Judge Kane

A Howard County judge denied yesterday a request by The Sun and one other news organization to make public the plea agreement of Francisco Rodriguez, a participant in the murder of state police Cpl. Theodore D. Wolf.Circuit Judge Raymond J. Kane Jr. agreed with the state that there was a compelling interest to keep terms of the plea closed, although he did unseal several minor portions with permission of the state.The Sun intervened after the agreement was sealed Jan. 24 following Rodriguez's guilty plea to first-degree murder in the March 1990 shooting death of Corporal Wolf.

A Howard County judge denied yesterday a request by The Sun and another news organization to make public the plea agreement of Francisco Rodriguez, a participant in the murder of state police Cpl. Theodore D. Wolf.Circuit Judge Raymond J. Kane Jr. agreed with the state that there was a compelling interest to keep terms of the plea closed, although he did unseal several minor portions with permission of the state.The Sun intervened after the agreement was sealed Jan. 24 following Rodriguez's guilty plea to first-degree murder in the March 1990 shooting death of Corporal Wolf.

A man accused of robbing and murdering an armored-car guard outside a Columbia bank in January cannot be given the death penalty or life without parole because prosecutors did not tell him in person of their plans to seek those penalties, a judge ruled yesterday.Circuit Judge Raymond J. Kane Jr. said Howard County prosecutors did not go far enough when they notified the defense in writing that they planned to seek the toughest possible penalties against Tyrone Colbert, 28, of Columbia, if he is convicted.

A Howard County Circuit Court judge closed his courtroom to the news media and public for three hours yesterday during a pretrial hearing in the case of a 28-year-old Columbia man charged in the Jan. 11 fatal shooting and robbery of an armored car guard.Judge Raymond J. Kane Jr. also issued a gag order, prohibiting the attorneys and parties in the case from discussing what occurred during the closed hearing, and sealed the defense motion that requested the closed hearing.After the hearing, Judge Kane denied a request by Mary R. Craig, an attorney for The Baltimore Sun, that a reporter be permitted to listen to an audio tape of the closed hearing and examine the defense motion.