A charter amendment on recall elections bankrolled by Sinclair Chairman David Smith could appear on Baltimore ballots this fall. Smith spent $385,000 on the effort after his local affiliate repeatedly reported on the idea of recalling Mayor Brandon Scott
What happened in Annapolis is the worst nightmare of every journalist. None of our newsrooms are equipped to fend off an attack. We belong to the communities we serve. We can't be fortresses. Praying that as many people as possible make it out alive.
Baltimore Police Commissioner just confirmed that the department’s chief of fiscal services has been terminated and is a person of interest in a homicide investigation. He won’t specify which homicide.
The first person in line to vote at Wilde Lake High School in Columbia was 19-year-old Armon Wilson. He woke up at 4 a.m. and walked an hour to get there per
@AnaFaguy
. The rest of us have zero excuses not to vote after that.
Baltimore will not lift its mask mandate completely until 65% of city residents have been vaccinated or received their first dose, Baltimore Health Commissioner Letitia Dzirasa just announced at a news conference
So here's a crazy tidbit: Maryland election officials found a bunch of ballots from South Carolina mixed in with their shipments to Baltimore. They use the same vendor. I just talked to an elections official in SC, and he says they're ready to dump the company.
Baltimore is putting 5 large salt boxes in city parks for residents to decorate this year. Mayor Scott decorates the City Hall box with his initials and a Wu-Tang symbol. “Snow storms are temporary but Wu-Tang is forever,” he says.
Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott is on hand to open Horseshoe’s sports book today. His 1st bets:
-Lamar Jackson will be MVP
-Ravens will win the Super Bowl
- Orioles will be .500
Last run of
@baltimoresun
in Baltimore is underway. Thanks to our amazing press staff for their years of dedication (and for letting some nosy reporters watch them in action tonight.)
26,303 Marylanders used same-day voter registration this year, setting a state record -- 12,728 during early voting and 13,575 on Election Day. This is the first year where same-day registration was available on Election Day.
Most of you know by now, but today I'll say goodbye to
@mcall
and Allentown. It has been 7 great years, but I'm headed south for new challenges with
@baltimoresun
. They've got FBI raids and felon politicos too, so I should feel at home. Thanks for everything, Allentown.
Baltimore City is one of 5 jurisdictions across Maryland that are still missing several precincts worth of Election Day returns. Director Armstead Jones said some of the flash drives with votes from polling places weren't turned in last night. They're looking for them.
Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott is proposing a 911 diversion program to send some callers to behavioral health professionals. He's also introducing a bill to council to reduce the number of false alarm calls that require a police response. Currently you can call up to 15 times.
Maryland election officials report final turnout was 74.5%. Half of voters voted by mail. (Usually it's 4-5%.) Return rate for mail in ballots was over 90%. 2/3 of mail in ballots were returned via ballot drop boxes.
BREAKING: Baltimore
@MayorBMScott
just announced the city will begin requiring masks indoors again starting Monday at 9 a.m. due to increasing coronavirus infections
NEW: Baltimore's spending board just voted unanimously to terminate the city's surveillance plane contract. City police officials they're in the process of destroying all but 15% of the data collected. The remaining 15% is being kept for ongoing investigations.
Mayor Scott is asked how closing Baltimore restaurants, many of which are are minority-owned, squares with his pledge to govern with an eye on equity. “Keeping these people alive is equity,” Scott says.
Democrat
@BrookeELierman
has declared victory in the race for Maryland comptroller. "We have finally elected a woman to one of our three top offices. I may be the first but I’m going to make sure that I’m not the last," she said at gathering of Dems in Baltimore.
Newly sworn in Baltimore Councilwoman
@odetteramos
choked up as she spoke to me today about the importance of becoming the city’s first Latina councilwoman. “The Latino community is no longer invisible,” she said
SC's statewide primary is June 9. As of this week, an unknown number of Charleston's ballots were here in Baltimore. An SC official says they were losing confidence in the mail vendor even before this happened. An entire county didn't get presidential ballots in Feb.
Maryland National Guard is assembling a field hospital today including 250 beds at the Baltimore Convention Center. This is part of the effort to add thousands of hospital beds for
#Covid_19
Baltimore
@MayorBMScott
has this message of caution for Super Bowl Sunday. "Even though the Ravens are not playing and the hated Tom Brady is, we still have to be sure we’re being safe."
Did you know Baltimore makes and sells lumber from its dead street trees? Meet the guys at Camp Small, the city's little-known zero waste initiative that's recycling Baltimore's waste wood
Baltimore’s strip clubs emerged from a nearly 3 month pandemic closure Friday. We take you inside the glitter-coated but socially distanced world of a COVID era adult entertainment business
Baltimore
@mayorbcyoung
announces all public events in Baltimore are canceled through Aug. 31. That includes “everything,” he says, like the July 4 fireworks.
