Audit

A cabal of corrupt corrections officers and members of the Black Guerrilla Family gang enjoyed nearly free rein inside the Baltimore City Detention Center, federal authorities allege, smuggling drugs and cellphones into the jail and having sexual relationships that left four guards pregnant. An indictment unsealed Tuesday names 25 people - including 13 women working as corrections officers - who face racketeering and drug charges. Twenty of the accused also face money-laundering charges.

Note: Since I recap both Dancing with the Stars and So You Think You Can Dance and they're overlapping seasons this week and next, I'll be covering both nights in one recap for these first two weeks. They open with past winners and notable contestants being interviewed about how their life changed by putting on a number and getting in the audition line. My favorite bit is Mary with a giant, tight, curly hairdo, like when we had perms in the '80s. Tuesday Night - Los Angeles Auditions We're in Los Angeles at the Orpheum Theatre.

The Internal Revenue Service is auditing the NAACP, scrutinizing the nation's oldest civil rights group after its chairman gave a stinging criticism of the Bush administration in a speech this summer. Julian Bond's July 11 comments at the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People's convention in Philadelphia chastised President Bush for being the first sitting president since Herbert Hoover not to address the group. Bush declined the group's invitation to speak, while Democratic candidate Sen. John Kerry accepted.

The Board of Education of Harford County is seeking applications from interested county citizens to fill one opening on the school system's Audit Committee. The purpose of the five-member committee is to assist the board in fulfilling its fiduciary oversight responsibilities. The committee serves as an independent and objective party to monitor the school system's financial reporting process and internal controls. The committee meets at least quarterly to review financial performance and may meet annually, in separate sessions, with management, the internal auditor and the external auditor.

NAACP leadership continued to denounce an Internal Revenue Service audit of the Baltimore-based civil rights group yesterday, while three members of Congress challenged the IRS to drop the investigation. A letter sent yesterday to IRS Commissioner Mark W. Everson by three House Democrats - Charles B. Rangel of New York, Pete Stark of California and John Conyers Jr. of Michigan - demanded that Everson "publicly, specifically and immediately repudiate the recent actions of the IRS taken against the NAACP."

Let's say you have a product that people automatically associate with you. Except for one hiccup in the timeline, it's been on the market since before Capt. John Smith rowed a boat around the Chesapeake. And it's so popular that people will do crazy things to get it, like sneak around at night and break the law. There's even a black market supplied by crooks willing to risk going to jail to feed the beast. But instead of treating this treasure like, well, a treasure, you keep it in a filthy hovel.

The state agency charged with overseeing Maryland's public school construction projects was found to have lacked proper monitoring of contracts, projects and maintenance inspections, according to a legislative audit. The audit, released Friday, examined the fiscal and managerial operations of the Interagency Committee on School Construction (IAC) primarily in fiscal year 2011, when the agency approved 355 district-level contracts totaling $566 million - $249 million of which was state funding.

NEARLY FOUR YEARS after Daniel P. Henson III resigned, federal auditors have issued a blistering report on his stewardship of the Housing Authority of Baltimore City. Rules were circumvented, record-keeping ignored. As a result of such mismanagement, two showcase garden apartment complexes ended up costing taxpayers $28.6 million more than anticipated, according to the audit. But though the HUD inspector general's audit raises some serious issues, it is incomplete at best. It details the failings of Mr. Henson and the Housing Authority he headed; however, it says nothing of the quiet complicity of HUD bureaucrats, who approved the costly change orders and knew it was Mr. Henson's style to play fast and loose with often antiquated rules on the books.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Maryland on Tuesday called on the state Public Safety secretary to launch an audit of the Anne Arundel County Police Department's use of the state criminal history database in order to determine whether information on the county executive's alleged "enemies list" was accessed and disseminated. The ACLU sent a letter to Gary D. Maynard, the secretary of Public Safety & Correctional Services, asking him to review the database logs for the Maryland Criminal Justice Information System to determine whether criminal history record information was improperly accessed for non-law enforcement purposes and whether the information was disseminated.

The agency that oversees the state's health plan for those uninsured because of preexisting conditions, paid a vendor nearly $367,000 for information technology services without proving that the contract was chosen through a competitive bidding process, a legislative audit has found. The audit also said The Maryland Health Insurance Plan did not perform routine reviews to make sure the insurer that manages the plan for the state, CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield, was complying with its contract.

