Bankruptcy

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Department of Education issued a report on the status of private student loans. Americans owe more than $150 billion on such loans - much less than on federal loans - but these private loans don't have borrower-friendly repayment plans and they're poorly understood by those who take them out. When you hear graduates complain about the weight of student loans, it's the private kind they're typically talking...

What we knew before former FBI director Louis Freeh's investigation into the coverup of child sexual abuse by former Penn State football coach Jerry Sandusky was bad enough, but as I listened to and then read Mr. Freeh's 200-page report, I was once again overcome with rage ("Report faults PSU leaders in abuse," July 13). We idolize the men and women who play various forms of "catch" for a living. Across the nation and around the globe, billions of dollars are made and spent on teams, fields, stadiums, naming rights and their associated amenities.

A Delaware bankruptcy judge has allowed environmental groups to appeal RG Steel 's plan to limit its investigation of potential toxic contamination in the waters surrounding Sparrows Point. While bankruptcy filings normally put all litigation on hold, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Kevin Carey granted a motion to pursue the appeal filed by the Chesapeake Bay Foundation , Blue Water Baltimore and the Baltimore Harbor Waterkeeper . The groups had challenged a Baltimore federal judge's approval of an agreement between RG Steel and federal and state regulators to sample for toxic contaminants no more than 50 feet offshore of the steel mill at Sparrows Point.

When it comes to filing for bankruptcy, Marylanders are more likely to be do-it-yourselfers than debtors in other states. Maryland ranked ninth in the country a year ago in the number of bankruptcy cases in which the debtor wasn't represented by a lawyer, according to the administrative office for the U.S. Courts. Even some of these go-it-alone filers aren't completely without assistance, though. Many hire a bankruptcy petition preparer to fill out court documents. Preparers, who charge a fee, can't give legal advice, such as whether the debtor is better off filing for bankruptcy under Chapter 13 instead of Chapter 7. But there's increasing concern nationwide that petition preparers may be overstepping their bounds by giving legal advice — and not very good advice at that.

Ripley's Believe It or Not, one of the first of several new tenants opening for the summer tourist season at Harborplace in downtown Baltimore, will open Saturday in the Light Street Pavilion. Ripley Entertainment Inc. said exhibits at the Inner Harbor "odditorium" will include Harry Potter's Hogwarts Castle made out of 600,000 matchsticks, a Mini Cooper car covered with one million Swarovski crystals, a one ton U.S. Lincoln penny made from 10,000 copper pennies and an art gallery with displays such as a portrait of Justin Bieber, made out of licorice and gummy bears.

The first big wave of layoffs hit Sparrows Point on Friday after the steel mill's owner essentially shut down its critically important blast furnace. Joe Rosel, president of United Steelworkers Local 9477, said most of the workers told not to report back to the Baltimore County mill next week were in the iron- and steelmaking departments, though he couldn't say how many were notified. Other workers, including many in central maintenance, also were notified. The "L" blast furnace shutdown that began Wednesday starts a domino effect of layoffs that is expected to affect nearly 2,000 workers - all but a few hundred at the steel mill.

A Baltimore landlord with a long history of violating lead-paint poisoning laws was sentenced Wednesday to a year and a day in prison by a federal judge, who called the now-bankrupt businessman a "scofflaw. " Cephus Murrell, 69, of Catonsville sat impassively in U.S. District Court as Judge Benson E. Legg imposed the sentence, which included six months' home detention after release from prison. Murrell owned and managed 175 rental units in Baltimore, officials said, all built before lead paint was banned.

It might have been trash-talking, but Jamal Lewis made good on his promise. The young Baltimore Raven broke the single-day rushing record by running for 295 yards in the 2003 home opener at the stadium newly rechristened for the company that had bought the naming rights, M&T Bank. Today, though, the now retired Lewis and M&T are linked in court rather than on the field. Lewis filed for bankruptcy in Georgia in April, listing $14.5 million in assets and $10.6 million in debts — among them, a more than $350,000 judgment on a defaulted loan from the bank whose name hangs over the Ravens' stadium.

Are you saving more money than a Super Bowl champion? Jamal Lewis, the former Ravens running back, offered the nosy a look at his finances when he recently filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection . For instance, he makes $35,000 in an average month and spends $34,050 of it, leaving him with $950 left over, according to court documents. You can see the full 75-page rundown here . Highlights: o His monthly mortgage costs, not including taxes and insurance: $6,000 o Monthly vehicle payments: $5,700 o Biggest monthly outflow by far: $18,000 for regular expenses from operating a business o Charitable contributions: $0 All told, Lewis tallies up about $14.5 million in assets and $10.6 million in liabilities.

Four years ago, the purchase of the Sparrows Point steel mill by OAO Severstal stirred hopes among steelworkers, their families and the community. Last year, the appearance of new owners Renco Group Inc. and its subsidiary, RG Steel, did, too. Four times in the past decade, expectations have periodically been raised in similar fashion. Might the next owners turn things around and provide the needed investments to make Sparrows Point competitive again? Each time, those hopes have been dashed and a parade of managers proved themselves unequal to the task.