GUN-RELATED SUICIDES SURPASS GUN HOMICIDES IN 2025: Preliminary data from the Maryland Department of Health shows that suicides involving firearms in Maryland overtook gun homicides in 2025. Ijeoma Opara of Capital News Service/Maryland Reporter.
FINAL TRACKS OF PURPLE LINE LAID; OPENING SET FOR LATE 2027: Gov. Wes Moore (D) was in elementary school when the state’s Purple Line — the 16-mile light rail that will connect parts of Montgomery and Prince George’s counties — was conceived in the late ’80s. On Thursday, he and a pack of local and state officials laid the final tracks on the line, tapping the purple rail spikes in with purple hammers. It will open to the public, officials said, in late 2027 due to testing and safety requirements. Sophia Solano/The Washington Post.
BUSINESS GROWTH MAY NOT BE AS BRIGHT AS MOORE STATES: Gov. Wes Moore has repeatedly highlighted Maryland’s business growth, saying last week that the state has added more than 55,000 new businesses and attracted 85 foreign companies since he took office. But federal labor data shows that claim relies on a metric that does not account for business closures, job losses or whether those companies are still operating — factors economists said are important in evaluating the state’s economic health. Mennatalla Ibrahim/The Baltimore Sun.
OPIOID DEATHS DECREASE 57% SINCE COVID: Opioid-related overdose deaths in Maryland have decreased by 57% since an increase during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a Capital News Service data analysis. Maryland had over 2,500 opioid-related-overdose deaths in 2020, according to the data. The state’s total for last year was just over 1,000. Stella Canino-Quiñones of Capital News Service/Maryland Reporter.
SUPREMES COULD IMPERIL MARYLANDERS’ ACCESS TO ABORTION MEDS: Every month, an estimated 500-plus Marylanders receive abortion medication that was mailed to them after a telehealth medical visit, a convenient method for terminating unwanted pregnancies that has been growing since 2022. But abortion advocates say a Supreme Court case reviewing mail access for mifepristone, part of a two-drug regimen used for both medication abortions and miscarriage care, could threaten the ability of Marylanders to get abortion medication by mail. Danielle Brown/Maryland Matters.
BA CO COUNCILMAN WADE KACH, FORMER LONGTIME DELEGATE, ABRUPTLY RESIGNS: Baltimore County Councilman Wade Kach, 79, the longest-serving Republican in Maryland history who has represented the northernmost reaches of the district for 12 years, has resigned effective immediately. Kach, who has been ill for months and rarely attended meetings in person this year, said his resignation was effective Thursday. But his colleagues learned of his departure only Friday night. Prior to his election to the council, he served in the Maryland House of Delegates for 40 years. Rona Kobell/The Baltimore Banner.
PENSION BOARD SEEKS PUBLIC TRUSTEES: The Board of Trustees for the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission Employees’ Retirement System (ERS) is seeking two trustees, one each from Montgomery County and Prince George’s County. Public Trustees serve a three-year term, from July 1, 2026 – June 30, 2029. The Board holds fiduciary oversight of the ERS for the sole benefit of members and beneficiaries. County residents interested in serving must submit a statement of qualifications and resume, by 5:00 p.m. on May 27, 2026 to [email protected]. For more information, contact [email protected] or (301) 454-1415 or visit us at ers.mncppc.org.
TAXPAYERS TOLD TO EXPECT DELAYS IN STATE REFUNDS: Taxpayers are being told to expect delays getting their money back, with the Comptroller of Maryland warning on the agency’s website that paper returns could take up to 30 days due to budget constraints and staff reductions — a slowdown economists say could strain cash flow for small businesses. Lorraine Mirabella/The Baltimore Sun.
COLUMN: STANDING OUT IN A CROWDED FIELD FOR HOYER’s SEAT: Rep. Steny Hoyer is leaving Congress after four decades, and all the pent-up political ambition in his district avalanched into this crowded race — 23 Democrats (down from 24), three Republicans, two independents, plus one retired federal stenographer running as a write-in. An overwhelming Democratic majority in Prince George’s makes the June 23 Democratic primary victor Hoyer’s likely successor, swamping Anne Arundel, Calvert, Charles and St. Mary’s counties. Rick Hutzell/The Baltimore Banner.
STATE PARKS TO EXPAND ONLINE RESERVATION SYSTEM: Beginning as soon as this summer, Maryland officials plan to expand the online reservation system that debuted last year at some of the state’s most popular parks, when the state began requiring park users to register in advance to visit five state parks. State park officials say the registration requirement brought a dramatic improvement to long lines, turning away visitors and early park closures. Christine Condon/Maryland Matters.
UMMC PHARMACIST INDICTED FOR COMPUTER CRIMES AGAINST MEDICAL PERSONNEL: The FBI recovered intimate photos of doctors, nurses and pharmacists at one of the country’s premier teaching hospitals, the University of Maryland Medical Center in Baltimore. The stolen photos ranged from simple passport pictures to images of the women undressed at home and pumping breast milk in the hospital exam rooms. Someone had rummaged through their Google photos and emails for keywords such as “sex.” The FBI put the number of victims at almost 200. Tim Prudente/The Baltimore Banner.
OP-ED: MARYLAND’s NEW MEDIA LAW A CURE WORSE THAN THE ILLNESS? Media scholars often assert that the decline in local news media will incentivize government corruption. I agree, but it is sad that Maryland’s newly passed legislation to fix that problem will aggravate it. Passed on the last day of the legislature’s 2026 session, the legislation directs Maryland state agencies to spend 50% of their advertising dollars on local media. The goal behind this legislation is commendable: Strengthening Maryland’s local news media. But this protectionist, pro-incumbent legislation corrupts independent media. Sometimes a cure is worse than the disease. J.H. Snider/Maryland Matters.
HOUSING ISSUES COME TO FORE AT ARUNDEL EXEC CANDIDATES FORUM: Chantel Seetram believed Anne Arundel County was going to be her “start-over place” after moving from Baltimore following significant trauma her family experienced. “It’s been difficult,” she said at a county executive candidate forum Thursday. “Whether it’s jobs not understanding I had a child to take care of and get to therapy three times a week … I kept losing jobs,” she said. “When it came to my housing, that was affected.” Three of the four Democrats running for executive were at the forum hosted by the Anne Arundel Affordable Housing Coalition. Danielle Brown/Maryland Matters.
MARYLAND BETS ON THE SMALLER SPHERE: In Sin City, assaults on the senses rival the grains of sand in the surrounding Mojave Desert. But the Sphere stands out as a different kind of attraction. It overwhelms with its 366-foot-tall, 516-foot-wide omnipresence. Maryland officials are betting that a smaller Sphere in National Harbor will jolt economic development in the region and transform Prince George’s County for years to come. Officials hope to open it by 2030. Hau Chu/The Baltimore Banner.
