Claims

A federal judge ruled Monday that claims by two former Anne Arundel County employees, who allege they lost their jobs because of retaliation by the administration of former County Executive John R. Leopold, can advance to trial. U.S. District Judge Catherine C. Blake threw out some parts of the lawsuits by Karla Hamner, a former spokeswoman for Leopold, and Joan Harris, who worked as a constituent services specialist during the executive's first term. But the judge "kept the crux of both of the cases" said John Singleton, an attorney representing both plaintiffs.

There aren't a whole lot of roster questions revolving around the Orioles' 25-man roster, but one of the more intriguing ones is whether Ryan Flaherty will go north for the second consecutive year. Flaherty, an infielder/outfielder who was selected from the Chicago Cubs' organization in the 2011 Rule 5 draft, had to stay in the majors all of last season to become Orioles property. He did, and he also ended up homering in the playoffs against the New York Yankees. Now Flaherty, 26, can be sent to the minors this year, but he is doing everything he can to stay in the big leagues.

Tommy Hunter, the Orioles' affable and outspoken right-hander, has a simple plea for team management as it begins to craft the 2013 roster. "I don't want to go anywhere. Don't trade me away. That's all I am asking," Hunter says with a smile, ratcheting up his voice an octave for wistful effect. "I don't want to leave. I like Baltimore. I like the city. This is a good fit. The guys are good and they bring in people that care. " No question Hunter cares. As goofy as he can be off the field, he's the opposite on it, a fierce competitor who, like most young pitchers, sometimes can be his worst enemy.

A federal judge has ordered Baltimore police to halt a "veritable witch hunt" into the personal life of a man who alleges that his camera was seized as he filmed an arrest. In a ruling unsealed Friday, U.S. Magistrate Judge Susan Gauvey said the department must pay $1,000 for a "not so subtle attempt to intimidate the plaintiff" in a civil suit against the department. She took issue with tactics employed against Christopher Sharp, who sued the department two years ago, alleging that officers deleted images from his phone after he recorded a female friend being beaten by officers at the 2010 Preakness Stakes.

Edmondson boys basketball coach Darnell Dantzler was caught in the moment Thursday night at Randallstown, emotionally accepting one hug after the next while his players were in the background loudly celebrating. In the past four years, the Red Storm had successful seasons come to an end in the region championship game with each opponent going on to win the state championship. But this time, it was Edmondson's turn. This time, it was seniors Darius Walker and Isaiah Tripp and Darius Hubbard and Myrek Lee-Fowlkes making big plays, hitting important shots and making clutch free throws at the end to lead the No. 5 Red Storm to a 73-63 win over Randallstown to claim the Class 2A North region championship.

The Century boys' track and field team and Manchester Valley senior Abby Culp were the definition of excellence at the Maryland Class 2A-1A indoor track and field state championships. Century easily won its second state title in three years during the Feb. 18 event at the Prince George's County Learning and Sports Center while Culp set a new state and Class 1A record with a time of 11:24.12 to win the 3,200 meter race. The Century boys outdistanced runner-up Largo by an astounding 39 points in the Class 2A meet.

The old cliche that hip-hop headliners never take the stage on time was true on Thursday night at Rams Head Live. The Gaithersburg-born rapper Wale, the area's most prominent hip-hop artist on a national level, took the stage around midnight, an hour after he was scheduled to perform. But according to Wale, the delay wasn't his fault. At 11:51 p.m., Wale took to his Twitter account to inform fans he had just arrived after his professional driver was pulled over by police on the way to the venue.

The Baltimore office of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, the nation's worst performer in processing disability claims, will receive more employee training, an influx of senior staff and a new digital processing system ahead of schedule, under a plan outlined Tuesday by VA Secretary Eric K. Shinseki and Sen. Barbara A. Mikulski. The infusion of resources is intended to reduce a 26.2 percent error rate and help reduce the backlog of outstanding claims by disabled veterans. "What we have found since the beginning of the war — and our war is now 10 years old — when our veterans return, though they face the nightmares of war, they often face a quagmire" with the claims process, Mikulski said.

Police want to identify women seen over two decades by a Johns Hopkins gynecologist who was found dead on Monday amid a police investigation that he was surreptitiously photographing and videotaping his patients. The doctor, identified as Nikita A. Levy, 54, was let go by Johns Hopkins Medicine earlier this month after a colleague alerted security staff to the allegations, hospital officials said. They said Levy had been capturing images of patients with personal photo and video equipment.

The Orioles have made another roster claim, this time grabbing right-handed pitcher Todd Redmond from the Cincinnati Reds. To make room for Redmond on the 40-man roster, the club designated outfielder Trayvon Robinson for assignment. Robinson was acquired in November when the Orioles dealt Robert Andino to Seattle. But the Orioles have signed several reserve outfielders since then -- including Chris Dickerson -- and Robinson's spot became less secure. In addition, the club announced that catcher Luis Rodriguez, who was designated earlier this week for Russ Canzler, has cleared waivers and been outrighted to Triple-A Norfolk.