Middle River

An Essex man, who faces criminal charges relating to a May homicide where the body was left inside a burning truck, was shot in the back of the head early Friday morning, according to Baltimore County police. Joseph Thorpe, 27, was found shortly after midnight Friday, lying in the middle of the street at Middle River Road and Compass Road, suffering from a gunshot wound, in addition to other traumatic injuries, according to a police statement. Thorpe, of the unit block of Glenwood Road, was taken to Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center and was listed in critical condition, police said.

One man was killed and a man and a woman were wounded in a triple shooting while standing at a bus stop in Middle River late Monday night, according to Baltimore County Police. Officers responded to the 2100 block of Eastern Blvd., near the Hawthorne Plaza Shopping Center and not far from Martin State Airport, about 11:47 p.m. for a report of gunfire and found the three victims, police said. An initial investigation indicated the three victims were standing at a bus stop when one or more suspects "approached them and began shooting," police said.

Hawthorne Elementary School in Middle River will launch its first-ever chapter of the National Elementary Honor Society during a special induction ceremony for new members at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, February 19.   Membership in the National Elementary Honor Society is considered one of the highest honors that can be awarded to students - inductees are selected based on their accomplishments in the areas of scholarship, responsibility, service and...

No idea what sort of job might suit you? A Middle River software company that fuses applications and psychology has a personality test for that - one built around images rather than questions. Compass Lite, which went public last week and launched more officially on Monday, is tech firm Woofound's twist on the personality assessments taken by hordes of students, job candidates and online surfers. Woofound's app has participants rate 84 photos - of everything from artwork to a camping tent - as either "me" or "not me. " Then it spits out a personality type, such as "planner/inventor," along with career recommendations and information about those job possibilities.

Marie C. Vrany, a retired secretary who once foiled a pickpocket while on vacation in London, died Sunday of complications from a stroke at Carroll Hospital Center. She was 90. The daughter of a Patapsco & Back River Neck railroader and a homemaker, Marie Caroline Schissler was born in Keansburg, N.J. The eldest of five children who were orphaned by the time she was 11, Mrs. Vrany was raised by extended family members who had adjoining farms in Middle River. She was a graduate of St. Elizabeth's Commercial School, where she won awards for typing and stenography.

In a cost-cutting move, a logistics division of Lockheed Martin is moving from Johnstown, Pa., to Middle River, according to a company representative. The 78-person Global Supply Chain Services team was notified of the move Thursday, said Emily Caruso, a Lockheed Martin spokeswoman. "Our goal is to make offers to all qualified employees willing to relocate," Caruso said. "We'll supplement that with local hiring. " Lockheed Martin is not renewing the lease on this division's workspace in Johnstown, a move that will save the company $1.6 million annually, she said.

Eastern Baltimore County residents say a bill before the County Council could open the door to poorly planned development on a key tract in the Middle River area near Route 43. "Let's work on a better bill, please," said Allen Robertson, president of the Bowleys Quarters Community Association, during a council work session Tuesday. Robertson said his group wants the council to withdraw or table the legislation. The measure, proposed by County Executive Kevin Kamenetz's administration, would allow residential development on part of an 800-acre tract near White Marsh Boulevard that is now zoned for industrial use. County leaders once hoped the site would attract major employers.

John and Claudia Copsey of Bel Air announce the engagement of their daughter, Kathleen Elizabeth Copsey, to Frank Crisafulli Jr., son of Frank and Jaylene Crisafulli Sr. of Middle River. Copsey is a 2006 graduate of C. Milton Wright High School and Stevenson University and is a second-grade teacher in Baltimore County, pursuing her master's degree as an elementary math specialist. Crisafulli is a 2005 graduate of Eastern Technical High and the University of Maryland Baltimore County.

A Middle River family who alleges a Baltimore County officer used excessive force with a Taser has a second chance in court after the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday partially reversed an earlier decision to throw out their federal suit. Ryan Meyers' family sued after the 40-year-old died when Baltimore County police responded to his home for a domestic violence call in 2007. Three officers entered the home and one tasered Meyers 10 times because police said he refused to listen to the officers and drop a baseball bat. But Meyers' family said he fell to the ground and was no longer resisting arrest when the officer continued to taser him unnecessarily.

Petition signature collectors have hit the streets again in Baltimore County for a referendum effort on development issues - this time targeting a recent County Council bill that would protect a Middle River project from an earlier referendum challenge. Last month, County Councilwoman Cathy Bevins, a Middle River Democrat, sponsored and won approval for a bill that would let a Middle River development proceed, even if the zoning is overturned through a pending referendum attempt.