AdvertisementBy Baltimore SunApr 20, 2021 at 12:01 amFormer U.S. Education Secretary John King Jr., a Democrat, is launching a campaign for governor of Maryland, joining a nascent but growing field of candidates vying to replace term-limited Republican Gov. Larry Hogan in the 2022 election.AdvertisementKing, who served as education secretary during former President Barack Obama’s second term, said he would run as a progressive candidate for the governorship focused on expanding state investment in education, doing more to combat climate change, spurring growth and addressing racial...…AdvertisementBy Baltimore SunApr 20, 2021 at 12:01 amFormer U.S. Education Secretary John King Jr., a Democrat, is launching a campaign for governor of Maryland, joining a nascent but growing field of candidates vying to replace term-limited Republican Gov. Larry Hogan in the 2022 election.AdvertisementKing, who served as education secretary during former President Barack Obama’s second term, said he would run as a progressive candidate for the governorship focused on expanding state investment in education, doing more to combat climate change, spurring growth and addressing racial...WW…

AdvertisementBy Baltimore SunApr 08, 2021 at 11:53 amBaltimore voters will get to decide whether the city should take back full control of the Baltimore Police Department from the state for the first time since 1860.The question will appear on city ballots in either 2022 or 2024 after legislation setting up the referendum on the status of the Baltimore Police Department sailed through the Maryland General Assembly.AdvertisementState senators on Wednesday unanimously approved the bill, sponsored by Sen. Cory McCray and Del. Melissa Wells, both Baltimore Democrats, sending it to Republican...…AdvertisementBy Baltimore SunApr 08, 2021 at 11:53 amBaltimore voters will get to decide whether the city should take back full control of the Baltimore Police Department from the state for the first time since 1860.The question will appear on city ballots in either 2022 or 2024 after legislation setting up the referendum on the status of the Baltimore Police Department sailed through the Maryland General Assembly.AdvertisementState senators on Wednesday unanimously approved the bill, sponsored by Sen. Cory McCray and Del. Melissa Wells, both Baltimore Democrats, sending it to Republican...WW…

AdvertisementBy Baltimore SunApr 11, 2021 at 9:01 amMaryland lawmakers have described the sweeping, four-part package of policing legislation they passed as the most consequential law enforcement reforms in a half-century. and tough negotiations, the package of bills — dubbed the Maryland Police Accountability Act of 2021 — was framed by leaders in the General Assembly as a response to entrenched distrust of police in communities and decades of activism demanding greater transparency and accountability for law enforcement.Advertisement“Only when we restore trust and integrity are we going...…AdvertisementBy Baltimore SunApr 11, 2021 at 9:01 amMaryland lawmakers have described the sweeping, four-part package of policing legislation they passed as the most consequential law enforcement reforms in a half-century. and tough negotiations, the package of bills — dubbed the Maryland Police Accountability Act of 2021 — was framed by leaders in the General Assembly as a response to entrenched distrust of police in communities and decades of activism demanding greater transparency and accountability for law enforcement.Advertisement“Only when we restore trust and integrity are we going...WW…

AdvertisementBy Baltimore SunApr 08, 2021 at 7:49 pmMaryland Gov. Larry Hogan on Thursday vetoed a bill that abolishes life without parole sentences for juvenile offenders, setting up an override vote in the final days of the annual General Assembly session.Democratic leaders vowed to overturn the veto before their planned adjournment on Monday.AdvertisementThe Republican governor vetoed , a bill that would eliminate sentences of life without parole for juveniles convicted of murder or rape. It also would allow prisoners convicted as juveniles to petition a judge to be released if they’ve...…AdvertisementBy Baltimore SunApr 08, 2021 at 7:49 pmMaryland Gov. Larry Hogan on Thursday vetoed a bill that abolishes life without parole sentences for juvenile offenders, setting up an override vote in the final days of the annual General Assembly session.Democratic leaders vowed to overturn the veto before their planned adjournment on Monday.AdvertisementThe Republican governor vetoed , a bill that would eliminate sentences of life without parole for juveniles convicted of murder or rape. It also would allow prisoners convicted as juveniles to petition a judge to be released if they’ve...WW…

AdvertisementBy Baltimore SunMar 27, 2021 at 8:00 amPersistent public confusion over the name of Maryland’s highest court, the Maryland Court of Appeals, is prompting lawmakers to pursue putting a constitutional amendment before voters that would rebrand the centuries-old institution as the Supreme Court of Maryland.The ballot measure would also redub the arguably equally confusing Maryland Court of Special Appeals, which considers appeals from circuit courts around the state, as the Appellate Court of Maryland. And it would give members of the newly renamed state supreme court the title of...…AdvertisementBy Baltimore SunMar 27, 2021 at 8:00 amPersistent public confusion over the name of Maryland’s highest court, the Maryland Court of Appeals, is prompting lawmakers to pursue putting a constitutional amendment before voters that would rebrand the centuries-old institution as the Supreme Court of Maryland.The ballot measure would also redub the arguably equally confusing Maryland Court of Special Appeals, which considers appeals from circuit courts around the state, as the Appellate Court of Maryland. And it would give members of the newly renamed state supreme court the title of...WW…

