Maryland’s chief cannabis regulator said he’ll step down from his post in December, more than a year after setting up the state’s adult-use market and guiding lawmakers through cannabis legalization. Will Tilburg, director of the Maryland Cannabis Administration, has shaped the state’s medical and recreational cannabis rules, educated lawmakers on national best practices and established several first-in-the-nation cannabis policies and standards during his nearly seven-year tenure.

The American Lung Association in Maryland Tuesday announced the start of its 2025-2026 research awards and grants cycle, expanding its research opportunities with two new awards The new awards include a grant supporting research on the impact of indoor air quality on lung health, and a joint research award in partnership with the American Thoracic Society to commemorate the Lung Association’s 120th anniversary.

The decision of two Giant grocery stores in Baltimore to prohibit youths under 17 from shopping after 6 p.m. without adult supervision will materially harm young people and their families and is based on misconceptions about rising youth crime. Prohibiting individuals younger than 17 from shopping after 6 p.m. overlooks the reality that families often rely on their teenagers to go grocery shopping, particularly when they have hectic work schedules or child care responsibilities.

Free pre-K is on the table for every 4-year-old in Baltimore City, giving parents a reprieve as the price of child care soars — even if it sometimes means accepting an open spot outside of a family’s neighborhood school. Baltimore City Public Schools is ahead of the curve in offering what effectively amounts to universal prekindergarten for 4-year-olds, as the district has done for at least a decade.

Medical students training at Baltimore’s Sinai Hospital will get some of their tuition covered by a $10 million gift, the latest local philanthropic grant aimed at offsetting the hefty cost of becoming a doctor. Bloomberg Philanthropies said in July it was awarding a $1 billion grant to Johns Hopkins University so it could offer free tuition to medical school students beginning this fall.

The Frederick Police Department has been using drones to help with certain types of calls and safety situations. Now, it is working on the next step with this versatile technology. “We’re getting ready … within the next year to implement a pretty cool program called Drone as First Responder,” Police Chief Jason Lando recently told the quarterly meeting of the Chief’s Community Advisory Board.

In a landmark Supreme Court ruling, New York Times Co. vs United States in 1971, the nation’s highest court defended the freedom of the press and enabled New York’s premier newspaper and The Washington Post to publish the then-classified Pentagon Papers without punishment. Former President Richard Nixon tried to wield executive authority and prevent their reports, acting like a mad king who wanted to silence his mounting critics in newspapers that held him accountable.

When my mother passed peacefully in her sleep at her Baltimore home in July 2006, a hospice facility advised me to call the police. Two police officers arrived. One said that he intended to call the morgue to arrange for her transport. When I cried uncontrollably at the thought of my mother lying in a morgue, the police officer said he’d arrest me if I didn’t stop.

Heritage Smokehouse has fallen so far behind on its bills that co-owner George Marsh wondered last week if he would be able to find anyone still willing to sell him meat. Since he and his wife, Jenny Marsh, a pastry chef, opened their barbecue restaurant on York Road in 2021, the restaurant and its succulent barbecue, artisanal sausages and decadent cakes and pies have become foodie favorites and frequently named to “best of” lists in the city. (Photo: Christina Tkacik/The Baltimore Banner)

Whether or not the replacement Francis Scott Key Bridge will be fully federally funded — or if the state of Maryland will need to chip in 10% of it — remains to be seen, but one sizable payment that will cover a portion of the rebuild has already landed. The Maryland Transportation Authority received a $350 million insurance payout this month from Chubb, the Key Bridge’s insurer.