Daily Record (Baltimore, MD) articles from December 2007

Daily Record (Baltimore, MD) archives from December 2007

Maryland law firms announce staffing changes: December 3, 2007.
December 3, 2007... Byline: The Daily Record Staff Ben Yhim has joined the Baltimore office of McGuireWoods LLP as an associate in the firm's business and securities department. He focuses his practice on complex commercial litigation and construction...

Maryland courts weigh measures to make pro se process less frustrating for all.
December 3, 2007... Byline: Liz Farmer Looking at Elroy A. Richards Jr., you couldn't tell his heart was pounding. His lips and throat were dry, and his mind raced. At the head of the cacophonous courtroom, which had the imposing nature and dramatic feel...

Products liability defense lawyer serves as volunteer firefighter in Lutherville.
December 3, 2007... Byline: Caryn Tamber Timothy L. Mullin Jr. knows his way around a fire scene. It's not just because the Miles & Stockbridge P.C. lawyer has spent 15 years as a products liability defense lawyer handling primarily fire cases, picking...

Outsourcing Christmas: Maryland lawn care companies moving into house-lighting business.
December 3, 2007... Byline: Andy Zieminski Hope Johnson would rather keep her Christmas lights in a box than hire a professional to put them up for her. "I think if that was ever suggested to us as an ultimatum, I think we'd stop doing it altogether,"...

Legal week in review.
December 3, 2007... Byline: Staff and wire reports Court hears Terrapin Run dispute  The fight over a 935-acre tract of land in Allegany County that could decide the future of rural development was played out in Annapolis on Thursday at the Court of...

Medical device manufacturer defeats broker's claim in Baltimore County court.
December 3, 2007... Byline: Brendan Kearney A Washington, D.C., broker is not due any commission for his work on behalf of a Hunt Valley medical device manufacturer that acquired a pair of California companies. Roger Morrison, who contracted with...

Baltimore judge seeks reprimand, not 30-day suspension.
December 3, 2007... Byline: Liz Farmer After starting off its morning by swearing in four new members to the Maryland Bar, the Court of Appeals Friday turned its attention to the opposite end of the spectrum -- a sanctions hearing for Maryland District Judge...

Landlords lose challenge to Montgomery County ordinance.
December 3, 2007... Byline: Christina Doran Landlords in Montgomery County cannot turn away potential tenants solely because of their participation in a federal housing assistance program, the state's highest court has held. The Court of Appeals found...

Roger Staubach, other former athletes share their tips in Baltimore for succeeding in business.
December 3, 2007... Byline: Louis Llovio Former National Football League quarterback Roger Staubach joined a panel of former athletes turned business executives Friday to discuss the parallels between leading teams on the athletic field and in the business...

With grade of 'D,' group says Chesapeake Bay's health is getting worse.
December 4, 2007... Byline: Andy Rosen The health of the Chesapeake Bay is moving in the wrong direction, with pollution levels increasing and no progress on other environmental goals, according to a report released Monday by the Chesapeake Bay Foundation....

Re-regulation isn't feasible, Md. Public Service Commission says.
December 4, 2007... Byline: Andy Rosen The Public Service Commission says it is not feasible to return Maryland's electricity market to the way it was before the 1999 decision to deregulate. The commission late Monday issued its first report on the...

Baltimore-based Murphy Firm almost doubles in size; merger could follow.
December 4, 2007... Byline: Caryn Tamber Walk into most downtown Baltimore law offices and you'll be greeted by a receptionist sitting under a sign that bears the firm's name. Not at The Murphy Firm, where the firm's roster and its name are changing so...

New stadium video system needs Md. Board of Public Works approval.
December 4, 2007... Byline: Louis Llovio Before instillation of a new video system at Oriole Park at Camden Yards can begin, the contract needs to be approved by the state's Board of Public Works, an unexpected step that will make an already tight...

Johns Hopkins University heads National Science Foundation list.
December 4, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff & Wire Reports The Johns Hopkins University performed $1.49 billion in science, medical and engineering research in fiscal year 2006, making it the leading U.S. academic institution in total R&D spending for the...

Catholic Charities partnering with three hospitals to serve Baltimore's Hispanic community.
December 4, 2007... Byline: Karen Buckelew For more than four decades, Baltimore's low income, Spanish-speaking immigrants have sought legal advice, English lessons and other critical resources at the Hispanic Apostolate in Fells Point, and soon they'll find...

Baltimore-based concrete firm wins $1.7M from supplier.
December 4, 2007... Byline: Brendan Kearney A major national cement supplier must pay a defunct Baltimore-based ready-mix concrete company more than $1.76 million for selling substandard material in 2005, a federal jury has decided. Pennsylvania-based...

