Harford County

Four female teenagers have been arrested and charged as adults with attempted murder and other charges after an attack in Edgewood on Sunday left three people hospitalized, Harford County sheriff's deputies said yesterday. A group of people gathered at the home of Gregory Simmons at the 1900 block of Eloise Lane about 7:30 p.m. to confront a female resident of the house about her relationship with a male neighbor, said Sgt. Christina Presberry, a Harford County Sheriff's Office spokeswoman.

Many of you no doubt saw the popular feature Top Maryland Athletes in Sun History that has appeared on http://www.baltimoresun.com since April. The list was compiled by veteran Sun sportswriter Mike Klingaman in conjunction with The Sun's 175th on May 17. The main criteria for selection was that the man or woman either came from Maryland or a significant portion of his or her career took place in Maryland. The list counted down from 175 to 1 over a period of about six weeks.

The opening of a trans-Susquehanna bus service linking Aberdeen and Havre de Grace in Harford County with Perryville in Cecil County no doubt comes as welcome news to people on both sides of the river who depend on public transportation and taxicab service. The three communities have substantial numbers of people who fall into this category, and the location of the Perry Point VA Medical Center on the Cecil County side of the divide makes it worth pondering why no cross river link was established years ago. Still, better late than never.

The Al Cesky Scholarship has become one of the most coveted awards a high school senior can receive in Harford County and for good reason. Since its inception in 1985, the program has recognized the balance between academics and extracurricular activities, and those who have received Cesky Scholarships have not only embodied that balance, they have excelled in academics and athletics. Every one of them has truly been a scholar-athlete. The Cesky Scholarship is for young people who attend Harford County schools and who have demonstrated at a young age they are gratified to be members of the Harford County community.

The Harford County Department of Public Works will close its four satellite yard waste collection sites in Fallston, Bel Air, Churchville and Abingdon Sept. 30, the county government announced yesterday. "Faced with state budget cuts and the need to serve county residents, the decision was made to shut down the sites and instead provide extended hours at Scarboro landfill to serve residents," said Frank Henderson, deputy director of environmental affairs. Valerie Twanmoh, past president of Friends of Harford Inc., a grass-roots group that monitors quality-of-life issues, expressed concern that the closings could result in some people dumping yard waste along roadsides and other areas.

From the 2,500-acre Susquehanna State Park to tiny neighborhood green spaces, Harford County is blessed with parks offering a variety of resources and recreational activities. Forests, waterfalls, rivers, huge rock formations, nature centers, historic sites, sports facilities and trails for hiking, horseback riding and cycling -- Harford County parks offer them all. State parks The State of Maryland provides detailed descriptions of its park facilities in Harford County on its Web site, www.dnr.

A Harford County boy might earn Scouting's highest honor with a community project thousands of miles from his home in Jarrettsville. Life Scout Alex Griffith, 15, knows the criteria for the rank of Eagle involve service to the community, a school or church. Alex, adopted in 1994 by Dwight and Jenny Griffith, lived the first year of his life at a hospital for abandoned children in Krasnoyarsk, a city in the Siberian region of Russia. He wants to give the children living at Hospital No. 20 a playground.

For more than 60 years, fanciers of the steamed Maryland blue crab trekked every summer to a secluded restaurant on the Bush River near Aberdeen and hammered and picked their way to gastronomical nirvana. They traveled to Gabler's Shore Restaurant from New York, Philadelphia and Washington in kind of a cultural homage to the model crab emporium not available in Queens or South Philly. And they traveled from the local crab capitals along Eastern Avenue and Belair Road. But these are sad days around Harford County.

A Harford County man was arrested and charged yesterday with raping a 17-year-old girl whom he lured to his home after chatting with her on the Internet, authorities said.Dontai Wykee Murrell, 25, of the 2700 block of Long Meadow Drive in Abingdon was charged with second-degree rape of the girl and with furnishing alcohol to minors.Detective Tom Walsh, a spokesman for the Harford County Sheriff's Office, said that the girl and a 16-year-old friend, who live in Harford County, told authorities that they began communicating with Murrell in a chat room Wednesday night.

