Behavior

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.

A federal judge has ordered a West Pratt Street clinic and its former chief executive to repay more than 60 current and former employees nearly $50,000 that the private company never deposited into their retirement accounts as required. U.S. District Judge William D. Quarles Jr. also awarded $27,800 in attorneys' fees to lawyer Richard Neuworth and colleagues who represented the plaintiffs. The March 22 order marked the latest chapter in the troubled recent history of Baltimore Behavioral Health Inc., once a successful mental health clinic that ranked among the city's largest providers of drug treatment services.

Denver's Bill Tierney is arguably the best coach in college lacrosse history, but he should be careful not to tarnish his legacy. Tierney, who won six national championships at Princeton, has done a great job of turning around Denver's program in recent years, but a lot of fans at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium on Saturday weren't applauding him. Rather, they were criticizing him for his behavior during the game. On almost every whistle, Tierney seemed to be ranting and criticizing the officials in Denver's game against Loyola.

The federal racketeering and drug charges unveiled this week against 25 inmates and guards at the Baltimore City Detention Center raise serious questions about the state's management of the facility. Investigators detailed a pattern of corruption and criminal behavior that was so widespread that for much of the last few years, the inmates were literally running the asylum. It will take drastic action to root out the crooked corrections officers and incompetent higher-ups responsible for this debacle, but that's only a start.

A University of Maryland Robert H. Smith School of Business study released today showed that cellphone use left users less socially- minded in the real world, as they became immersed in a virtual world that fueled their need for social connectivity. The study was conducting by UMD marketing professors Anastasiya Pocheptsova and Rosellina Ferraro , with graduate student, Ajay T. Abraham, on test groups of cellphone users. From the university's statement on the study: The researchers found that after a short period of cellphone use the subjects were less inclined to volunteer for a community service activity when asked, compared to the control-group counterparts.

Do I understand this correctly? We, the people of Maryland, paid for hotels and meals for our representatives in Annapolis because they failed to do the job of passing a reasonable budget and had to meet in special sessions to prevent fiscal "Doomsday. " So, we reward them by treating them to hotel stays and the cost of meals and libation throughout the duration? Don't they all live in our state? Why couldn't they just drive their cars or take public transportation? Most other job holders do commute to and from work, and many bring their own lunches.

Go into any English soccer stadium on any given Saturday afternoon and you are assured of hearing language that would curl a nun's toes. So why is such a fuss being made of Wayne Rooney and his latest bit of Neanderthal behavior? Mostly because it makes good copy, that's why. It titillates television viewers, and it sells tabloid newspapers. For those who have not been paying attention, here is a brief rundown of the latest contretemps to embroil the Manchester United and England millionaire misfit.

In the article, "Baltimore Country woman murdered despite police safety" (Feb. 8), Marylanders are again reminded of the efficiency of our justice system. The article's title should have been "Awarding good behavior results in another death," since, not implied by the title, the victim did not follow police recommendations for her safety. The alleged murderer was released from prison, despite County State's Attorney Scott Shellenberger's office advocating against his parole. But, as the article notes, our state's parole commission let him go because the convicted prisoner had "earned prison credit for good behavior.

As a former drug abuse counselor, I was appalled by the statement made by a school administrator that it's the teachers who have to shape up in to quell violent behavior by students ("School behavior policies shifting," Feb. 20). Better have the student take a drug test. Where there is harm to people or property, there usually is drug use. Alcohol is a drug. It changes people, intensifies their emotions, so if people start out angry, they will be angrier later on. If the student is the victim, or observes violence in the home or neighborhood, it is more likely that that behavior will be copied.

It was a classic case of a bit player upstaging the star. It was also the stuff of every parent's nightmares: 7-year-old Andrew Giuliani stealing the show last Sunday as his father, Rudolph, was inaugurated mayor of New York.The reactions fit the predictable range that children's behavior always seems to elicit, from the ''somebody ought to slap that kid'' remarks to the New Yorkers who told the New York Times that Andrew's antics reassured them that their tough-talking new mayor was, in fact, a softie at heart.

Rutgers announced the suspension of men's lacrosse head coach Brian Brecht, a former Loyola University assistant, on Friday pending a university police investigation of allegations of verbal abuse. No length was given for the suspension, which is with pay. Brecht's suspension comes a little more than two weeks after the highly publicized firing of men's basketball coach Mike Rice. Rice was let go April 3 after a video surfaced of him making homophobic slurs and throwing basketballs at his players during practice.

