JUDGE CURBS SOME LIMITS OVER GUN CARRYING: The state cannot keep gun owners from carrying their weapons in bars, within 1,000 feet of a public demonstration or on private property without the owner’s permission, a federal judge has ruled. But U.S District Judge George L. Russell III, in an opinion handed down Friday, upheld much of the rest of the Gun Safety Act of 2023 that had been challenged as unconstitutional by gun-rights groups. Russell sided with the state’s claims that it can bar gun owners from carrying in amusement parks, casinos, state parks and forests, museums, schools, stadiums and government buildings, among a range of other sites. William Ford/Maryland Matters.
CRISFIELD HAS THE ‘TRUMPIEST’ OF PRECINCTS: A Baltimore Sun analysis of election returns from recent years found Somerset Precinct 08-002 — tucked into the state’s southeastern corner — is arguably the Trumpiest. The rural precinct is home to 302 registered Republicans and 75 registered Democrats. Politically relevant Crisfield is known for the J. Millard Tawes Crab and Clambake, which annually draws Maryland politicians of both stripes from across the state. Jeff Barker and Annie Jennemann/The Baltimore Sun.
GILCHREST SIGNS ONTO ‘REPUBLICANS FOR HARRIS’ GROUP: Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign launched a “Republicans for Harris” initiative over the weekend, as her campaign looks to court moderate GOP voters and others opposed to former President Donald Trump’s reelection bid. Those GOP backers included Wayne Gilchrest, who represented Maryland’s 1st District in Congress as a Republican from 1991 to 2009, when he was ousted by current Rep. Andy Harris (R-1st). Gilchrest later became a Democrat. Ariana Figueroa/Maryland Matters.
FREE MARKET POLICY GROUP TO ANNOUNCE FORMATION: Some prominent Maryland Republicans are launching an organization designed to drive the conversation on economic policy in the state. They will announce this week the creation of Opportunity Maryland, lead by former Anne Arundel County Council member Jessica Haire. They say this is a nonpartisan education and advocacy group that will focus on economic development, job creation and taxes in the coming months. Josh Kurtz/Maryland Matters.
ALSOBROOKS, HOGAN IN STALEMATE OVER DEBATE DETAILS: U.S. Senate candidates Larry Hogan and Angela Alsobrooks are locked in a stalemate over when and where to debate in their high-stakes race this fall — with both sides accusing the other of dodging invitations from their preferred hosts. Sam Janesch/The Baltimore Sun.
WHERE THE HARRIS ENTHUSIASM WILL FLOW TO: Most of the Democrats attributed renewed energy to the party to the recent change at the top of the ticket, with Vice President Kamala Harris poised to replace President Biden as the party’s White House nominee. Several people said they expect that momentum to accrue to April McLain Delaney in the open-seat 6th District race, and especially to Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrooks (D) in her battle against former Gov. Larry Hogan (R) for the state’s open U.S. Senate seat. Josh Kurtz/Maryland Matters.
RFK JR., GREEN PARTY SAY THEY HAVE SIGNATURES TO GET ON BALLOT: Organizers for independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and for the Maryland Green Party said they each submitted thousands more signatures than the 10,000 needed Monday to earn a place on this fall’s ballot. The petitions still must be certified by elections officials, but organizers said they are confident. Elijah Pittman/Maryland Matters.
STATE, FEDERAL AGENCIES TO PROBE BOUNCE HOUSE DEATH OF CHILD: Federal and state agencies are investigating how a bounce house got loose Friday at a Southern Maryland stadium, killing a child and injuring another once the inflatable structure landed. The probes by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission and Maryland labor regulators will be in unison with a Charles County Sheriff’s Office investigation into the 5-year-old’s death. Dan Belson/The Baltimore Sun.
- Authorities say a gust of wind carried the bounce house up to 20 feet in the air, causing “children to fall before it landed on the playing field,” according to a Charles County government news release. A Maryland State Police helicopter took 5-year-old Declan Hicks to a hospital, where he was later pronounced dead. Emma Uber/The Washington Post.
CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS TO DEMAND MORE SAFETY MEASURES AT DPW: A trio of Baltimore City Council members plan to join union representatives on Tuesday to demand more stringent safety measures in the wake of a sanitation worker’s heat-related death Friday. Demands will include a full-time position in Baltimore’s inspector general’s office to focus on safety at the public works department; increased DPW staffing; full cooperation from the mayor’s administration in City Council investigations; and an independent revie., according to a news release from Cohen. Clara Longo de Freitas, Lee O. Sanderlin, Cody Boteler and Emily Hofstaedter/The Baltimore Banner and WYPR-FM.
- Mayor Brandon Scott is pausing citywide trash and recycling collection today after a sanitation worker died on the job of heat related illness. In response to the tragedy on Friday, the Department of Public Works “will conduct a mandatory heat safety training session on Tuesday, August 6,” the agency said in a press release. Fern Shen/Baltimore Brew.
FREDERICK COUNTY EYES PFAS REMEDITATION PROJECTS: A handful of water infrastructure projects across Frederick County — many related to remediating “forever chemicals” — may receive millions in loans from the Maryland Water Infrastructure Financing Administration. Gabrielle Lewis/The Frederick News Post.
LACKS FAMILY SUES TWO PHARMACEUTICAL FIRMS: The family of Henrietta Lacks filed a lawsuit Monday against two large pharmaceutical companies, alleging the firms have profited from exploiting the Baltimore County woman’s cell line. The lawsuit against Novartis and Viatris serves as the third installment of a legal saga that started with the family of the Turner Station resident hiring prominent civil rights attorney Ben Crump and suing a biotechnology firm in 2021. Dan Belson/The Baltimore Sun.
FORMER MAYOR WHO PLEAD GUILTY TO REVENGE PORN RUNS AGAIN: Former Cambridge Mayor Andrew Bradshaw has thrown his hat in the ring for the city’s mayoral election in October. Bradshaw, who served as mayor through 2021, resigned in January 2022 after being charged with 50 counts of distributing revenge porn on Reddit. In April 2022, Bradshaw pleaded guilty to five counts of distributing revenge porn. Maggie Trovato/The Easton Star-Democrat.
