David Mitchell

IT'S a Shakespearean moment when Judge David B. Mitchell takes the bench. His black robe blends with the dark leather of his elevated chair, making it seem as if he is sitting on a custom-made throne. Clerks and lawyers hover in front of the bench as he considers requests for trial delays. At times, the light above the bench hits the metal rim of his glasses, sending a flash into the courtroom. When he scolds errant lawyers, it looks like lightning. "You don't get it, do you?" Mitchell boomed recently at a prosecutor who had failed to disclose evidence in a high-profile multiple-victim murder case.

In Baltimore County Water pressure drops in northwest areas after valve breaks OWINGS MILLS -- A broken valve caused four pumps at a pumping station in Owings Mills to shut down yesterday morning, causing water pressure to drop in some northwest Baltimore County neighborhoods. The valve broke Tuesday night or early yesterday, which caused flooding at the station and the pumps to stop, said Kurt L. Kocher, spokesman for the Baltimore Department of Public Works. Owings Mills and Reisterstown residents may have experienced low water pressure yesterday morning, said Kocher, adding that pressure was back to normal by afternoon.

A 65-year-old Linthicum man spread out a blanket and pillow in the back of his van and drove to a Baltimore County restaurant to meet what he thought was a nine-year-old girl, planning to perform sex acts with her, according to court filings. But the supposed child was in fact an undercover detective who had exchanged over 200 text messages with David Mitchell Rowe, posing as a girl he had previously molested at a hotel pool. He was arrested and charged with soliciting a minor to engage in sexual activity.

When police carted Gordon Ragler and his wife away in handcuffs last year, neighbors thought the around-the-clock drug dealing in their Southwest Baltimore community had finally come to an end.But 13 months later, the Raglers slipped through a net carefully crafted by undercover drug officers and confidential informants. It didn't seem to matter that police conducted hours of surveillance of open-air drug sales or collected solid evidence to make their case: 50 bags of cocaine and a loaded semiautomatic pistol.

Bull Dog Flag Football is registering for the fall season, which runs Sept. 18 to Dec. 18 and includes post-season and tournament games. Games are played in Baltimore, Howard and Anne Arundel counties and the Glen Burnie area on Sundays (tournament games on Saturdays). Registration fee for 9-man and 8-man IE is $500, plus officials fees; registration for 5-man is $350, plus official fees. To register, go to eteamz.com/mdbulldogflagfootball. For more information, contact David Mitchell, BDFFL commissioner, 4BullDogFlagFootball@msn.com or 410-409-4866.

A former state Division of Vital Records clerk has pleaded guilty to a scheme in which he sold birth and death certificates to black market buyers.Nathan Green, 22, of Baltimore sold birth certificates for $40 and death certificates for $500, and provided an official certificate of the document's authenticity, said Assistant Attorney General Michael A. Zwaig.Green pleaded guilty to bribery charges Monday in Baltimore Circuit Court before Judge David Mitchell. Prosecutors are recommending a three-year jail sentence, with two years suspended.

Francis Scott Key High's boys cross country team was honored Jan. 9 by the Carroll County Board of Education for winning the state championship title at Hereford High on Nov. 10.Team members are seniors, Michael Bales, David Cox, Mitchell Jones, Richard Ruskey and Jason Wilhide; junior, David Cavey; and sophomore, Justin Wildesen.The team's coach is James Bullock, motor development specialist at Robert Moton Elementary.

TOWSON - The importance of keeping families together will dTC be the focus of the 17th annual conference of the Maryland Interdisciplinary Council for Children and Adolescents next month at Greater Baltimore Medical Center.Baltimore Circuit Judge David B. Mitchell will talk about the needs of the child vs. the needs of the family.The conference is planned for 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Jan. 20 at 6701 N. Charles St. Information: Cathy Brookman, 747-4545.

He came back from Hagerstown the way they all do -- riding that eastbound Greyhound, with a few pieces of clothing and some discharge papers crammed into a brown bag. In his pocket, nothing save the change from the $25 they issue for bus fare at the prison gate.It was Wednesday, a month ago, and he walked north and east from the bus station, heading for Barclay Street. Aunt Deelie's place. Second rowhouse from the corner.Minutes later and a lifetime away, the phone rang in a well-kept kitchen of a brick rancher in the Baltimore County suburbs.

Maryland State Police accepted a federal grant yesterday to install 93 cameras in cruisers that patrol Interstate 95 between Baltimore and Virginia. The $396,000 was part of $12 million given to state police agencies throughout the country by Community Oriented Policing Services in the U.S. Department of Justice. The office is headed by former Baltimore Police Commissioner Thomas C. Frazier. Col. David B. Mitchell, state police superintendent, said the cameras will "accurately record our interactions with citizens during traffic stops."