Top Ten Of The Top Tens
Every week we publish a top ten posts column on Sunday evening. Several people have emailed asking about the top columns of the year. Since we have not been publishing for a full year, we can;t answer that, so here is the list of the top ten articles at Eye On Annapolis since our inception back in March! Each of these individual stories had in excess of 2500 views and really captured the attention of our readers.
10. An Annapolis Tea Party. An event at City Dock on April 15th drew more than a thousand protesters in a cold driving rain. The issue at hand was the new policies of the new President. The protest was led by Delegate Don Dwyer. Currently there is a movement nationwide to reform the way politics is done in Washington and it is possible that in 2012, there may be a Tea Party Candidate running for President.
9. H1N1 Death Reported In County. Back in the Spring, Folger McKinsey Elementary school was closed for a few days due to a H1N1 scare. The virus seemed to disappear over the summer and then come back with a vengeance this fall and claimed the life of 18-year old Walter Brooks. Brooks was a graduate of Chesapeake High School and a well liked freshman at Anne Arundel Community College. As a healthy teen, his death was swift and left everyone wondering if we indeed were really prepared for this virus.
8. Double Homicide In Lothian. Back in September, sleepy Lothian in southern Anne Arundel County was shattered by a double homicide. The murders were a result of a domestic dispute and while investigating the crime, the suspect was shot to death by DC police after a brief chase.
7. More Intrigue To The Pierre Saga. Annapolis politics is never without some drama and this year offered a bunch of it. Zina Pierre won the Mayoral primary. A few days later, a local blogger blew the lid on her victory by disclosing personal financial issues and raising the question if she was legally qualified to run. Pierre withdrew. Then she re-entered. Then she withdrew. Then Josh Cohen was appointed to take her place and ultimately won. Just politics as usual in Annapolis!
6. Anne Arundel Cops Nab A Really Bad Guy. The other crime story that polarized our readership was the rape of a 7-year old girl in Crofton by David Raszewski. Raszewski, 17 at the time, abducted a girl from a playground adjacent to his home and raped her in his room while her babysitter had taken her younger sibling to the bathroom. His story was followed here and just recently he was able to strike a plea deal with prosecutors. The bargain will keep him away for a long time.
5. US Healthcare Reform. On the minds of nearly every American was President Barack Obama’s healthcaare reform proposal which has just received Senate approval. Back in the formative days, a Louisiana congressman blew the whistle in the House’s plan that exempted members of Congress from the coverages they were legislating for all citizens. He began a petition to have this changed and we linked to the petition in this post.
4. Teen Murder Update. Who can forget the senseless murder of Crofton teenager Christopher Jones. This article was early on in our coverage and included some of the late breaking news as some of the killers were finally caught. The entire saga is compelling and sad and a poor commentary on our society. The police were able to identify two of the teens involved in the slaying and they have both been sentenced in juvenile court and will be release on or before their 21st birthday. According to people close to the crime, there were several others involved who may not have delivered the fatal blows who remain at large.
3. Bank Of America: Watch Out For Hidden Fees. The banks across the country have been under fire recently for their predatory lending and hidden fees. One of the worst is Bank of America and one of our readers was kind enough to keep us informed as he fought the big bank on predatory fees. This article came up in the top ten time and time again. As an update, the original poster was subject to a new round of fees when Bank of America was playing with the dates on his statement. He ultimately had a conversation with the CEO’s Executive Assistant and suggested that if they wanted to collect the fees that they file suit in a local court. His negative balance was reversed and the account closed. He is happily banking elsewhere.
2. Completely Despicable. As we all want to forget the dirty politics that marked the Annapolis election, this one act seemed to polarize the entire process. A yet unidentified group distributed a racist and homophobic flier in Ward 3 in an attempt to sway the election (successfully) from Aldermanic candidate Scott Bowling. The flier is still being investigated by the authorities and there is a cash reward for information about the people behind it.
1. TSA Blogger Goes Into Hiding. This was a bizarre tale indeed. An Annapolis blogger who is a mother and the wife of a USNA officer made a claim that the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) had abducted her child in Atlanta. Ultimately, her story was proven false with 9 different cameras; but her hoax seemed to work to get her (and I guess us as well) a lot of traffic to her site. This is only one of about four stories associated with this hoax.
Now, as we move into 2010 and our first real year of reporting, we want to take the time to say THANK YOU for reading and supporting Eye On Annapolis!
Happy New Year!
