The top local news headlines from Yahoo! News - Yahoo! News

Jury rejects claim in case of 7-year-old arrested for dirt-bike violation

Mother claimed Baltimore police acted improperly, but Howard County jury declines to award damages A Howard County Circuit Court jury rejected a civil lawsuit against six Baltimore police officers brought by the mother of a 9-year-old boy arrested for illegally riding a dirt bike and who was later handcuffed to a bench at police headquarters. Full Story;

Several senators oppose Grasmick's school reform plan

Several Maryland senators are balking at the state schools superintendent's proposals to alter teacher tenure and compensation as a way to win millions of dollars in federal funding — a signal that education reforms could become a major topic of debate in the legislative session. Full Story;

City prosecutors drop charges against community leader

Mix-up cited after police said Union Square group head interfered in sex crime probe Prosecutors have dropped charges against a community leader who was arrested and given a citation for impeding a police investigation. Full Story;

Obama to visit Baltimore next Friday for House GOP retreat

All comments must be approved by the blog author. Please do not resubmit comments if they do not immediately appear. You are not required to use your full name when posting, but you should use a real e-mail address. Comments may be republished in print, but we will not publish your e-mail address. Full Story;

City's Senate delegation backs Young as council president

Annie Linskey covers the statehouse for The Baltimore Sun . Previously, as a City Hall reporter, she covered the corruption trial of Mayor Sheila Dixon and kept a close eye on city spending. Full Story;

YOUR COMMENTS

Since I've been back in civilization, I keep running into old friends who still assume I am out in the wilderness. I can understand the simple equation of no blog posts + no public appearances = he's still out on the trail. Full Story;

YOUR COMMENTS

ANNAPOLIS, MD (Thursday, January 21, 2010) -- Navy's men's and women's ice hockey teams will both be in action this weekend, with the men playing a pair of league games at the University of Delaware and the women hosting a pair of opponents at the McMullen Hockey Arena in the Brigade Sports Complex (BSC). Full Story;

County police lieutenant charged with child pornography

A county police lieutenant was charged today with a federal child pornography crime involving a teenage girl, according to the State's Attorney's Office. Full Story;

Local contingent completes 'Goofy' running challenge

The weekend of Jan. 9-10 was the culmination of an almost year-long quest for a group of 13 Annapolis area runners. This was to be no ordinary marathon weekend. This group had trained to complete a half marathon on Saturday and a full marathon on Sunday for a weekend total of 39.3 miles. Full Story;

Political Notes: Maryland Tea Party star hopes to unseat Hoyer

EDITOR'S NOTE: Political Notes is a periodic compilation of announcements. It didn't take much for Charles Lollar to fire up the audience as one of the first speakers at last week's Tea Party rally in Annapolis. Full Story;

Family Of 7-Yr-Old Arrested Loses Court Case

A Howard County jury rules in favor of the Baltimore City Police Department after the family of a seven-year-old, arrested by police, filed a $40-million lawsuit. Full Story;

Md. Man Accused Of Stealing Detained Brother's ID

St. Mary's County authorities say they have arrested a man who stole the identity of his incarcerated brother. Full Story;

Officer Charged in 'Sexting' Case

An Anne Arundel County police lieutenant is facing a federal child pornography charge. Full Story;

Group Decries Campaign Finance Ruling

A liberal lobbying group in Maryland is denouncing the Supreme Court's campaign finance ruling. Full Story;

Md. Man Loses 11 Family Members While In Haiti

A Baltimore man is home after spending the past month in his home country of Haiti where he lost many of his family members in the massive earthquake. Full Story;

More Md. Foreclosures Due To Economy, Not Banks

State officials are blaming new foreclosure filings in Maryland on the poor economy. Full Story;

Police Lieutenant Charged In Sexting Case

An Anne Arundel County police lieutenant is facing a federal child pornography charge. Full Story;

Grasmick Lobbies For Teacher Pay, Tenure Changes

At least two proposals that could affect teacher pay and their time on the job are getting some attention in Annapolis. Full Story;

I-Team: City Possibly Underpaid Pensions

The 11 News I-Team has learned that a whole new problem brewing with the city's police and fire pension system could put taxpayers on the hook for another $38 million on top of the big pension bill already on the table. Full Story;

Bill Would Require Sterilizing Dangerous Dogs

The owners of dogs deemed dangerous by local authorities would be required to spay or neuter their animals within 30 days of receiving notice of the canine's designation, under a bill proposed by a Maryland lawmaker. Full Story;

