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Baltimore prosecutors drop cases of 25 Maryland corrections officers charged under gang statute with using excessive force
August 15, 2022 -

Baltimore prosecutors have dropped the charges against 25 state correctional officers accused in 2019 of using excessive force against inmates and functioning as a criminal enterprise in jails around the city. Several defense attorneys representing the officers, all of whom were part of a specialized tactical unit, questioned how the officers were charged under the state’s gang statute in the first place. The lawyers told The Baltimore Sun their clients’ lives were upended because of allegations that wouldn’t stand up in court.

Read More: Baltimore Sun
‘We’re resilient’: Smith Island residents stick together after tornado tears through area
August 15, 2022 -

The week following the devastating EF-1 tornado has felt utterly surreal to Smith Island residents — most of whom are still reeling from the frightening ordeal. To some, life, at present, feels like a movie. As recovery efforts progress and donations continue to pour in, Delmarva may rest assured that this calamity, although brimming with panic and fear, could have been much worse. The small, coastal community was caught in the path of a destructive tornado that tore through the island on Aug. 4, 2022. “What you see in the movies is how it really played out,” said EMS Captain Janet Tyler.

Read More: Delmarva Now
Early results on DNA evidence from decades-old rape cases are both promising and alarming
August 15, 2022 -

Baltimore County police are starting to get back test results from a long-delayed project to process the oldest known collection of DNA evidence from rape cases. Last year, ProPublica wrote about the trove of evidence and the prescient doctor who began assembling it in the 1970s, long before preserving forensic evidence was common police practice. Police have processed DNA from 49 of about 1,800 remaining cases as of the first quarter of this year, according to a department memo obtained through a public information request and follow-up communications with a sergeant in charge of the cold case unit. Ten of the 49 cases yielded actionable DNA profiles, according to the sergeant.

Read More: The Baltimore Banner
It’s time the Catholic church recognized Black American saints
August 15, 2022 -

Maryland is sometimes referred to as the “cradle of Catholicism” in the United States. But it has not always gently rocked its Black believers. For many of them, being Catholic has often meant keeping the faith despite racism within the confines of the Church. Archbishop William Lori, leader of the Archdiocese of Baltimore, has acknowledged that in a series of pastoral statements in recent years, spurred in large measure by the unrest that followed Freddie Gray’s death from an injury suffered in police custody. He established a Journey for Racial Justice Coordinating Council last year to oversee efforts at reconciliation and healing.

Read More: The Baltimore Banner
Baltimore’s Enoch Pratt libraries add another service to their shelves: addiction services
August 15, 2022 -

On a recent day, a man in a red shirt came into the Pennsylvania Avenue branch of the Baltimore library system and thanked the workers for saving his life. “He got Narcan from the library,” said Donna Bruce, a peer recovery supervisor for the Enoch Pratt Free Library System. “He came in to say thanks. To the library. And then he went to work.” Narcan is a brand name for naloxone, a remedy for opioid overdoses, and Bruce, with a sigh of satisfaction, said it’s a measure of success for a program launched in December at the branch that has aided hundreds of people and families affected by substance use and mental health issues.

Read More: Baltimore Sun
Filled with firsts, the Peale reopens its historic doors as a community museum
August 12, 2022 -

Jeffrey Kent might be the chief curator at the Peale Museum, but as an artist living in Baltimore for more than 40 years, he’s ashamed he only heard about the institution five years ago. “It needs to be elevated and amplified that we have this jewel of a museum in our city,” Kent, 59, said. The Peale preserves Baltimore’s stories through narratives, artwork, in-person exhibits and online experiences. The building located in downtown Baltimore houses 208 years of Charm City history.

Read More: Baltimore Sun
Broken AC systems, other building woes close 1 in 4 city library branches in heat of summer
August 12, 2022 -

On a sweltering Tuesday afternoon, Chante Richardson walked up two flights of concrete steps, past a sign reading “Happy 100th birthday Govans Branch!” and to a book drop that was filled to the brim with hardbacks and DVDs. Richardson couldn’t fit the two volumes she was trying to return past a bulky copy of William Faulkner’s “Absalom, Absalom!” and dozens of other books haphazardly jammed into the bin. With the doors of the Govans branch of the Enoch Pratt Free Library locked, the 33-year-old Baltimore resident was not able to take back books she had checked out for her goddaughter or pick up scanned documents she had accidentally left last time she was there.

Read More: The Baltimore Banner
Harford County agencies debut CORE trailer for drug prevention education for youth
August 12, 2022 -

The Harford County Sheriff’s Office, Harford County Office of Drug Control Policy, Aberdeen Proving Ground Federal Credit Union and the Harford County Sheriff’s Foundation have joined together to create the CORE trailer (Community OutReach Effort). The CORE trailer is a mobile educational platform that allows county agencies to take drug use prevention messages, in the form of interactive scenario-based lessons, directly to middle- and high-school-age youth in the community. On Thursday, Harford County leaders took a tour of the new unit at the Harford County Sheriff’s Office Southern Precinct in Edgewood. Elementary school students in the Sheriff’s Office Pledge awareness program demonstrated the interactive educational tools available inside the CORE trailer.

Read More: Baltimore Sun
The Crate Gatsby Instagram profile is a crash course on Baltimore’s musical legacy
August 12, 2022 -

Streaming services reached over 80 million U.S. listeners in the first half of 2021, but the most popular services, such as Apple Music, Spotify and Tidal, are mostly only useful for listening to contemporary music and older material that was released by — at the very least — moderately successful labels. What these platforms don’t provide is a healthy selection of music that didn’t circulate much outside of its home region, and the majority of valuable music that local artists have released throughout history stands a chance of falling into the abyss.

Read More: The Baltimore Banner
Average price for regular gas in Maryland drops below $4 per gallon
August 11, 2022 -

The price of gasoline in Maryland continued to drop on Wednesday, with regular unleaded fuel in the state priced below $4 per gallon. The average price for regular gas in the state was $3.98 per gallon, according to AAA. This is the first time since April 18 that the price averaged under $4 in Maryland. The state was in a 30-day gas tax holiday when prices were last below $4 per gallon. Gov. Larry Hogan signed the bill on March 18 and it gave drivers some relief at the pump through April 16.

Read More: WBAL NewsRadio

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