Md. Court of Appeals adopts IOLTA comparability rule.
December 4, 2007... Byline: Liz Farmer After a contentious hearing this summer and some compromising by representatives of the banking industry and the Maryland Legal Services Corp., the Court of Appeals on Monday unanimously approved a new comparability rule...

Eagle Bancorp Inc. to acquire closely held Fidelity & Trust Financial Corp.
December 4, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff & Wire Reports Eagle Bancorp Inc. said it will acquire closely held Fidelity & Trust Financial Corp. for roughly $48.8 million to expand in the Washington, D.C., area. Fidelity shareholders will receive 0.9202...

Columbia hotel acquired by Arlington, Va.-based Interstate Hotels & Resorts Inc.
December 4, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff & Wire Reports Interstate Hotels & Resorts Inc., an independent hotel management company based in Arlington, Va., said it closed a $118 million acquisition of three hotels from Blackstone Group LP affiliates. The...

Johns Hopkins Children's Center receives grant from Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
December 4, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff & Wire Reports The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has given a $946,000 grant to the Johns Hopkins Children's Center to design a system that visually tracks the tuberculosis bacterium and its response to current...

Columbia-based Fortress International Group buys Rubicon Integration LLC of McLean, Va.
December 4, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff & Wire Reports Fortress International Group, formerly Fortress America Acquisition Corp., a Columbia-based holding company that owns businesses related to the homeland security industry, announced it has acquired...

Williams Scotsman Inc. of White Marsh acquires 225 mobile office and commercial units.
December 4, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff & Wire Reports Williams Scotsman Inc., of White Marsh, a supplier of mobile office and storage units, announced its acquisition of approximately 225 mobile office and commercial units from Riverton, Utah-based...

Federal officials stymied in attempt to demolish buildings near Hagerstown airport runway.
December 4, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff & Wire Reports Federal officials are being stymied in their attempt to demolish a vacant farmhouse and nearby buildings on property near the newly extended runway at Hagerstown Regional Airport. Federal regulators...

New community bank for Frederick, Washington and Montgomery counties.
December 4, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff & Wire Reports A new community bank serving Frederick, Washington and Montgomery counties says it will be headquartered in downtown Frederick. BlueRidge Bank is being organized by a group of prominent Frederick...

Md. Department of Natural Resources wants ideas for land.
December 4, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff & Wire Reports The state Department of Natural Resources is taking suggestions from the public about how to use the 728-acre tract it purchased this year along the Little Blackwater River in Cambridge. Suggestions...

Rockville-based BioReliance Corp. announces new CEO.
December 4, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff & Wire Reports BioReliance Corp. announced that David A. Dodd, non-executive chairman of the board at Stem Cell Sciences plc, was named BioReliance's president, chief executive officer and chairman of the board,...

Baltimore City's Mayor's Office of Employment Development awarded $1M Weinberg grant.
December 4, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff & Wire Reports Baltimore City's Mayor's Office of Employment Development has been awarded a $1 million grant by the Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation Inc. to increase its services to ex-offenders. The grant...

Maryland's governor names eight people to circuit court judgeships.
December 4, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff & Wire Reports Gov. Martin O'Malley named eight people to circuit court judgeships. Three of the appointments are for the Prince George's County Circuit Court: District Court Judges Crystal Mittelstaedt and...

Md. Court of Special Appeals affirms conviction of man who set wife on fire.
December 4, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff & Wire Reports The Court of Special Appeals affirmed the conviction of a man who poured gasoline on his estranged wife, then set her on fire. Roger B. Hargrave appealed his attempted first-degree murder conviction...

Baltimore-based Mason Inc. agrees to Chilean sale.
December 5, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff Banco de Chile, which plans to merge with the Chilean operations of Citigroup Inc., has offered to buy Chilean assets of Legg Mason Inc. Chile's second-largest bank offered $13 million for fund manager Legg Mason...

Info tech hiring expected in the Baltimore area.
December 5, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff A net 18 percent of chief information officers in the Baltimore area expect to hire information technology professionals in the first quarter of 2008, and 5 percent of chief financial officers plan to add...

Md. District Court in Baltimore County sentences caregiver to prison.
December 5, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff Haendel Paul, 27, of Columbia, was sentenced to three years imprisonment, three years probation and a $300 fine after being found guilty in Maryland District Court in Baltimore County of three counts of neglect...