I have a friend who has an adorable, unneutered 2-year-old male cocker spaniel. The dog is completely housebroken but is continually marking his territory in my house. My friend has begun to put doggie diapers on him when she takes him to anyone's house. I have found that there is no scientific proof that neutering a male dog does anything concerning his behavior. What can be done to make him stop? Actually there are several studies (University of California, Davis, ASPCA, and others)

Todd Huff isn't the first Baltimore County councilman to be arrested for drunk driving, and if he's convicted of the crime, he won't be the first in that regard either. And we will not delude ourselves by expecting him to be the last to face such charges - at least not in a nation where 1.4 million people are arrested annually for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs. But the circumstances of Mr. Huff's arrest are disappointing to say the least and raise serious questions about his judgment - not only in his choice to get behind the wheel of his county-owned vehicle after drinking enough at the Towson Elks Lodge to record a .20 on an alcohol breath test but in telling police after his arrest that he wanted to call "Jim Johnson," an obvious reference to the county's police chief.

I look at the photograph of attempted murderer Daniel Gladden, and underneath the thin veneer of looking pseudo-tough, I see a young man who is seemingly angry with the universe ("Gladden pleads guilty in shooting," Feb. 20). I ask myself just when our society began churning out these conflicted youths who are totally devoid of guilt or compassion about stomping the life out of another human being. What bothers me even more than the anger, the hatred, is the aura of total indifference he has cloaked himself in. This was the classic case of a young man who chose to ostracize himself from a supposed normal and balanced society.

Shawn Nadelen wasn't happy about Towson's 12-6 loss to No. 5 Johns Hopkins Saturday night, but he reserved a good portion of his anger for the behavior of some of the players representing his alma mater. The Tigers coach was visibly enraged after Blue Jays senior defenseman Chris Lightner was flagged with 2:43 left in the fourth quarter for an illegal body check that was a non-releasable, one-minute penalty. During a timeout, Nadelen and Johns Hopkins coach Dave Pietramala exchanged some words, and Nadelen said after the contest that he was irked by the way several of Pietramala's players were reacting to Lightner's hit. “I was very upset they were celebrating a very potentially lethal hit,” said Nadelen, a former defenseman who played for Pietramala in 2001, his senior year.

In the article, "Baltimore Country woman murdered despite police safety" (Feb. 8), Marylanders are again reminded of the efficiency of our justice system. The article's title should have been "Awarding good behavior results in another death," since, not implied by the title, the victim did not follow police recommendations for her safety. The alleged murderer was released from prison, despite County State's Attorney Scott Shellenberger's office advocating against his parole. But, as the article notes, our state's parole commission let him go because the convicted prisoner had "earned prison credit for good behavior.

I see again that the local chapter of the NAACP is alleging discrimination against African-American students in the handing out discipline for bad behavior by the Anne Arundel County school system ("U.S. to investigate NAACP complaint against Anne Arundel school system," April 11). It appears the association is focused on the symptom and not the problem. Educators will tell you that bad behavior is caused by many things, many of which occur in the home. If the home life is stable and parents take the lead in showing how important learning is, teachers can do wonders with a student.

Every time I meet young Debbie she seems remote and unfriendly. But mostly she is aloof and rude. She is staying with a friend of mine for two weeks this summer and getting ready to enter a nearby college. She's from Oklahoma. Her mother and father are both lawyers, and I'd met them; nice, out-going, well-mannered folks.My friend said about Debbie, "Oh, no, she's not rude, she's painfully shy. You have to get to know her," and, of course, "She's a teen-ager still, really."Well, let me tell you, I may not have time.

The biggest flaw of democracy is that politicians would say anything and do anything to fool the "majority. " If you subscribe to the concept that smartest constituents constitute top 10 percent or so, democratically elected politicians represent the wishes of the "majority" not the wishes of their "smartest" constituents. Take the opportunistic response of Gov. Martin O'Malley to the Connecticut school shooting. Nothing in his proposal would have prevented the Sandy Hook shooting, including limits in size of the magazines.

Anne Arundel County Executive John Leopold treated the county government as his personal fiefdom, and he acted as if those paid by the public were his servants. He ordered them to engage in activity to further his political career, to facilitate his liaisons and to take on the demeaning task of changing his urinary catheter bag. That makes him a terrible boss and a bad public servant. Judge Dennis Sweeney ruled Tuesday that it also makes him a criminal. His decision in this case sets an important and wise precedent in the state's vague public corruption law and offers the promise that Anne Arundel County can put this tawdry episode behind it. State Prosecutor Emmet C. Davitt brought an indictment against Mr. Leopold that accused him of ordering his executive protection detail to put up campaign signs for him, to compile dossiers on potential political opponents, to chauffeur him around the county as he ripped out his opponent's campaign signs, to drive him to midday assignations in a parking lot with another county employee, and to prevent that woman from crossing paths with his live-in girlfriend.