Regional News From WBAL-TV

Speaker Hopes To Curb Gang Activity In Schools. Maryland Speaker of the House Mike Busch wants to improve communication between schools and law enforcement about students who may be involved in gangs. Busch said he hopes to require law enforcement to report the arrests of students charged with offenses such as malicious destruction of property and simple assault to school personnel to make school officials more aware of potential gang issues.

Snowstorms Reduced Crime Stats Show. One big upside of the back-to-back snowstorms was their impact on crime.With the weather so nasty, police have needed no other help.As the storms gripped the city, crime plummeted. Comparing last week to the same week in 2009, the most serious crimes were down 71 percent, according to city statistics.

Bill Requires Mediation, Meetings Before Foreclosure. Gov. Martin O’Malley and Rep. Elijah Cummings teamed up to press for changes in Maryland’s foreclosure law to help struggling homeowners stay in their houses.One in 138 homeowners in Maryland faces foreclosure, according to statistics. Maryland ranks 10th in the nation in the number of people who could lose their homes.

Dog Rescued From Fall Into Sewer. Prince George’s County authorities have rescued a dog that fell 25 feet into the sewer. Fire department spokesman Mark Brady said the incident happened Tuesday afternoon at Clarke Avenue and Holly Street in Laurel.Brady said a snow plow had apparently dislodged a manhole cover, and a resident who was trying to find something to put on top of it heard a dog barking.