The state agency charged with overseeing Maryland's public school construction projects was found to have lacked proper monitoring of contracts, projects and maintenance inspections, according to a legislative audit. The audit, released Friday, examined the fiscal and managerial operations of the Interagency Committee on School Construction (IAC) primarily in fiscal year 2011, when the agency approved 355 district-level contracts totaling $566 million - $249 million of which was state funding.

Servers that host internet service for more than 30 state agencies are vulnerable to a cyberattack, according to a legislative audit released this week. The Maryland State Archives, which oversees the five servers, did not update the operating systems in more than five years, auditors found. Without the protective software patches and updates, Internet service for nearly the entire state government could be at risk, Legislative Auditor Thomas J. Barnickel III said. Auditors said there was no evidence of hacking, merely a weakness in the system that could hypothetically knock most state agencies offline or direct state Internet traffic to malicious sites.

The State Archives had inadequate procedures to prevent loss or employee theft of its $31.4 million art collection, and outdated software left its computers vulnerable to attack, an audit released Tuesday found. The Department of Legislative Services audit did not find evidence that computers had been hacked or art lost or stolen, but recommended the State Archives improve its oversight. State Archives officials agreed with the auditors' findings and said they have put into place the recommendations or will soon do so. The State Archives, with a $8.7 million annual budget, keep historically significant documents and art, as well as certain government and private records.

After a long and intense three weeks of blind auditions, all four coaches have filled their teams. During last night's episode, each coach got straight to the point when picking the final member of their team. In this final round, there was much disappointment from both the coaches and those unlucky few who didn't' make a team. No one seemed more upset than Carson Daly when his longtime idol Mark Lennon didn't get picked. Team Blake was the first team to come together, as Blake chose dancer-turned-Warped Tour performer Jaqui Sandell.

Here's the gist of what legislative auditors discovered when they recently evaluated Baltimore's liquor board: It is doing a lousy job. And here's a short summary of the liquor board's response: Yup. It would be shocking if it weren't so predictable. Does anyone living in this city believe the Baltimore Board of Liquor License Commissioners has ever done an adequate job of overseeing businesses that sell alcohol? Maybe a few former commissioners, but probably not them either. Not that the business of regulating bars and package stores is without controversy elsewhere in the state.

Black scuff marks line the staircase at 922 N. Charles St., left there by frustrated tenants kicking the wall in a vain attempt to make their neighbor, the Museum Restaurant and Lounge, quiet down. Most nights, tenants say, the sound of DJs hyping up the crowd rattles china cabinets and nerves alike. "It's thump, thump, thump from the music," said Will Penn, 48, who lives in one of the apartments next door. Penn, like many other Baltimoreans who live near bars, said he has filed complaints using the city's 311 system but has seen nothing change.

The recently released legislative audit of the Maryland Insurance Division identifies deep and disturbing deficiencies, but it also illustrates, clearly and compellingly, the troubles created by the funding vacuum that faces Insurance Commissioner John A. Donaho.This audit casts serious doubts on the agency's ability to detect and monitor at-risk insurers. No formal early-warning guideposts exist to tip off regulators that a company might be heading for trouble. Interim financial reporting is haphazard and poorly documented.

River Hill High School science teacher Susan Lower trains her students to go to neighborhood homes in search of what she calls "vampires" — electrical devices that draw energy from homes even when they're turned off. Lower developed a program that trains students to audit homes for its environmental efficiency, helping homeowners explore their energy use habits to reduce consumption and energy bills. She said that since her program began in 2007, more than 150 students have participated and about 400 homes have been audited.

SARASOTA, Fla. - Right-hander Jair Jurrjens was hoping to show the Orioles once more what he can do on the mound before the club makes its final roster decisions. A line drive off the bat of Thomas Neal ended Jurrjens' last audition 21 pitches into Wednesday night's Grapefruit League game. The New York Yankees designated hitter smashed a comebacker right at Jurrjens, who instinctively turned to the side and was struck in the right ribs. He immediately left the game, two batters into the second inning.

Audits released Wednesday offered new details about two of the city's ongoing financial problems: money wasted by the outdated municipal phone system and the unfunded liabilities of the Police and Fire departments' pension plans. The independent HPA Consulting Group of Rochester, N.Y., said the city phone system is wasting as much as $1 million annually. The system, run by Comptroller Joan M. Pratt's office, could save as much as $700,000 a year by eliminating lines that are "no longer being used," the report states.