MOORE JOINS DEM GOVs IN URGING FEDERAL AID ON ASYLUM SEEKERS: Nine Democratic governors, including Maryland’s Wes Moore, sent a letter to President Biden and congressional leaders Monday, requesting federal aid and urging changes to immigration law as their states take in an overwhelming number of asylum seekers. Ariana Figueroa/Maryland Matters.
INSURRECTION INVOLVEMENT TO BE LITMUS TEST FOR ELECTIONS BOARD: Maryland Senate President Bill Ferguson said Republican appointees to the State Board of Elections will have to answer questions about involvement in the failed Jan. 6 insurrection following the recent arrest of a board member. On Tuesday, he said the process by which the Senate reviews and confirms appointments will not change in the near term. The questions about personal involvement in Jan. 6 and a nominee’s personal beliefs about elections will be litmus tests, he said. Bryan Sears/Maryland Matters.
REPUBLICAN LAWMAKERS SEEK REPEAL OF POT ODOR LAW: Republicans are pushing to repeal a controversial Maryland law that prohibits police from pulling over and searching drivers simply because they smell of marijuana, but Democratic leaders say they aren’t interested in dramatic changes to the state’s cannabis legislation this year. Angelique Gingras of Capital News Service/Maryland Reporter.
***The performances of Dan Rodricks’ new play, Baltimore Docket, debuting in February are about sold out. Check here to see if any are still available.***
THRIVE COACHES SEEK TO AID AT-RISK KIDS IN JUVIE JUSTICE SYSTEM: Pastor Ebony Harvin is one of more than 14 coaches tapped for a new program Gov. Wes Moore (D) and other Maryland leaders hope will address the needs of at-risk children in the juvenile justice system to turn them away from gun violence — either as a perpetrator or a victim. The state partners with established community organizations to draw in Thrive coaches, who are already working with youths or mentoring others. Jasmine Hilton/The Washington Post.
WA CO COMMUNITY, OFFICIALS OUTLINE PRIORITIES IN ANNAPOLIS: A contingent of community leaders and elected officials from Washington County took seats on the floor of the Maryland House of Delegates Tuesday afternoon to hear from the state’s top lawmakers, bringing the jurisdiction’s priorities to Annapolis. Dwight Weingarten/The Hagerstown Herald Mail.
NATIONAL POLITICAL REFORM PAC BACKS ALSOBROOKS FOR SENATE: The political action committee for End Citizens United // Let America Vote, a national advocacy group looking to get big money out of politics and fighting to strengthen voting protections, will endorse Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrooks (D) Wednesday in the May 14 Democratic primary for U.S. Senate. Josh Kurtz/Maryland Matters.
JUDGE DENIES DNR MOTION ON FOES OF YOUGH BRIDGE REPLACEMENT: The Maryland Department of Natural Resources cannot stop opponents of the Swallow Falls bridge replacement plan from making their case in court. Garrett County Circuit Court visiting Judge W. Timothy Finan made that ruling Monday when he denied DNR’s motion to dismiss a petition that involves the state-protected Youghiogheny River corridor. Teresa McMinn/The Cumberland Times News.
FEDERAL COURT UPHOLDS ARUNDEL GUN SAFETY LAW: A federal appeals court has upheld an Anne Arundel County law requiring gun dealers to distribute suicide prevention and conflict resolution literature. A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit on Tuesday rejected an appeal by a gun rights group and four store owners of a 2022 ruling by U.S. District Court Judge Stephanie A. Gallagher stating the county could have the requirement. Royale Bonds/The Baltimore Banner.
OVERTIME IN THE B’MORE POLICE DEPARTMENT: In spring 2022, a Baltimore Police officer worked 22.75 hours of overtime in one day — eight hours for the department and nearly 15 hours of casino security and speed camera-related secondary employment. It was one of three separate instances that fiscal year when the officer worked more than 20 hours of overtime in a single day, according to a state audit of the police department’s overtime released on Monday. Darcy Costello/The Baltimore Sun.
VIGNARAJAH THROWS HAT INTO RACE FOR B’MORE MAYOR, AGAIN: Pledging to run a “different” kind of campaign, Thiru Vignarajah, a former prosecutor and past candidate for Baltimore mayor, will announce a second bid for the office today. Emily Opilo/The Baltimore Sun.
- The former deputy attorney general for Maryland and now four-time candidate for office in Baltimore said he was pushed to enter the race after two major events last week: the latest batch of campaign finance reports from his rivals, which he was less than impressed by, and the purchase of the Baltimore Sun by David Smith, the executive chairman of Sinclair Inc. Emily Sullivan/The Baltimore Banner.
LOAN UNDERWRITERS TESTIFY IN MOSBY TRIAL: A series of loan underwriters testified Tuesday in the federal mortgage fraud trial of former Baltimore State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby, providing critical, if expected, evidence for the prosecution’s case. The underwriters said their companies relied on the information Mosby provided in mortgage applications for a pair of properties in Florida in deciding to issue her loans for hundreds of thousands of dollars to buy the homes. Alex Mann/The Baltimore Sun.
- Mosby, a Democrat who was in office as Baltimore state’s attorney from 2015-2023, has pleaded not guilty and maintains her innocence. Her attorneys contend that Mosby was a novice when it came to real estate and that she acted in good faith and committed no crime. Dylan Segelbaum/The Baltimore Banner.
EVENING SUN PULITZER WINNER JON FRANKLIN DIES AT 82: Jon Franklin, a journalist and author who intertwined detail-driven reporting and a storyteller’s flair for narrative during a career highlighted by two Pulitzer Prizes for medical-based stories at the Baltimore Evening Sun, died Jan. 21 in Annapolis. He was 82. Brian Murphy/The Washington Post.