MD Seeks Short-term Advances For Unemployment

Maryland is seeking advances from the U.S.Treasury to ensure that qualified residents can keep getting unemployment benefits. Full Story;

Local Teacher Killed in Haiti

The victim is an artist who studied and taught at the Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore. Full Story;

Johns Hopkins Doctors Helping in Haiti

Several Johns Hopkins doctors are now in Haiti helping to care for those seriously hurt in the devastating earthquake last week. Full Story;

Drinking Age Debate

One local expert debates drinking age at Vt. Statehouse. Full Story;

Baltimore Tops 100 DNA Database Arrests

The Baltimore City Police Department is celebrating a milestone in the fight against crime. The department is the first agency in the state to make more 100 arrests using the... Full Story;

Firm will remove Bible references from gun sights

A Michigan defense contractor will voluntarily stop stamping references to Bible verses on combat rifle sights made for the U.S. military, a major buyer of the company’s gear. In a statement released Thursday, Trijicon of Wixom, Mich., says it is also providing to the armed forces free of charge modification kits to remove the Scripture citations [...] Full Story;

Air America Radio closing, filing for bankruptcy

Air America Radio, a radio network that was launched in 2004 as a liberal alternative to Rush Limbaugh and other conservative commentators, on Thursday shut down abruptly due to financial woes. The network once boasted hosts such as Al Franken and Rachel Maddow, but struggled from the outset, including multiple management shake-ups, a bankruptcy in 2006 [...] Full Story;

Tax amnesty program nets $26M for state

Maryland’s two-month tax amnesty program that ran last year has been nearly three times as effective as was previously expected. Deputy Comptroller Linda Tanton said during a Wednesday briefing for the House Ways and Means Committee that the amnesty has raised about $26 million, and is still bringing in money as taxpayers continue to pay [...] Full Story;

Legg’s shares fall 10 percent after big 3Q outflows

Wall Street reacted negatively to news Thursday that Legg Mason Inc. continued to have clients pull money from its funds last quarter. Shares fell 9.9 percent, or $3.11, to close at $28.32 after the Baltimore-based firm reported outflows of about $33 billion for the final three months of 2009, the company’s third fiscal quarter. Assets [...] Full Story;

Rawlings-Blake emphasizes need for transparency

When Stephanie Rawlings-Blake becomes mayor of Baltimore on Feb. 4, she will bring to City Hall an agenda full of revisions to the details of the previous administration’s list of projects and priorities, but nothing in the way of seismic changes in how the city is run. In an hour-long interview with reporters and editors [...] Full Story;

Haiti benefit

The Southeast Area Soccer Kids will collect donations for the Haitian Disaster Fund starting at their first game at 9 a.m. on Saturday, Jan. 23. The donation buckets will be placed at the Southeast Regional Rec. Center, 4021 North Point Blvd., at all soccer games throughout the rest of the month. For more information, contact Don Kellner at 410-227-8462. Full Story;

Auction of Seagram’s property is canceled

Vontran’s VO LLC files for bankruptcy by Randy Leonard One business day before the former Seagram’s Distillery property at 7101 Sollers Point Road was set to be auctioned, the company that owns it filed for bankruptcy protection. That is why an auction of the property, which had been set for Tuesday, was canceled, according to James B. Larrimore, trustee under a deed for the property signed in ... Full Story;

AES Corp. files for rehearing of LNG court decision

Battle continues over Sparrows Point proposal by Randy Leonard Last week the company that is seeking to place a liquefied natural gas facility at Sparrows Point appealed a court panel ruling that, if unchallenged, could have blocked the project. On Friday, Virginia-based AES Corp. filed to appeal the Dec. 22 decision of a panel of judges from the U.S. 4th Circuit Court of Appeals. That decision ... Full Story;

Chamber Gala

More than 100 members and guests attended the Dundalk Chamber of Commerce’s annual Snowball Gala and Installation at Sparrows Point Country Club on Saturday night. Emcee Scott Gardner of Duda-Ruck Funeral Home offered a welcome and introduced board members and officers who were sworn in by Circuit Judge Patrick Stringer, followed by remarks from Chamber president Deborah Cornely of The Eagle and ... Full Story;

