Court

Roberto Pagan-Franco didn't have a bank account for decades. His employer paid him in cash or with a check that the Baltimore resident took to a check-cashing store. A few years ago he lost his job after a severe illness and for a time was homeless. Not exactly the type of customer you'd expect a big bank to court. But Pagan-Franco enrolled in a PNC Bank program that targets consumers who otherwise might be shut out of the banking system. And today, the 54-year-old has checking and savings accounts at PNC and is in the process of getting a credit card.

Hollywood Casino offers multiple entertainment options, like slots, table games, live racing and simulcasting, as well a gift shop and museum. This destination is owned and operated by Penn National Gaming, Inc., which one of the largest gaming companies in the nation. Casino hours: 24 hours a day. Games to play: Live table games include blackjack, craps, roulette, card games and baccarat, along with a 16-table poker room. The casino has 2,450 slots, including reel, video slot and video poker machines.

The woman who says she represents North American Power is not telling the truth about the benefits of buying electricity from her company. "You can save up to 10, 15, 20 percent of your bill, depending on your usage," she says in a telemarketing call to my house. But the rate she eventually quotes is only about 7 percent less than the standard price offered by Baltimore Gas & Electric — something the average customer would have no way of knowing. And of course the percentage savings won't vary even if my "usage" goes up to that of a steel mill.

A former head of the state's public defender office has lost a challenge to her 2009 firing, as Maryland's highest court ruled against her Tuesday. Nancy S. Forster was fired in a dispute with the agency's governing board over operation of the office that represents poor people facing criminal charges. The Court of Appeals did not rule on her contention that she was wrongly fired because the changes the board sought were illegal and would harm clients. A seven-judge majority ruled against her for procedural reasons.

The escape of a convicted murderer from a Maryland prison serves as a way to highlight the severe waste of both time and money in the judicial branch of government. Why must we move a convict's body to a new place to attend a court hearing? This could be done very inexpensively via Skype or any other teleconference service that allows the accused to have his/her day in court without the enormous expense, time and risks of physically moving a prisoner from place to place. When you multiply this movement to and from court hundreds (or more)

Dan Rodricks ' May 1st column ("Pit bulls: Own at your risk") effectively condemns all pit bulls to death. It demonstrates how fear combined with ignorance can lead to prejudice. It's too bad that Mr. Rodricks, who has spent years trying to counteract this phenomenon among others, does not recognize it in himself. Jeanne Bilanin, Baltimore

The state senator accused of bribery is set to make his first appearance in federal court at a hearing Sept. 17. Sen. Ulysses Currie, a Prince George's County Democrat, is expected to plead not guilty. The senator was indicted last week for allegedly accepting $245,000 in payments from Shoppers Food Warehouse in exchange for his help removing state bureaucratic hurdles. He stepped down from his position as chair of the senate's Budget and Taxation Committee to focus on his defense.

NJIT at Maryland When: Tonight, 8 Radio: 105.7 FM, 1300 AM Outlook: The Terps (7-4) return to action after a 10-day layoff with the Highlanders (2-6), who have not won on the road this season. Maryland has been led by sophomore Jordan Williams, who has nine double-doubles this season and five in a row. Senior Dino Gregory leads the Terps in blocks (19) and steals (14). "I think Dino, first of all, has done a great job for us," Maryland coach Gary Williams said Tuesday, according to the university website.

A 13-year veteran of the Baltimore Police Department died early Monday after he apparently suffered a heart attack while driving from his home in Baltimore County to a court appearance, according to city officials. Officer Robert W. Peregoy, 47, had been assigned to the Violent Crime Impact Division. He is survived by his wife of 27 years and three sons. He was born in Gettysburg, Pa., and graduated from Francis Scott Key High School in 1980. He earned 18 credits from Central Texas College and served in the Army until 1995, when he was honorably discharged as a military police officer stationed in Germany.

NEWS THAT Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist has thyroid cancer has highlighted the important connection between presidential politics and the U.S. Supreme Court. While the court has been little more than an afterthought in a campaign dominated by terrorism, the war in Iraq and the economy, its lasting impact on important issues should reinforce for Americans on both sides of the ideological divide what's at stake in this election. The current court has not changed in a decade, allowing for one of the most stable periods in the court's history.

