Hogan

State Sen. Patrick J. Hogan, an authority on higher education and a strong pro-slots voice in the General Assembly, will resign from the legislature to become head of government relations for the University System of Maryland, he said yesterday. The move leaves a scramble to fill his Montgomery County Senate seat and the significant possibility that he will be replaced by a Democrat who does not support expanded gambling. Hogan was a Republican when he was elected in 1994, switched parties and became one of the top lieutenants of Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller.

BOISE, Idaho -- Ahh, the rituals of camping. Crawling out of the sleeping bag on a cool summer morning with the smell of sizzling bacon wafting from the skillet. Grabbing that first cup of camp coffee and greeting the day by opening up your laptop to see if Wall Street is being kind to your stock portfolio. "It used to be that when campers would make reservations at an RV park they would ask if the park had water, electricity and sewer," said Kelly Hogan, chief executive of NomadISP, a Boise company that has installed wireless access in more than 300 parks and campgrounds.

WASHINGTON -- The debate over abuses in U.S. military prisons in Iraq and Afghanistan flared again yesterday, with nine former detainees seeking the right to sue outgoing Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld and three senior Army leaders for alleged torture. At a hearing in U.S. District Court, lawyers for the detainees, Iraqi and Afghan civilians, said that Rumsfeld and the officers violated U.S. and international law and should be held responsible for the abuse they suffered. The unusual lawsuit is believed to be the first to try to hold U.S. officials accountable for the prison scandal, revelations about which triggered worldwide outcry and forced an overhaul of U.S. interrogation rules.

The procedure of transforming a quasi-celebrity into a pop singer is more akin to the bureaucratic method than the creative process. It's process that, if followed correctly, ensures a certain amount of success -- 500,000 copies, at least. Here's how it works, step by step: Lots of exposure and face time on Extra and the glossy magazine pages. Sex appeal and scandal/controversy. A big-name producer and a platinum credit card. A-list collaborators. Image reinvention and goliath publicity push.

Nelson, lord of links, dies at 94 Byron Nelson, whose record of winning 11 consecutive professional golf events in 1945 remains one of sports' most unassailable records, died yesterday at his home in Roanoke, Texas. He was 94. The Tarrant County Medical Examiners office announced Nelson's death, according to the Associated Press. He died of natural causes. "The golf world suffered a devastating loss with the passing of a true gentleman, Byron Nelson. He was a legend who transcended generations.

Snip. Snip. By the time Joseph F. Steffen Jr. finished answering questions put to him Wednesday by state lawmakers looking into the firings of 340 employees by the Ehrlich administration, it was clear that someone had been hacking at the last few strings still attached to the once proud puppet. Mr. Steffen, who apparently relished his hit-man status as he helped weed out workers perceived not to be staunch Ehrlich loyalists, sat alone with his lawyer under the glare of the TV cameras and the scrutiny of the very partisan bipartisan panel.

In a rare move that had the governor's office crying foul, the Senate rejected yesterday five of Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr.'s choices to fill local boards - one of which would have bumped Rep. Elijah E. Cummings from Morgan State University's board of regents. Ehrlich's office, however, is calling the Senate's vote illegal, because it came after the governor attempted to withdraw the nominations. By voting on and rejecting Ehrlich's choices, the Senate quashed the governor's ability to resubmit the names at a later date.

HOPI RESERVATION, Ariz. -- A rifle hangs under Pauline Whitesinger's mud-packed timber ceiling. It's placed within easy reach so she can scare off the coyotes that threaten her sheep. But there have been times when she's imagined other uses. "Maybe we should have set up firearms at our doorways so we could defend our homes," she said in her native Navajo language, as translated by her nephew Danny Blackgoat. Whitesinger lives like her ancestors did, in an eight-sided, juniper hogan - without electricity or running water - in the reaches of Big Mountain, Ariz.

Damascus -- Old Mill's Ryan Callahan scored twice to set a state record with 87 career touchdowns, but the Patriots were routed, 48-13, by Damascus last night in a Class 4A state semifinal. Callahan ran for 144 yards and finished his three-year varsity career with 24 consecutive games of 100 yards or more rushing and scoring at least one touchdown. His career rushing total was over 5,200 yards, 1,944 this season with 34 touchdowns. "I thank God for giving me the strength to put in all the hard work I did over the last four years," Callahan said.

On July 11, 2005, RICHARD GRANT "Dick" HOGAN, JR. He honorably served more than 20 years in the Military. Beloved son of the late Richard and Frances (nee Kinds) Grant; beloved father of Colleen Wire and her husband Fred, Robin Parlin and her husband Larrol, Nellie Rice and her husband Dustin, and Richard Hogan III and his wife Elina; loving grandfather of Ashley and Jessica Wire, Ryan Parlin and Aada Hogan; dear brother of Audrey Kurr and the late Nancy Fulcoski; nephew of the late Mary Kinds.