Citigroup unit wins suit's dismissal.
December 5, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff Citigroup Inc.'s Salomon Smith Barney unit, the investment banking arm of the world's largest financial services firm, won dismissal of a suit claiming some advisers and distributors of nine mutual funds charged...

American Civil Liberties Union sues over name check delays.
December 5, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff The American Civil Liberties Union is suing the federal government, claiming the FBI is taking too long doing background checks on immigrants applying for U.S. citizenship. An ombudsman for the U.S. Citizenship...

Md. Court of Appeals hears dispute over daughter's deed to herself.
December 5, 2007... Byline: Liz Farmer Diane M. Figgins lived with her parents for most of her life, even after marrying and having children, and she was the primary caregiver for both during the final years of their lives. "She was always there for her...

Maryland launches effort to lure Scandinavian visitors.
December 5, 2007... Byline: Louis Llovio If Maryland International Marketing Associates has its way, the sound of the Swedish dialect Osrobothnian will be as common at shopping malls and tourist attractions across Maryland as is, well, Baltimorese. The...

Md. Public Service Commission says long-term deals key to stabilizing rates.
December 5, 2007... Byline: Andy Rosen The Public Service Commission could move to stabilize energy rates for residential electric consumers by June, Chairman Steven B. Larsen told state lawmakers Tuesday. Larsen came before the Senate Finance Committee a...

Md. governor turns to CSA's Chief Judge Murphy as his first pick for the state's highest court.
December 5, 2007... Byline: Caryn Tamber Lawyers and judges are praising Gov. Martin O'Malley's selection of Judge Joseph F. Murphy Jr. as the newest member of the state's highest court. O'Malley announced Tuesday that Murphy, the chief judge of the...

Montgomery County Council aproves property tax credit.
December 5, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff By an 8-0 vote, the Montgomery County Council approved a bill to allow a property tax credit for energy-efficient buildings certified by the U.S. Green Buildings Council or equivalent. The bill expands a law...

Montgomery County Council passes tax 'shock' bill.
December 5, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff The Montgomery County Council on Tuesday unanimously approved a bill that will require sellers of homes to provide potential home buyers with an estimate of what their actual property tax bill will be in the...

Baltimore-based Metastorm's new acquisition.
December 5, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff Metastorm Inc., of Baltimore, a developer of business automation and Web-based workflow software, said it acquired Spotlight Data, a New York software company specializing in process data collection and analysis....

Bethesda-based Johnson unit signs deal.
December 5, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff Our Stories Films, of Bethesda, the film studio of Black Entertainment Television founder Robert L. Johnson, said it signed a marketing deal with Cricket Communications Inc., a unit of low-cost wireless carrier...

Nabi Biopharmaceuticals changing name, moving headquarters to Rockville.
December 5, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff Nabi Biopharmaceuticals, which develops products to treat bacterial infection and nicotine addiction, said it completed the sale of its biologics unit to Biotest AG for $185 million in cash. Nabi announced the...

Miami company acquires Hunt Valley-based AVCARD.
December 5, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff World Fuel Services Corp., of Miami, a publicly traded company that supplies marine, aviation and land fuel products and related services, said it completed its previously announced acquisition of Hunt...

Plan advances for former Fort Ritchie Army base in Cascade.
December 5, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff The Washington County Planning Commission has approved a site plan for the first phase of development at the former Fort Ritchie Army base in Cascade. The plan by Columbia-based Corporate Office Properties Trust...

Md. Farm Bureau's Dairy Committee opposes raw milk sales.
December 5, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff Despite a growing market for raw or unpasteurized milk, the Maryland Farm Bureau's Dairy Committee is going on record against its sale in Maryland. During the farm bureau's annual convention in Ocean City, the...

Murphy gets the nod for Md. Court of Special Appeals.
December 5, 2007... Byline: Barbara Grzincic The highest-ranking member of the Court of Special Appeals will become the most junior member of the state's highest court. The governor has appointed Chief Judge Joseph F. Murphy Jr. to the Court of Appeals,...

News Summary - 12/5.
December 5, 2007... Byline: Staff and wire reports Green buildings' tax credit By an 8-0 vote, the Montgomery County Council approved a bill to allow a property tax credit for energy-efficient buildings certified by the U.S. Green Buildings Council or...

Cancer therapy falls short for Silver Spring-based United Therapeutics Corp.
December 6, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff United Therapeutics Corp., of Silver Spring, a drug manufacturer focused on cardiovascular, infectious and oncological diseases, said its OvaRex ovarian cancer treatment failed to meet the goals of two new...