AdvertisementBy Baltimore SunMar 26, 2021 at 7:06 pmDr. Robert Redfield, who led the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention under former President Donald Trump and currently serves as an unpaid adviser to Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, said he believes the coronavirus “most likely” escaped from a lab in Wuhan, China — a claim that has been circulated widely but remains unproven.Redfield’s comments, disclosed Friday in with CNN chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta, prompted one of the Maryland legislature’s presiding officers and Asian-American political leaders to call on Hogan...…AdvertisementBy Baltimore SunMar 26, 2021 at 7:06 pmDr. Robert Redfield, who led the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention under former President Donald Trump and currently serves as an unpaid adviser to Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, said he believes the coronavirus “most likely” escaped from a lab in Wuhan, China — a claim that has been circulated widely but remains unproven.Redfield’s comments, disclosed Friday in with CNN chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta, prompted one of the Maryland legislature’s presiding officers and Asian-American political leaders to call on Hogan...WW…

AdvertisementBy Baltimore SunMar 12, 2021 at 7:08 pmThe Maryland House of Delegates overwhelmingly passed a wide-ranging package of policing legislation Thursday evening that would change how law enforcement officers in the state are trained, investigated and disciplined., backed by House Speaker Adrienne A. Jones, would pare back decades-old job protections for officers, overhaul how complaints are handled, add civilians to boards that weigh allegations of misconduct and allow the public to access internal affairs records of individual officers.AdvertisementMany of the proposals in the...…AdvertisementBy Baltimore SunMar 12, 2021 at 7:08 pmThe Maryland House of Delegates overwhelmingly passed a wide-ranging package of policing legislation Thursday evening that would change how law enforcement officers in the state are trained, investigated and disciplined., backed by House Speaker Adrienne A. Jones, would pare back decades-old job protections for officers, overhaul how complaints are handled, add civilians to boards that weigh allegations of misconduct and allow the public to access internal affairs records of individual officers.AdvertisementMany of the proposals in the...WW…

AdvertisementBy Baltimore SunFeb 23, 2021 at 6:53 pmPositive results from “several” rapid coronavirus tests at the State House complex kept a number of senators off the chamber floor Tuesday morning and in a precautionary quarantine as lawmakers awaited the results of more accurate tests.Senate President Bill Ferguson announced the positive results to the Senate chamber and said public health officials have begun extensive contact tracing of anyone potentially exposed to the virus.AdvertisementSix of the Senate’s 47 members missed the chamber’s 11 a.m. floor session, although it wasn’t...…AdvertisementBy Baltimore SunFeb 23, 2021 at 6:53 pmPositive results from “several” rapid coronavirus tests at the State House complex kept a number of senators off the chamber floor Tuesday morning and in a precautionary quarantine as lawmakers awaited the results of more accurate tests.Senate President Bill Ferguson announced the positive results to the Senate chamber and said public health officials have begun extensive contact tracing of anyone potentially exposed to the virus.AdvertisementSix of the Senate’s 47 members missed the chamber’s 11 a.m. floor session, although it wasn’t...WW…

AdvertisementBy Baltimore SunFeb 11, 2021 at 6:50 pmMaryland Gov. Larry Hogan continued to lament a shortage of COVID-19 vaccine doses provided by the federal government as he announced plans Thursday to launch another mass clinic and defended the state’s approach to distribution.The Republican governor announced a number of measures in response to what he called an improved landscape — lower numbers of cases, hospitalizations and deaths, and lower positivity rates. But Hogan also warned the state is not out of the woods and emphasized the need to ensure vaccine distribution is...…AdvertisementBy Baltimore SunFeb 11, 2021 at 6:50 pmMaryland Gov. Larry Hogan continued to lament a shortage of COVID-19 vaccine doses provided by the federal government as he announced plans Thursday to launch another mass clinic and defended the state’s approach to distribution.The Republican governor announced a number of measures in response to what he called an improved landscape — lower numbers of cases, hospitalizations and deaths, and lower positivity rates. But Hogan also warned the state is not out of the woods and emphasized the need to ensure vaccine distribution is...WW…

AdvertisementBy Baltimore SunFeb 12, 2021 at 5:42 amFor years, activists and a handful of Maryland lawmakers have tried and failed to nix the state’s Law Enforcement Officers’ Bill of Rights, a 1974 act that enshrines in state law certain job protections and due process rights for police officers accused of misconduct.Now, what long appeared an uphill battle looks increasingly likely to reach its goal: that Maryland’s General Assembly will repeal the law, which critics have said goes beyond guaranteeing due process rights to shielding dirty officers from discipline.AdvertisementHouse...…AdvertisementBy Baltimore SunFeb 12, 2021 at 5:42 amFor years, activists and a handful of Maryland lawmakers have tried and failed to nix the state’s Law Enforcement Officers’ Bill of Rights, a 1974 act that enshrines in state law certain job protections and due process rights for police officers accused of misconduct.Now, what long appeared an uphill battle looks increasingly likely to reach its goal: that Maryland’s General Assembly will repeal the law, which critics have said goes beyond guaranteeing due process rights to shielding dirty officers from discipline.AdvertisementHouse...WW…