Maybe what this country needs on the Supreme Court is a real politician or at least a sensible political scientist or two. Perhaps they would help the court's majority understand how it has allowed unlimited big-donor money to contaminate and almost destroy our politics. The infamous Citizens United decision -- which permits corporations and individuals to flood election campaigns with torrents of cash through super PACs as long as they are independent of candidates' formal organizations -- has invited some of the worst abuses of negative campaigning.

The Baltimore police officer who was thrown over the side of Interstate 83 and fell 20 feet after a car crashed into her vehicle as she helped a stranded motorist has filed a multimillion-dollar lawsuit against the driver and the owner of the vehicle. The driver, 23-year-old Robert R. Vanderford, is scheduled to appear in District Court this week for a trial on traffic charges related to the June 21, 2011, incident. The charges include failure to control vehicle speed to avoid a collision, failure to reduce speed in dangerous weather and driving while his license was suspended in another state.

How ironic that a divorce will be remembered for strengthening the rights of all Marylanders to be married regardless of sexual orientation. With its slam-dunk 7-0 opinion issued Friday in the matter of two women seeking a divorce, the Maryland Court of Appeals has ruled that Maryland must recognize same-sex marriages legally certified elsewhere. It's a huge victory for the ongoing efforts to legalize same-sex marriage in Maryland and adds a whole new dimension to this fall's referendum.

Maryland's highest court rejected a request to reconsider an April ruling that blocks state law enforcement from collecting DNA samples when a suspect is arrested, court officials said Friday. The decision puts the case on track for an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court. States and federal courts are split over whether taking a DNA sample before a suspect is convicted violates a person's Fourth Amendment right to be free from unreasonable search and seizure. Law enforcement agencies announced last month that they would halt the practice for the time being.

Maryland's highest court handed a victory to same-sex couples Friday in a ruling that the governor and other advocates hailed as an endorsement of administration policies recognizing gay marriages performed in other states. "To treat families differently under the law because they happen to be led by gay or lesbian couples is not right or just," Gov. Martin O'Malley said in a statement. "Today's decision is another step forward in our efforts to ensure that every child is protected equally under the law. " However, the ruling, in a case over whether Maryland courts could grant divorces to same-sex spouses, met with skepticism from groups fighting a recently passed state law legalizing gay nuptials.

Sexual assault in the military threatens our national security. This has been a hard lesson for military leaders to learn, but thanks to significant pressure from Congress and victims' advocates, they're starting to get the picture. Last month, Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta announced that sexual assault cases will now be handled by higher-ranking, more experienced officers and supervised by new Special Victims Units. These changes indicate that the Pentagon is finally interested in treating sexual assault as a serious crime rather than as lapse in professionalism or leadership.

The Supreme Court issued a series of orders yesterday with these results:CASES TO BE HEARDWorkplace bias. The court agreed to decide, at its next term starting in October, whether a company will be excused for firing a worker because of sex, race, religion or ethnic identity, if the company discovers later that there was a good reason to justify the firing. The issue arises in the case of a "campus cop" at a small college in Michigan who claimed she was fired because she was a woman. Although that firing was ruled illegal, a federal appeals court said the woman suffered no legal wrong because the company learned later that she had lied on her original job application.

Maryland's top court agreed Wednesday to hear appeals of two multimillion verdicts affecting hundreds of Jacksonville-area residents who sued ExxonMobil Corp. over 2006 underground gasoline leak. The Court of Appeals is expected to hear arguments in October in the two cases. Last year, a Baltimore County jury returned a $1.5 billion verdict against the oil giant. ExxonMobil appealed, and attorneys for residents asked the top court to bypass the intermediate appeals court. In March, in the second case, the state's second-highest court rejected much of a $147 million verdict, and both ExxonMobil and the residents appealed.

Howard County's 19th-century courthouse has seen a 40 percent increase in jury trials in the past year, causing court officials to clamor for a new facility. "Our county is growing, our population is growing, and that means more case filing," said Administrative Judge Lenore R. Gelfman. "The demands have been significant for a while. " Gelfman, County State's Attorney Dario J. Broccolino and Sheriff James F. Fitzgerald told the County Council last week that the increase is too much for the 170-year-old Ellicott City courthouse, which is cramped and outdated.