Loyola College of Maryland can build center.
December 6, 2007... Byline: Caryn Tamber Loyola College of Maryland may build a religious retreat center in northern Baltimore County despite the opposition of a neighborhood group, the state's second-highest court has held. The school has been trying to...

Baltimore-based Constellation Energy Group enters green energy agreement.
December 6, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff Constellation Energy Group, of Baltimore, announced that its energy supply subsidiary, Constellation NewEnergy, has entered into a green electricity purchase agreement with the InterContinental Chicago Hotel. As...

CSX turns to Baltimore-based Metastorm.
December 6, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff Metastorm Inc., of Baltimore, which makes business automation and Web-based workflow software, announced that its ProVision software has been selected by Jacksonville, Fla.-based CSX Corp., a transportation...

Lennar sells Federal Hill project to Baltimore-based ownership.
December 6, 2007... Byline: Andy Rosen A national home builder has sold its high-end Federal Place development near Key Highway, opening the door for a strategic move by a local developer. Baltimore-based Terra Nova Ventures LLC announced that it bought...

Budget challenges mount in Frederick County.
December 6, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff Frederick County Commissioners President Jan Gardner says she and the other commissioners are facing a challenging budget year. Budget Officer Mike Gastley expects that legislation approved by state lawmakers...

Ocean City's gets good grades.
December 6, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff Most Ocean City citizens give their town high marks for its quality of life, safety and public services. The survey was conducted for the town by the National Research Center, and the results were presented...

Enrollment in Univ. System of Md. at an all-time high.
December 6, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff Enrollment in the University System of Maryland is at an all-time high. More than 137,000 students are enrolled at the 11 institutions, an overall increase of more than 2,000 students since this time last year....

Easton Memorial Hospital announces addition.
December 6, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff The new emergency department at Easton's Memorial Hospital is expected to open for patient care on Thursday. The $34 million facility, which replaces an emergency department that opened in 1983, was designed to...

Hazmat info forthcoming for Md.
December 6, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff CSX Transportation is telling Baltimore area congressmen it is looking at immediately adding Maryland to a program that gives local authorities access to information about hazardous cargo on CSX trains. The...

Political feuding may take toll on child care services at Fort Detrick.
December 6, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff Wrangling in Congress over a war funding bill could have an indirect effect on child care services at Fort Detrick. Without a bill, the Defense Department could have to shift funds from other nonessential...

Adventist Hospital files application for special appeal with Montgomery County.
December 6, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff Washington Adventist Hospital filed an application for a special exception with the Montgomery County Board of Appeals on Nov. 30, the first step in gaining the needed approvals to relocate the county's oldest...

Miller to head Criminal Division of the Baltimore City Circuit Court.
December 6, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff Judge John Philip Miller has been named Judge in Charge of the Criminal Division of the Baltimore City Circuit Court, effective Jan. 1, 2008, court officials said Wednesday. He succeeds Judge John M. Glynn, who...

Md. Court of Special Appeals OK's hospital site in Hagerstown.
December 6, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff The Court of Special Appeals issued an order finding that Robinwood Drive in Hagerstown is an acceptable site for a new Washington County Hospital. The court order approves the zoning recommendation the county...

Lorillard, Philip Morris to duke it out in U.S. District Court in Richmond, Va.
December 6, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff Lorillard Tobacco Co. is denying that the use of the letter "M" to promote its Newport cigarettes cashes in on Philip Morris USA's iconic Marlboro brand. Philip Morris USA, the nation's No. 1 tobacco company,...

News Summary - 12/6.
December 6, 2007... Byline: Staff and wire reports Coventry affirms guidance Coventry Health Care Inc., of Bethesda, a managed health care provider, affirmed its earnings and revenue forecast for 2008. Net earnings will be in the range of $4.42 to $4.58 a...

Md. Court of Special Appeals reinstates life terms for five killings.
December 6, 2007... Byline: Christina Doran A man convicted of one of Baltimore's most infamous mass-murder cases is subject to six consecutive life sentences after all. The Court of Special Appeals on Wednesday vacated last year's grant of...

Bethesda-based Coventry Health Care Inc. affirms guidance.
December 6, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff Coventry Health Care Inc., of Bethesda, a managed health care provider, affirmed its earnings and revenue forecast for 2008. Net earnings will be in the range of $4.42 to $4.58 a share, and revenue will be $12.4...

Md. Court of Appeals: One vote saves lawyer from disbarment.
December 7, 2007... Byline: Caryn Tamber The Court of Appeals has continued the indefinite suspension of a lawyer whom it disciplined earlier this year for shoddy handling of escrow accounts. The top court voted 4-3 to extend Victor Mba-Jonas'...

