image of a mentally ill Army officer run amok may be difficult to combat.
But [...]

Board of Public Works cuts $361M more

BY: Associated Press
POSTED: November 18, 2009

ANNAPOLIS — A state panel on Wednesday approved more than $361 million in cuts and other revisions to Maryland’s general fund budget, bringing total budget revisions since the fiscal year started in July to more than $1 billion.
The revisions recommended by Gov. Martin O’Malley’s administration and approved by the Board of Public Works were higher [...]

Strategy or a fumble? Lawyers differ on Dixon prosecutor’s decision 

BY: Brendan Kearney
POSTED: November 17, 2009

Minutes after State Prosecutor Robert A. Rohrbaugh abruptly rested his case against Baltimore Mayor Sheila Dixon Tuesday morning, the judge granted a defense motion to dismiss two of the seven charges against her — those related to developer Ronald H. Lipscomb, Dixon’s former boyfriend, who was not called to testify.
The mayor’s lawyers argued the state [...]

Put this in your pipe and smoke it —or not

BY: Associated Press
POSTED: November 17, 2009

With a simple marketing twist, tobacco companies are avoiding hundreds of millions of dollars a year in taxes by exploiting a loophole in President Barack Obama’s child health law.
Obama and Congress increased taxes on tobacco products earlier this year to pay for expanded children’s health insurance, but tobacco for roll-your-own cigarettes saw a disproportionate leap, [...]

Federal contracts awarded 

BY: Daily Record Staff
POSTED: November 16, 2009

The following federal contracts were announced by federal agencies as having been awarded to companies operating in Maryland from Oct. 15 – Nov. 12
A.I. Solutions, Lanham, won a federal contract valued at up to $95,000,000 from NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, for flight dynamics support services.
Wintec Arrowmaker Inc., Fort Washington, was awarded an $85,000,000 [...]

Millions will have to repay part of tax credit

BY: Associated Press
POSTED: November 16, 2009
Comments: 1

Millions will have to repay part of tax credit
STEPHEN OHLEMACHER,Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) — More than 15 million taxpayers could unexpectedly owe taxes when they file their federal returns next spring because the government was too generous with their new Making Work Pay tax credit.
Taxpayers are at risk if they have more than one job, [...]

Dixon trial going smoothly under Sweeney 

BY: Brendan Kearney
POSTED: November 15, 2009

The beginning of Baltimore Mayor Sheila Dixon’s gift card misappropriation trial was in many ways like the opening night of a long-awaited play, a production in preparation for years finally coming to the stage.
State Prosecutor Robert A. Rohrbaugh finally telling the jury about the dirt he’s found after all these years of investigating; Dixon lawyer [...]

Court restores former Carefirst CEO’s compensation 

BY: Danielle Ulman
POSTED: November 13, 2009
Comments: 1

A  Baltimore County Circuit Court judge found Friday that William L. Jews’ rights were violated when the Maryland Insurance Commission slashed his total compensation package in half.
In overturning Insurance Commissioner Ralph S. Tyler’s order, which found Jews should be paid half of his $17.97 million post-termination compensation package by his former employer CareFirst Inc., Judge [...]