FYI if you’re coming to Baltimore City Hall: Baltimore City Council will be requiring masks for the next couple weeks, per an order from Council President Nick Mosby. Free masks were distributed today at the door ahead of the lunch meeting
Hundreds of people in line to get COVID tests this morning at the State Center in Baltimore. You’ll wait whether you have an appointment or not, so wear comfortable shoes
Baltimore DPW Director Jason Mitchell is incensed. "While the city was telling their people to stay home for weeks and limit their time outside, our crews continued to show up for Baltimore. And with that we must exercise compassion."
Over the course of a nearly three-hour virtual hearing, residents by the dozens spoke out against the mayor's proposed budget which calls for $555 million in police spending
Seeing some funky looking results coming in from Norco that are cause for concern. With 11 precincts reporting, judge candidate Kassis has 0 votes. That seems improbable. Also hearing about voting machine problems in Williams, Upper Mount Bethel
Mayor Scott kicks off his 10 am press conference at 10:30 and apologizes for his lateness. “Sorry for the delay, I just closed on my first house,” he says, jingling a set of keys.
149,140 ballots returned so far in Maryland for the Nov. election. That's out of the 1.4 million requested so far. Anne Arundel and Baltimore counties have the most. Balt. Co. will start counting next week. AA has already started.
25 minutes into Baltimore City Council's meeting, and it was just now revealed that Councilwoman McCray is not present. Is there any way to know that from home? No. Members don't respond during virtual roll call or votes. AGAIN, virtual meetings don't cut it.
Baltimore Council members all received swag bags ahead of tonight’s meeting. Inside: a cell phone stand emblazoned with Council President Nick Mosby’s name
Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott’s nominee to lead the city’s fire department once faced charges related to his possession of more than 50 homemade pipe bombs; Scott says it shouldn't be a disqualifier
As of 4 p.m., more than 113,000 people have voted across Maryland on the first day of early voting. That's before the typical after work rush, and on track to beat the first day of early voting in 2016. 600 new voter registrations statewide.
Baltimore
@MayorBMScott
just announced a $50M allocation of ARP funds for violence prevention. That will include many pieces of his crime prevention plan including re-entry services, victims services, and 30 contracts for violence intervention programs
NEW: Election officials are scrambling to get correct ballots to 267 Baltimore voters, including some residents of a senior living complex who will receive three ballots this election cycle, after mistakenly mailing ballots for the wrong district
While I have a minute between stories, I may as well share that today is my one year anniversary with
@baltimoresun
. I blame everything that unfolded in 2020 on my poor decision to start on the unlucky 13th. Here's to hopefully getting back in the newsroom in 2021.
On Dec. 10, 2020, the day the superseding indictment says Marilyn Mosby sent a letter claiming to have lived in Florida for the last 70 days, she was seen in Baltimore at Nick Mosby’s swearing in as Council President
Today is my 6 year anniversary with
@mcall
. I'll be celebrating by sitting through Allentown City Council's meeting tonight and live tweeting it for your enjoyment.
We're still hearing about long lines at Baltimore polling places. 75-80 min at Northwood right now. 2 hours at Edmonson. 3,968 ballots cast in-person in Baltimore as of 5:40 p.m.
Maryland is reporting a problem with voters whose ballots were undeliverable. When they get to the polls to vote there, pollbooks are saying they already voted by mail even though they didn't receive a ballot. They don't know how widespread this is yet. Story to come.
People are gathering to protest Vice President Pence’s visit to Baltimore tonight. Organizers say they have no hope he’ll see them but they want him to know he’s not welcome in Baltimore
A two-term limit for Baltimore politicians got the OK from city voters Tuesday who approved the measure by 72% with most precincts reporting. Voters also approved a move to let the city control the Baltimore Police Dept. for the first time in 160 years
The Maryland State Board of Elections staff are reporting that they've processed 86,000 ballot applications at the central processing center in the last two weeks.
In the first 4 hours of early voting, 45,000 people have voted across Maryland. All early voting centers opened on time statewide, according to
@md_sbe
. (In 2016, 123,623 people voted early on Day 1.)
Baltimore's BOE just voted to eliminate the city's pre-employment drug screening for non-safety sensitive positions. The city HR director says this will help attract candidates in a tight job market and speed up the hiring process. It also follows national trends, he says.
A Baltimore City Council committee advanced a bill this morning allowing city elected officials to receive a pension after 8 years instead of 12. The hastily scheduled meeting wasn't broadcast on CharmTV and there was no analysis from finance. The bill was 1st introduced Oct. 24.
Baltimore’s strip clubs were officially able to open at 3 pm today. At the Penthouse Club, where owners led the lawsuit to fight for the reopening, business is strong tonight. They’re at almost 25% of capacity, their new pandemic limit.
Baltimore City Election Director Armstead Jones says the biggest problem he's witnessed today is senior citizens trying to cut in line. People had their chance to vote via mail and skip the line, he says. "Just because you’ve had two hips replaced? I've had two hips replaced."