Distribution

Nearly two years after Maryland's first casino opened, the state has yet to dole out any of the $3.6 million in slots revenue that has accumulated for small, minority- and women-owned businesses, frustrating advocates and lawmakers. State officials are still working on a program to distribute the money as capital investments or loans to small businesses, a process that Baltimore Sen. Nathaniel J. McFadden criticized as being too slow. "What's taking so long?" asked McFadden, who inquired about the money last month in a letter to Gov. Martin O'Malley.

An estimated 3.5 million cancer patients around the globe are in severe pain from their disease, but many get no relief. In poor countries the cost is considered too high for drugs like morphine when such opioids are often stolen, abused or not taken according to instruction. But some Johns Hopkins University scientists have been working on a solution for those patients, as well as some in the United States, that uses a flexible button-sized disk implanted under the skin that releases consistent doses of painkiller over a month.

Two unidentified operators of a prescription drug clinic in Lutherville that was raided by Baltimore County narcotics officers and Drug Enforcement Administration agents Tuesday have been arrested, according to county police. One was arrested at the Healthy Life Medical Group clinic in the 1100 block of York Road, the other at Baltimore Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport, police said. Both have been charged with conspiracy to distribute Schedule II narcotics, which include amphetamines, methamphetamines and other drugs that can be used in a medical setting but have "a high potential for abuse which may lead to severe psychological or physical dependence," according to the DEA website.

A cocaine trafficking ring that for years distributed "vast amounts" of Honduran cocaine throughout the mid-Atlantic region has been busted, and three Maryland residents and 25 Virginia residents involved have been arrested, according to federal prosecutors. The drug ring, based in Northern Virginia, routinely paid couriers to fly into the United States from Honduras with cocaine stashed in shoes, decorative wooden frames and other "innocuous items" that would blend in with their luggage, according to a statement on the bust released Thursday by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia.

There will be a free food and clothing distribution event Saturday, May 19 at First United Methodist Church of Laurel, 424 Main St. The clothing distribution, sponsored by Grace Community Church, will be available from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. The food distribution is sponsored by Priority Partners and the Capital Area Food Bank, and will be held from 1 to 4 p.m. Pick up free food and learn about getting no- and low-cost health care benefits for...

Three people were arrested and more than a dozen guns were seized Thursday in the culmination of a two-month investigation into a gun distribution ring. "They got a major gun dealer off the streets," said Det. Donny Moses, a spokesman for the Baltimore Police Department. Ronald Van Price Jr., 37, Keith James, 34, and Jessica Correa, 24, were arrested and are expected to be charged by federal authorities, who assisted with the inquiry, Moses said. Maryland's U.S. Attorney's Office had not released the exact charges by 10:30 p.m. Thursday.

I began the day with a blog about the Ravens' plan to upgrade their wide receiving corps and that's how I'm going to end it. Both General Manager Ozzie Newsome and head coach John Harbaugh discussed the matter today and their comments indicate that the Ravens are absolutely considering picking a wide receiver early in the draft while it is unlikely that the team will make a big splash and sign one of the celebrated free agent wideouts. The group of free agent receivers could include Vincent Jackson, Dwayne Bowe, Wes Welker, Reggie Wayne and Marques Colston among others.

A woman who grew up rescuing lost critters has launched an effort to help pets and their owners survive financial crises together. Lynn Molnar is operating Thankful Paws, a food bank for pets, out of her White Marsh home. "The idea is to keep people and their pets together even in the most trying situations," she said. "Often in hard times, the pet is the cut that people have to make. " The seeds for the nonprofit organization sprung from the parade of stray cats, dogs and other assorted critters that found shelter in Molnar's childhood home, and from her mother, who nurtured a "spirit for animals" in her daughter.

Michael Davis has been named Chief Executive Officer of G. Cefalu Bro. and Capital Seaboard, in Jessup, and will begin to oversee the operations of both companies. Davis brings more than 20 years of experience in high growth foodservice and distribution. He previously served as CEO of Cal Atlantic; Senior Vice President and Partner of Coastal Sunbelt Produce; was a member of the Maryland Restaurant Association Board of Directors; and was the Vice President of Capital Seaboard.

A Gambrills man was arrested Wednesday in connection with the distribution of child pornography, police said. Robert J. Hudson 2nd, 24, of the 1000 block of Christmas Lane has been charged with two counts of distributing pornographic images of children, according to a statement by Maryland State Police. On Tuesday, an undercover state trooper was surveilling an online file-sharing network "known for distributing child pornography," the statement said. The trooper engaged in an online chat with another person and they agreed to meet to exchange computer files containing child pornography, police said.