Gag

JUST BECAUSE THE FBI says so isn't a good enough reason to trample rights guaranteed Americans in the First and Fourth amendments, a U.S. District Court judge ruled Wednesday. Not much of a stretch to figure that one out, but count on the administration to appeal the decision. Judge Victor Marrero struck down the piece of the USA Patriot Act that allowed the FBI - without judicial oversight or finding of probable cause - to order Internet-access and telephone firms to hand over customer records and never tell anyone that they had done it. Not their lawyers, not their customers, not their great-great-grandchildren 50 years from now. One such provider finally did tell a lawyer, which is how the lawsuit got filed, but hundreds of others have held their tongues, according to Judge Marrero.

The state health department has drafted a $480 million list of potential program cuts that, if enacted, would deprive thousands of children of free health insurance coverage and shutter four mental health facilities, and could force women to pay for their own laboratory tests after rapes, according to documents obtained yesterday by The Sun. "It basically tells people if you are sick, leave the state," said Sen. Paula C. Hollinger, a nurse and chairwoman of...

Two people found in the trunk of a car stopped on Interstate 95 in Cecil County on Thursday were killed by multiple gunshot wounds, state police said yesterday. The driver of the car, James Moore, 39, of Andrews, S.C., and the passenger, Porsha L. Harper, 36, of Greensboro, N.C., were being held without bond in the Cecil County Detention Center last night, each charged with two counts of first-degree murder, said Maj. Greg Shipley, state police spokesman. An autopsy was performed yesterday on the victims, Shipley said.

THE SUPREME COURT sent a strong signal yesterday that it agrees with those who think the federal anti-marijuana campaign has gone overboard. In an attempt to thwart the growing movement toward legalizing marijuana for medical use, federal officials sought to yank prescription licenses from physicians who recommend or even discuss the potential benefits of the drug with patients. But the high court refused yesterday to even listen to arguments about why it should overturn an appeals court ruling blocking punishment or investigation of such doctors.

Speaking in a soft voice, former Baltimore police Officer Eduardo Munoz Jr. told a federal judge yesterday that he was guilty of selling as much as 300 to 400 grams of cocaine this year from a Fells Point auto garage. In turn, U.S. District Judge Catherine C. Blake told Munoz, who pleaded guilty to a charge of conspiracy to distribute cocaine, that she would sentence him Dec. 12. The brief hearing appears to be the next-to-the last chapter in a saga that began in March with Munoz's arrest and has included defense attorneys asking a judge to impose a gag order on Police Commissioner Kevin P. Clark.

This year's Easter egg hunt is over, but not for the DVD fanatic. Here are a few Easter eggs hidden on your favorite DVDs. Remember, these have not been laboratory-tested - they are reports from the field by die-hard fans, and a few favorites from Netflix film critic James Rocchi. The Ring: To play an extended version of the videotape, highlight Play on the menu, hit the Up button on your remote, then Select. Memento: Special Limited Edition: To watch this movie-in-reverse in chronological order, select Special Features from the main menu of the second disc.

When he announced federal drug and gun charges against a city officer last month, Baltimore Police Commissioner Kevin P. Clark forcefully vowed that his department would not tolerate corrupt police officers and said those who strayed from the law should face harsh punishment. In the case of indicted Officer Eduardo Munoz Jr., Clark said a 50-year jail term would not be enough and added: "If I could turn him loose for the cops this individual used to work with, the punishment would be far worse."

A lot of folks have never met a clown they liked. At the circus, they suffered the clowns until the tigers and acrobats showed up. They were polite to clowns at birthday parties, assuming -- falsely --that children might like Bozo better than they did. Ronald McDonald did not make meals any happier. What could dampen their good spirits quicker than a clown? Perhaps a painting of a clown ... or a whole book of them. "How much do I have to pay to not have one of these paintings hanging in my house?"

Assistant Baltimore State's Attorney Roger L. Harris withdrew yesterday his request for a gag order that would have prohibited lawyer Warren A. Brown from talking publicly about the case of Perry Spain, who awaits trial in the city Circuit Court in a June shooting that left a 10-year-old neighborhood bystander wounded. Harris said Brown was endangering a witness in the case by talking about him to the news media. The lawyers agreed yesterday not to talk to reporters about the witnesses or evidence in the case.

In Baltimore City Man's wife and son are indicted in his beating death in '95 The wife and son of a Baltimore man who was fatally beaten more than seven years ago were indicted on murder charges yesterday by a city grand jury, the state's attorney's office announced. Geralene Lincoln, 56, and Leroy Lincoln Jr., 26, were indicted on charges of first-degree murder and conspiracy to murder Leroy Lincoln Sr., who was 51 when he was killed Feb. 27, 1995, in his apartment in the 3500 block of E. Northern Parkway.