Guest Contributor
Guest Contributor's Latest Posts
LETTER: Prosecutorial excess…Who will guard the guardians?
In January of 2013, Anne Arundel County Executive John Leopold was found guilty of “misconduct in office” for forcing a staffer to empty his hospital catheter bag after he’d undergone back surgery. From the beginning he has denied the charge, arguing that had his medical records been introduced into evidence at trial they would have […]
LETTER: Leash laws are in place for a reason
As a runner and walker, I frequently use our wonderful Anne Arundel County parks for exercise. Often I encounter a walker out with a dog which is not on a leash — contrary to the law in our county. Dog owners have dog parks that they can use if they want to let Fido run […]
LETTER: It’s time for the City to manage and operate the “DNR Docks” at City Dock
For the first time in over 50 years the City of Annapolis has a thoroughly professional Harbormaster and Staff. Harbormaster Beth Bellis has grown the once rag-tag outfit Annapolis Harbormaster’s office into a well trained professional unit with responsibilities including (but not limited to): Safety, Training, Law Enforcement, Education, Fiscal Management, Tourism, Recreation, and Environment. […]
LETTER: Some Animals are More Equal Than Others
A Lawmaker, who is a Delegate from Prince Georges County, is renting a house on our street for 91 days. She has obtained an annual residential parking permit despite the law requiring primary residency of more than 180 days to get a parking permit. How did she obtain the parking pass? Mayor Buckley’s staff granted […]
Letter: Proposed development at Saltworks Creek will destroy neighborhood and environment
On December 13, 2019, two days before the new Forest Conservation Law went into effect, Monticello Property Group LLC a subsidiary of Hogan Cos, filed a special exception to change zoning on 47 acres of R-1 residential land, to develop a 4 story 16 bed assisted living center with 76 individual villas. The proposal submitted […]
OPINION: HPV vaccine incentive payments need to stop.
The Maryland Prevention and Health Promotion Agency (PHPA) has received millions — $123 million just between 2012–2017 — as part of an effort to require public schools to force children to get the human papilloma virus (HPV) vaccination. Those funds came in the form of grants from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). […]
4th Graders at Monsignor Slade invite alumna Senator Pam Beidle to return for a tour
Fourth grade students at Monsignor Slade Catholic School have been studying Maryland’s state government and the history of Maryland from colonial times until the U.S. entry into World War II. Prior to a recent Annapolis field trip, social studies teacher Mrs. Benitez encouraged her students to write letters to Maryland Senator Pamela Beidle (District 32). Senator Beidle is an alumna of […]
Severna Park High seniors partner with Habitat for Humanity
Troy Barlow and Gavin Ivey, two seniors at Severna Park High School, and their team of six juniors partnered with Habitat for Humanity and participated in a youthbuild in a local Annapolis community on April 13 of this year. With other Habitat volunteers, the team did work on a house on Clay Street, putting up […]
Leadership project for Severna Park High puts on Earth Day Festival
Student Leaders at Severna Park High School came together to help organize and market this years Earth Day Festival. Through the power of social media along with more traditional methods such as road signs, students at Severna Park High School helped contribute to the crowd of hundreds at this years festival. On top of this […]
Severna Park High leadership project provides goodie bags for critically ill children
Severna Park students took part in Elena Harris and Izzy Stone’s Leadership Institute Capstone Project by supporting children with critical illnesses and making goodie bags that will promote healing and positivity. The Leadership institute provides the opportunity to learn leadership skills through service leadership. This semester, Elena and Izzy have created a new project that […]
Severna Park High’s Leadership Institute raises more than $25K for Make-A-Wish
Severna Park High School, led by the Leadership 2 students, raised over $25,000 for Make-A-Wish® Mid-Atlantic this month. Severna Park’s Leadership Institute is widely known for their dedication and drive to make a change and unite the community around them through service learning. Each of the past 5 years, the SPHS Leadership Institute has partnered […]
GUEST COLUMN: Busch’s replacement should prioritize the wishes of voters
We recently lost a great leader in Speaker Mike Busch, just a few short months after reelecting him. We must now begin the process of filling his seat in the House of Delegates. The 13 members of the Anne Arundel County Democratic Central Committee will meet on April 25th to interview candidates and forward one […]
OPINION: “Move Over Law,” more tools needed to keep law enforcement safe
Every day more than 16,000 Maryland law enforcement officers say goodbye to their families and head out to protect and serve their communities. As a police officer, both you and your family know the risks of the job when you’re sworn in to wear the badge – impaired drivers, weapons, domestic incidents gone wrong, vehicular […]
OPINION: Merck and HPV: We must hold our legislators accountable
In a completely predictable turn of events, Merck has been formally accused of fraud and a host of other serious charges relating to the approval and marketing of the troubled, liability free Gardasil vaccine. This is the same vaccine our Maryland State Department of Health and Mental Hygiene has accepted over $100 million since 2011 to […]
OPINION: Gun violence through the eyes of an 8-year old boy
A church has historically been a place of sanctuary and safety. During our evening worship service, “Santa Claus” was making his rounds in the local neighborhood, to a blaring chorus of sirens and response vehicles. In the public testimony time, my eight-year old son, asked for the microphone. There is no parent that doesn’t begin […]
14 magical ways to celebrate the holidays in Annapolis from Visit Annapolis
Magical! That’s the word that best describes Annapolis and Anne Arundel County during the holidays. A host of events for the young and young at heart makes it easy for everyone to get into the spirit of the season. To help you celebrate, Visit Annapolis & Anne Arundel County has pulled together a handy list […]
Guest Column: Equal Representation in District 30. Is it possible?
We continue to dismiss the racial disparities in political participation that persist election cycle, after cycle. As a die-hard Democrat, I never really thought about the racial imbalances within our party until recently (I grew up with an African American President). A photo of seven white candidates running on both the state and local level […]
Guest Column: Why I am running for Clerk of the Court
At the Clerk’s office, where I’ve worked for 27 years, we are passionate about serving our community. Our mission is fair, equitable and accessible justice. Our goal is to ensure that each and every person has access to justice and to the services of the court. Each year in Maryland there are over 30,000 acts […]
GUEST COLUMN: Torrey Snow–My hesitancy with ACT
Editor’s Note: A new organization, ACT, recently held an event with candidates for public office. They asked for commitments from each candidate to meet with the organization monthly. Torrey Snow declined, but offers his reasoning here. As County Councilman, I have a responsibility to evaluate the various ideas and organizations that seek to play an […]
OPINION: Bike lane needs to be re-thought
I wanted to take a second to send you my thoughts as a Resident of Ward 1, for what their worth, on the debate and discussions surrounding the Main Street bike lane issue. As brief background, I have lived in ward one going on four years now and while I am not originally from Annapolis […]
OPINION: Small businesses and workers benefitting from tax cuts
President Donald J. Trump had taxpayers and small business owners in mind when he signed the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act into law December 22, 2017. The new law cut corporate tax rates from 35% to 21% for 2018 and lowered income tax at nearly all levels. Tax cuts for working families allow them to […]
Guest Column: Clerk of the Court a component in battling domestic abuse
Fear too often steals from our lives. At the Clerk of the Court for Anne Arundel County, we became aware that too often victims of domestic violence, fearing stalking and additional violence, will not purchase a home because their address will become public record exposing their home address to their abusers. I am proud of […]
