SCHOOL SHOOTING REIGNITES DOUBTS OVER CHILD PROTECTION LAWS: The Joppatowne High School shooting has reignited the debate over the Child Interrogation Protection Act. The law enacted in 2022 says no juvenile can be questioned by police without talking to an attorney first and a parent or guardian notified. Maxine Streicher/WBFF-TV News.
- A push from parents to get more information about criminal records of students attending public schools alongside their children follows the fatal shooting at Joppatowne High School on Friday, but privacy laws keep those records tightly wrapped. Harford County Public Schools are not legally allowed to inform parents about charges against students and, in some cases, state law prohibits police from telling school officials about offenses committed by students who attend their schools. Matt Hubbard/The Baltimore Sun.
LAWYERS PREDICT ROUGH WATERS AS B’MORE SEEKS COMPENSATION FOR DALI LOSSES: In the days after the cargo ship Dali toppled Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge, the financial toll on the city was incalculable and overwhelming. Still, when it comes to recovering compensation for those losses, attorneys who specialize in maritime law say they expect Baltimore to have a difficult time. And city legislation hastily approved and sent to Mayor Brandon Scott late last month will give Baltimore little additional leverage, they say. Emily Opilo and Hayes Gardner/The Baltimore Sun.
GROUPS ASK UM TO REVERSE BAN ON OCT. 7 DEMONSTRATIONS: Civil rights groups are calling on the University of Maryland, College Park, to reverse its prohibition on student-led demonstrations on Oct. 7, the anniversary of the Hamas terror attack that killed about 1,200 Israelis. The Council on American-Islamic Relations and Palestine Legal said in a Sept. 4 letter to campus officials that they need to reverse the decision to “avoid a legal clash with the First Amendment it will lose.” They said Wednesday that their letter has been ignored, and called on students and concerned individuals to complain to the campus. Danielle Brown/Maryland Matters.
FARM BUREAU CONDEMNS HUGE POWERLINE PROJECT: Maryland’s largest agricultural trade organization broke its silence on Wednesday morning to officially condemn a controversial power line project that it contends would put over 1,300 acres of farmland at risk. The Maryland Farm Bureau reports an internal survey showed more than 25 of its members could be directly affected by the development of the Maryland Piedmont Reliability Project. Gary Collins and Jessica Babb/WBFF-TV News.
BPW SETTLES LAWSUIT OF FORMER UM STUDENT OVER SCHOOL HEARING: A former student at the University of Maryland College Park will receive $50,000 to settle a federal lawsuit that alleged he was discriminated against during a disciplinary hearing involving claims of sexual assault. The Board of Public Works voted unanimously Wednesday to approve the settlement with the former student who was temporarily expelled. But not before Treasurer Dereck Davis raised questions about the university — and taxpayers — making the payout without holding a third-party hearing officer responsible. Bryan Sears/Maryland Matters.
RASKIN TO INTRODUCE BIPARTISAN SUICIDE PREVENTION BILL: U.S. Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-8th), whose personal life and political career were incalculably upended by his son’s suicide, is introducing his first major mental health and suicide prevention legislation since Tommy Raskin died on Dec. 31, 2020, at the age of 25. The Stabilization To Prevent Suicide Act would create a grant program at the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration to expand the use of evidence-based models for stabilizing individuals with serious thoughts of suicide. The bipartisan bill will be co-sponsored by U.S. Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.). Josh Kurtz/Maryland Matters.
***BREWSTER BOOK EVENT: U.S. Sen. Daniel Brewster lived a life full of inspiring highs and debilitating lows. On Sept. 26, 5:30 p.m., join John Frece, author of Self-Destruction: The Rise, Fall, and Redemption of U.S. Senator Daniel B. Brewster, in conversation with Gerry Brewster, former delegate and son of the late senator, moderated by historian Charles Mitchell at the Maryland Center for History and Culture in Baltimore. Explore the senator’s life and career like his run in the 1964 presidential primary election and his fight for civil rights. A book signing and light reception will follow. You must register here. Read the book review in Maryland Reporter.***
YOUTH ADDICTION TREATMENT CENTER TO OPEN IN B’MORE: Health officials in Maryland said Wednesday they will open the state’s first high-intensity inpatient addiction treatment center in years for children and young people in Baltimore, reflecting grim data showing the state’s youngest residents are not immune from the opioid epidemic. In 2014, there were four teens from ages 13 to 17 who died in the state from overdoses, a number that rose to 19 in 2023. Meredith Cohn/The Baltimore Banner.
- Funded by Maryland’s Opioid Restitution Fund and Montgomery County’s Opioid Abatement Funds, the program will have a daily capacity of 15 beds, three of which will be reserved for Montgomery County residents. If those three beds are vacant for 24 hours, they will be made available for young people in need of treatment from other jurisdictions, state health department spokesman Chase Cook said in an email. Angela Roberts/The Baltimore Sun.
B’MORE CLOSER TO BANNING GAS-POWERED LEAF BLOWERS: The Baltimore City Council’s Health, Environment, and Technology Committee voted Wednesday to advance a bill that would ban the use of gas-powered leaf blowers within city limits, with offenders subject to fines. The full council will vote on the bill a first time Monday, and should it pass as expected, will vote a second and final time at a later meeting. Lee O. Sanderlin/The Baltimore Banner.
BA CO COUNCILMAN ATTEMPTS TO ALTER EXPANSION LAW: A Baltimore County councilman is trying to change a new law that would let voters decide this fall whether to expand the council for the first time since 1956, arguing that it doesn’t provide voters with enough information to make a decision. Rona Kobell/The Baltimore Banner.
MO CO COUNCIL PASSES RESOLUTION AFFIRMING REPRODUCTIVE CARE ACCESS: While the Montgomery County Council unanimously passed a resolution Tuesday affirming its commitment to protecting and increasing access to reproductive healthcare, the reaction among activists gathered outside the building was less than united. Ginny Bixby/MoCo 360.
