Tuesday, May 7, 2013
The results of the Quinnipiac University poll come as proponents of reinstating the death penalty in Maryland say the law is needed because of incidents such as the Boston Marathon bombing.
Americans support the death penalty for terrorists, according to a national poll released by Quinnipiac University. The national survey found that 63 percent favored the death penalty for someone convicted of murder involving an act of terrorism compared to 32 percent who said they opposed capital punishment. The results of the poll come as political leaders including Baltimore County State's Attorney Scott Shellenberger, a Democrat, and Washington County Republican Del. Neil Parrott announced a plan to collect more than 55,000 signatures in order to reinstate the death penalty in Maryland. "One only has to look back to Oklahoma City, Aurora, CO, Newtown, CT, and the recent massacre in Boston to recognize that if these crimes were …
Thursday, February 21, 2013
A bill to repeal capital punishment is expected to pass out of a Senate committee with the vote of the Baltimore County Democrat.
The effort to repeal the death penalty in Maryland was stalled by the vote of one Baltimore County Democratic senator but it may pass this year because of another. Sen. Bobby Zirkin said he will vote in favor of a bill that repeals capital punishment in the state. "I'm forever torn on this issue, have been and probably always will be," Zirkin said in an interview Thursday. "I'm extremely jealous of people who fall comfortably on one side of the debate or the other." In the end, Zirkin said he made the decision to vote for repealing capital punishment based on testimony of some victims who said the death penalty provided little closure because of lengthy appeals and that the state hasn't executed anyone in nearly a decade. Zirkin said the …
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
State Sen. Allan Kittleman wants voting sessions recorded, a Prince George's County senator suffers a basketball injury and two Baltimore County legislators team up to shorten the wait to get a divorce.
A proposal by Baltimore City to secure hundreds of millions in state money for school construction is missing a key ingredient, according to Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller, Jr. "The state needs to have a role in school construction," Miller said. Baltimore City wants the state to guarantee as much as $30 million a year for 20 years in the form of block grants for school construction and renovations. The city will then use that promise to leverage borrowing $1 billion for its plan. Miller rejects the plan saying it's a lot of money and that the state is needed to provide a check and balance to potential malfeasance and corruption. "I'm a historian, I study all history, OK," Miller said. "Whenever you have a one-sided government you …
Friday, November 9, 2012
Baltimore County State Sens. Jim Brochin and Delores Kelley and two other lawsuits challenged that the maps were not legally drawn.
The state's highest court has upheld state legislative redistricting maps drawn earlier this year. The one-page ruling does state that the court "determined that the Governor’s plan is consistent with the requirements of the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of Maryland." Details behind the courts decision will be provided at a later date, according to the court ruling. Sens. Jim Brochin and Delores Kelley were involved in one of three suits against the redistricting plan on which the court heard arguments on Wednesday. The Democrats claim the new districts violate the Maryland Constitution and a 2002 Court of Appeals ruling that governs redistricting. The suit alleges that Gov. Martin O'Malley and the General Assembly…
Wednesday, May 2, 2012
A suit filed by Democratic Senators Delores Kelley and Jim Brochin says the plan violates the Maryland Constitution and protects the political voice of Baltimore City at the expense of Baltimore County.
UPDATED (1:13 p.m.)—Two Baltimore County state senators have filed suit in the state Court of Appeals seeking to overturn Maryland's recently enacted legislative redistricting plan. Democratic Senators Jim Brochin and Delores Kelley, in a suit filed Tuesday, claim the new districts violate the Maryland Constitution and a 2002 Court of Appeals ruling that governs redistricting. A copy of the lawsuit is attached to this story. The suit is one of four seeking to overturn Gov. Martin O'Malley's redistricting plan. At the heart of the 17-page complaint are allegations that the commission that redrew the state's 47 legislative districts unfairly protected the city's political power in Annapolis, while diluting the county's representation. "For …
George Young
1:03 am on Thursday, May 9, 2013
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