Sonshine seeks donations for Haiti relief

by Steve Matrazzo In the wake of the Jan. 12 earthquake in Haiti, there have been many appeals for charitable donations, leaving potential donors wondering where and how to best direct their generosity. ( Read more on Church News ) Full Story;

Roller derby to debut

They call her Cannonball Hun. She wears thick, pink-rimmed glasses, a ripped purple T-shirt, black knee pads and roller skates with pink wheels. Full Story;

Car dealer charged with theft

A former manager at a Westminster car dealership has been charged with having customers sign fraudulent contracts and stealing the down payments for vehicles. Full Story;

Schools hold out hope for funds

It may have not been a “hope-a-thon,” but Carroll school officials were hopeful that they would receive additional funds for school construction projects in their annual appeal before the Board of Public Works Wednesday. Full Story;

Police look for missing Sykesville teen

Maryland State Police continued to search Wednesday night for a missing Sykesville teenager. Full Story;

Budget increases aid to Carroll

ANNAPOLIS — Gov. Martin O’Malley’s proposed state budget would increase total aid to Carroll County by more than $2 million from last year. Full Story;

Murder Ink

Murder Ink by Anna Ditkoff: Murders this week: 0 Murders this year: 5 There were no murders in Baltimore this past week through Friday, Jan. 15, the last date for inclusion in this column due to an early holiday deadline.... Full Story;

Another Thing to Miss About Bob--He Was Always Good for Mail

The Mail: As many grassroots organizations do, the Baltimore Green Party has changed a lot since the departure of Bob Kaufman ("A. Robert Kaufman," Mobtown Beat, Jan. 6).  Not having been a member of the party or a city resident at the time he withdrew himself from the party, I can't comment on the speci... Full Story;

Councilmania: Keeping Tabs On The City Council's Activities So You Don't Have To

Councilmania by Andrea Appleton and Edward Ericson Jr.: On the Agenda for Jan. 11 Bill 10-0436 BMore Streets for People Program--Establishment Would establish the BMore Streets for People Program, allowing for periodic street closures throughout the city for use by pedestrians and cyclists. The Read: Councilwoman Mary Pat Clarke (D-14th Distri... Full Story;

Thinking Outside The Boxes: Proposal to bring big-box stores to Remington thrills some residents, chills others

Mobtown Beat by Andrea Appleton: Normally, a developer with a project the size of the $65 million retail and housing development proposed for 25th and Howard streets in lower Remington would request financial incentives from the city. After all, the current plans call for a Lowes home-improvement store, a grocery store, an Anna's... Full Story;

Bmore Publisher Pitched Proposal for Taxpayer Funding

The News Hole by Van Smith: Since Jan. 13, when City Paper mistakenly reported that the City of Baltimore awarded a $10,000, one-year contract to the online publication Bmore, new information has come to light about the deal, which was pulled from the Jan. 13 Board of Estimates agenda at the last minute. First Deputy Mayor And... Full Story;

Budget Opponents Rally In Annapolis

A week ago, demonstrators from the Tea Party movement filled Lawyer's Mall in Annapolis calling for cuts in government spending and taxes. Yesterday, state employees and mental health advocates took over, calling for more taxes and spending. WYPR's Joel McCord reports. Full Story;

O'Malley Budget Proposal Includes Layoffs

Governor Martin O'Malley unveiled yesterday his $13.2 billion spending plan for the fiscal year that starts in July. WYPR's Joel McCord was there and has this report. Full Story;

The "Two Mikes" Make Peace In Annapolis

An era of peace has descended on Annapolis, as the Two Mikes who run the General Assembly - Democrats Mike Miller and Mike Busch - stare down November elections and tough budget battles. When both men are singing in legislative harmony, almost anything is possible. But when the two are out of tune, as they have been on slots, watch out. WYPR's Tom LoBianco has this report. Full Story;

Absence of Fathers Felt By Local Youth

Since 1980, the total number of families in Baltimore has dropped to 126-thousand, according to the Census Bureau. Married couples with children 18-years-old and younger have also declined from about 51-thousand to 21-thousand. That's compared far less than the number of children of non-married parents and single-female headed households.In this part of our series, "Growing Up Baltimore," WYPR's ... Full Story;

Photo Highlight Slideshow

A model wears a creation by Indonesian fashion designer Ali Charisma during Hong Kong Fashion Week. AFP/Mike Clarke

Opinions & Editorials: Diverse views on news from the right, left, and center.

Technorati Tags: blue water beach