Baltimore-based Becker Group creates holiday experience for malls.
December 7, 2007... Byline: Ben Mook From a 70-foot Christmas tree adorning a mall in Dubai to a collection of snow globes big enough to walk through, the Becker Group has been crafting holiday experiences for commercial clients since its founder first donned...

Week in Review.
December 7, 2007... Byline: Staff and wire reports Long-term deals key ANNAPOLIS — The Public Service Commission could move to stabilize energy rates for residential electric consumers by June, Chairman Steven B. Larsen told state lawmakers Tuesday....

News Summary - 12/7.
December 7, 2007... Byline: Staff and wire reports Banks' merger hits snag Bradford Bancorp Inc. and Patapsco Bancorp Inc. said Thursday they may not be able to merge without a substantial reduction in the payout to Patapsco customers. Citing a downturn...

Merger of Bradford Bancorp Inc. and Patapsco Bancorp Inc.hits snag.
December 7, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff Bradford Bancorp Inc. and Patapsco Bancorp Inc. said Thursday they may not be able to merge without a "substantial" reduction in the payout to Patapsco customers. Citing a downturn in the market, Bradford said it...

Frederick-based Tech-Assist to be acquired.
December 7, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff Ventyx, an Atlanta-based provider of software to the utility industry, and Tech-Assist Inc., of Frederick, a provider of operations management software systems for power generation and other industries, announced...

Jos. A. Bank Clothiers Inc. of Hampstead says sales soar.
December 7, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff Jos. A. Bank Clothiers Inc., of Hampstead, a manufacturer and retailer of upscale menswear and accessories with nearly 400 stores nationwide, reported a 15 percent increase in November same-store sales, widely...

Taneytown sanctuary debate put off.
December 7, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff Taneytown Mayor Jim McCarron sidestepped an expected discussion Wednesday night of a resolution declaring the Carroll County community is not a so-called "sanctuary city" for illegal immigrants. McCarron said it...

On the move - Business Edition.
December 7, 2007... Byline: Staff and wire reports ACCOUNTING Ellin & Tucker Chartered, a leading regional certified public accounting and business consulting firm, announced that Harold I. Hackerman has been elected president of DFK International/USA....

Report: Maryland's economy is vulnerable to foreclosures.
December 7, 2007... Byline: Andy Rosen Maryland's economy could be especially vulnerable to spiking foreclosures in the region because of the state's reliance on the real estate industry, according to preliminary statistics from a report released Thursday by...

Nabi's Biopharmaceuticals of Rockville approves stock buyback.
December 7, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff Nabi Biopharmaceuticals, of Rockville, a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of drugs that target infectious diseases and nicotine addiction, said its board of directors...

First Techshowcase opens at Oakland International Airport's Terminal 2.
December 7, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff HMSHost Corp., of Bethesda, a travel industry concessions company, and Airport Wireless, a chain of electronics stores at airports, announced the opening of the first Techshowcase at Oakland International...

Baltimore nonprofit receives grant to provide aid for Maryland's college sophomores.
December 7, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff The Central Scholarship Bureau, a private, nonprofit organization in Baltimore that assists qualified Maryland students with college education financial aid, announced it received a $400,000 grant from the Joseph...

Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore gets Hearst grant.
December 7, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff The Maryland Institute College of Art, of Baltimore, announced it has been awarded a $150,000 grant from the William Randolph Hearst Foundation to establish an endowed scholarship fund for meritorious students...

Costco center not popular in Frederick County.
December 7, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff Some neighbors of a proposed Costco distribution center near New Market aren't happy about the plan. The 500,000-square-foot warehouse would generate nearly 800 trips a day, mostly by tractor-trailers, to the...

Flap over wind turbines in Western Maryland.
December 7, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff Gov. Martin O'Malley is weighing a proposal to lease state forest land in Western Maryland to a Pennsylvania company hoping to erect about 100 wind turbines. The turbines would be built on mountaintops in the...

City of Salisbury seeks flood funds from state of Maryland.
December 7, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff Salisbury officials are asking the state for more money to protect a flood-prone neighborhood. The $5.5 million project would out an underground pipe in the Camden neighborhood to drain water spilling off Route...

Columbia-based W.R. Grace & Co. denied 'en banc' rehearing.
December 7, 2007... Byline: Daily Record Staff W.R. Grace & Co. and six former executives criminally charged with poisoning Libby, Mont., residents lost their bid for review of a decision that strengthened the prosecution's case. A federal appeals court in...