Around Maryland

Carroll County government is forging a relationship with Johns Hopkins School of Medicine to hire a medical director who will oversee operations for the county’s new Department of Fire and Emergency Medical Services. The Board of Carroll County Commissioners voted unanimously Thursday to approve a $52,000 annual independent contract with Johns Hopkins, which will hire the position. The medical director will work six to eight hours per week overseeing all operations of the county’s EMS department, but could eventually move to a full-time position, if needed.

People attended a tree dedication ceremony in Howard County on Saturday to honor a man who died trying to rescue someone from the flood waters that ravaged Ellicott City in 2018. Eddison Hermond died while trying to help rescue a woman and her cat behind La Palapa Grill & Cantina while churning, brown waters ripped through Ellicott City's flood-prone downtown. "Eddison was taken too soon by his courageous and unselfish acts during the Ellicott City flood," Blossoms of Hope board chair Joe Barbera said.

A squeegee worker’s defense attorneys called this month’s high-profile killing of a bat-wielding man an act of self-defense for a “14-year-old child paralyzed by fear.” The 48-year-old Hampden man who was killed instigated the confrontation, the attorneys said, when he parked his car, got out with a baseball bat and crossed several lanes of traffic near the Inner Harbor to confront a group of squeegee workers.

The City of Annapolis is implementing new security measures at City Hall. Starting Friday, all visitors will be required to pass through a “100% security checkpoint” at the entrance to the seat of city government at 160 Duke of Gloucester St. Annapolis police officers will conduct the new procedures on all visitors who can either pass through a magnetometer or submit to a wand screening. The equipment is being supplied by the police department.

Jessica Haire maintained her lead over Herb McMillan in the primary race for the Republican nomination for Anne Arundel county executive Thursday following a daylong canvass of mail-in ballots. Haire, an Edgewater Council Council member, received 864 votes and McMillan, a former Annapolis alderman and delegate, received 651 of the more than 2,000 Republican ballots counted. Haire has 13,185 votes (43.4%) compared with McMillan’s 12,108 (39.9%).

All early voting returns have been counted and all 118 election day precincts have reported in Howard County for the 2022 primary. Based on unofficial returns so far, Dan Newberger of Columbia is in the lead in the race for two at-large seats on the Howard County Board of Education, with 12,338 votes (18.49%). Close behind is Jacky McCoy of Columbia, with 11,708 votes (17.55%). In third place so far is Linfeng Chen of North Laurel with 10,235 votes (15.34%), and in fourth is Tudy Adler of Clarksville, with 9,670 (14.49%).

Councilwoman Jessica Fitzwater appears to have secured the Democratic nomination for Frederick County executive, as County Councilman Kai Hagen conceded defeat late Tuesday. Fitzwater would face Maryland Sen. Michael Hough in the Nov. 8 general election for county executive. Hough ran unopposed for the Republican nomination.

Baltimore County is awaiting results in highly competitive primary races that could shake up the county’s political landscape, and days of counting mail-in ballots are still ahead. With Tuesday’s returns counted, Democratic State’s Attorney Scott Shellenberger was narrowly behind progressive challenger Robbie Leonard in his first primary competition since Shellenberger was elected the county’s top prosecutor in 2006.