Fallston teens' death shouldn't be in vainThe Rothgeb family would like to express their sincere thanks for the overwhelming support and sympathy received from the sheriff's department and the community since the loss of their beloved Eric. The memorial erected, where he was killed, and the letters and cards are greatly appreciated.Sixteen-year-old Eric Rothgeb and his best friend, 18-year-old Christian Leonard, were both tragically killed on June 24 as they walked along the shoulder of Route 152 in Harford County.

Harford County sheriff's deputies and Maryland State Police report: Aberdeen Frank Earl Jackson, 48, of the 600 block of South Stepney Road, was arrested on a bench warrant Thursday in a case in which he was charged with trespassing. Christopher John Gillich, 41, of the 1900 block of Park Beach Drive, was charged Sunday with indecent exposure. Robert Leroy Burkey, 29, of the first block of Lewis Drive, was charged Monday with violating a protective order.

For the rest of May, and especially over the Memorial Day holiday weekend, Maryland State Police from the Bel Air Barrack say they plan to be out in force on traffic details, with a special focus on people who drink and drive as well as those who aren't wearing seat belts. In a press release issued recently, the state police said they want "to remind everyone that buckling up is the single most effective thing you can do to protect yourself in a motor vehicle collision. " The enforcement effort focusing on people not wearing seat belts goes by the name "Click It or Ticket," and has been under way since the beginning of the month.

As many eyes in the sports world focus on Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore Saturday for the 139th running of the Preakness Stakes, it's comforting to know Harford County still has a place in horse racing. Bel Air's Country Life Farm, as Dewey Fox reminded our readers with his fine piece about the Pons family's operation in The Aegis Wednesday, is carrying on the horse breeding tradition that spans the past eight decades or so, helped out of late by the farm's part ownership of Malibu Moon, one of the top stallions in the country, who started his stud career at Country Life and now stands in Kentucky.

As of 8:30 a.m. Tuesday, traffic was slow on the inner loop of I-695 near Wilkens Avenue, due to an accident. Accidents were slowing traffic on Weyburn Road and Chesaco Avenue in Rosedale, Pulaski Highway at Route 543 in Harford County, Route 29 southbound at Johns Hopkins Road in Howard County, Route 152 at Pulaski Highway in Harford County, and Black Rock Road at Mt. Zion Road in Upperco. A malfunctioning signal was slowing traffic at Pulaski Highway and Abingdon Road in Harford County.

It was a standing room only crowd April 20 at the Havre de Grace Activity Center for "Fair Housing in 2012: A Clear Path for All. " The training, free and open to the public, was the result of partnership and collaboration among the Harford County Department of Community Services Office of Human Relations, the Harford County Housing Agency and the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development. "Havre de Grace was essentially the last stop on the Underground Railroad for many heading north," Harford County Executive David Craig said in a press release.

The most amazing thing about the recent cable television rate hike from Comcast Cablevision of Harford County is that it's only senior citizens who have raised a fuss about it.And they aren't even raising cane about the $2 monthly hike for what's called "preferred basic service." They're upset about having to provide detailed financial information to Comcast to get a discount to offset the monthly increase.The $2 monthly rate increase and the restrictions for the discount are both troubling.

When Christina Sorrelle first visited Swan Harbor Farm in Havre de Grace 16 months ago, it struck her as one of Harford County's hidden gems. Later, she called to book the facility for her wedding and reception, but was surprised to learn that the date she wanted was taken. "When I saw the vineyard and the view of the bay, I thought it was incredible," said the 27-year-old Boston resident. "I was sold on it, and having my wedding at Swan Harbor was more important to me than the date. So we scheduled our wedding on our second date choice."