Maryland State Police are investigating two explosive devices that injured at least two employees in Annapolis and Hanover state buildings on Jan. 6. Annapolis fire crews responded shortly before 1 p.m. to an incident at the Jeffrey building on Francis Street, where an unidentified mailroom employee sustained minor burns to his fingers after opening a […]
Category: Baltimore News
Bernstein Sworn-in, City Leaders Call for Tougher Gun Laws
The city’s new top prosecutor Gregg Bernstein, who proposed tougher legal treatment of violent offenders while on the campaign trail, was sworn in Jan. 3 during a private official event. Bernstein, who is White, won the city’s state’s attorney position after unseating longtime Black incumbent Patricia Jessemy in the heated Democratic primary. He went unopposed […]
FBI Joins Search for N.C. Teen
Baltimore Police say they are “enormously concerned” about a 16-year-old girl from North Carolina visiting family in Baltimore, who has not been seen or heard from since Dec. 28. And they have requested the FBI aid in the search for the missing teen. “We have serious concerns about this case,” said Police Commissioner Frederick H. […]
Community Giving Warms Struggling Family’s Holiday Spirit
People lined up outside Ashley Johnson’s West Baltimore home the evening of Dec. 29, all bearing at least one gift. To her surprise and delight, the “secret Santas”—many of them strangers—placed the gifts under her Christmas tree. The heart-warming spectacle brought the 11-year-old her first Christmas presents this year. Ashley’s mom, Pam Johnson, was diagnosed […]
Black-Led Workers Party Pushes for Statewide Recognition
Members of a local Black grassroots organization say Marylanders need a new type of political party that advocates for the working class. The “community-controlled” Ujima People’s Progressive Party supports a living wage, the reregulation of electricity and other laws that support poor, working residents, says director Nnamdi Lumumba. Lumumba, 40, and a solid core of […]
City Tests ‘Greener’ Ways to Heat City Buildings
The city will continue testing biofuels as a way to heat municipal buildings in a bid community leaders hope will lead to a cleaner and cheaper alternative to heating oil for residents. The Board of Estimates approved an agreement to spend up to $1.32 million for a second phase of burn tests in three city […]
2010 a Stormy Year in Baltimore
From an historic blizzard, a convicted mayor, taunting robocalls, the 2010 census and a string of fires, the year culminating the first decade of the 2000s was a memorable one in Baltimore. January brought the political fall of Baltimore’s first Black female mayor Sheila Dixon, who resigned after a two-month trial resulted in her conviction […]
Nonprofit Aims to ‘Amplify’ Baltimore through Series of Community Discussions
Despite Baltimore’s list of socioeconomic issues and challenges, April Yvonne Garrett, founder and president of the national nonprofit organization Civic Frame, believes the city retains a silver lining. “Every city has something absolutely exquisite about it and I think that there are so many things exquisite about Baltimore,” Garret said during a recent interview with […]
Contest for Welch’s Seat Begins
Two men are expected to speak at City Hall Jan. 4 in a showdown to claim the Baltimore City Council’s empty 9th District seat. William “Pete” Welch and Michael Eugene Johnson will vie for the position vacated by councilwoman veteran Agnes Welch after her recent retirement. The chosen candidate will serve the remainder of her […]
Rawlings-Blake, City Prep for Winter
The city declared two ‘Code Blue’ weather alerts as the first winter snow fell last week. But before meteorologists even predicted the frigid temperatures, Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake was already preparing for a third blizzard. She held a joint news conference with various city agencies late last month to announce “Baltimore is ready for winter.” Her […]
Fundraiser Draws Hundreds at Bourbon Street
On Dec.15, members of Baltimore’s entertainment community gathered at Bourbon Street for a toy drive/fundraiser benefitting over 500 local families. The event, hosted by the Baltimore Entertainment Association, the Carpenter House and AFRO Charities, drew hundreds, including “Real Housewives of Atlanta” personality Greg Leakes and Sen. Catherine Pugh.
Washington Village/Pigtown Struggles to Provide Healthy Food Options
BALTIMORE — Towanda and Nancy Brinson stood, confused, in front of the entrance to the largest corner store in Washington Village, the modest, family-owned Shop N’ Go Food Mart. There was a sign on the door that said the store was closed, even though it was still Saturday afternoon and the store in this Southwest […]

