Oakland

OAKLAND -- Speaking on his own behalf, John Frederick Thanos today stood before his sentencing jury and preached to them about love, hate, evil, Jesus and Lucifer.In a 35-minute rambling discourse, in which a bespectacled Thanos read from notes and frequently gestured, Thanos called Sue A. Schenning, the prosecutor, an evil and "cunning, calculating woman."He accused the prosecutor of violating the law by reading parts of a pre-sentence report to the jury. He said the state's case was all about "hate."

I am writing to you to point out a particular bias that I detect in your newspaper. It seems that when alleged acts of violence occur in East Columbia, there is a need to include Oakland Mills High School either in the headline or within the article even if it has no relevance to the context of the story. For example, in the March 20 edition, the headline reads, "Four Oakland Mills HS students arrested in attempted murder. " While it is true that the students were enrolled in said high school, the alleged deed had no bearing on the school itself.

If the fire that swept through parts of suburban Oakland is any example, disaster loves anniversaries. At least in California. The wildfire, which authorities believe grew from a flareup of a small brush fire extinguished Saturday, blazed through dry canyons and hillsides parched by five straight years of drought. It struck three days after the anniversary of the deadly 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, which killed 63.This conflagration was less deadly -- an estimated 10 people died, including a fire battalion chief and a policeman -- but far more costly.

In the top of the seventh inning at No. 6 Oakland Mills on Wednesday afternoon, Marriotts Ridge took a 3-2 lead on an RBI ground ball by leadoff man Jake Bender that sent home Matt Marinelli who had led off the inning with a single. At the time, Connor Delaney - the Mustangs' No. 5 hitter - thought the run would be enough for ace Eric Brown and the solid Marriotts Ridge defense. "I definitely trusted our defense ... but I knew any more runs we would get would be insurance runs," Delaney said.

Ravens quarterbacks coach Hue Jackson spent a third straight day in Oakland interviewing with the Raiders for a coaching position Thursday. Despite media reports that Raiders owner Al Davis has recently been interviewing candidates for an assistant coaching position, it should not come as a surprise if Raiders coach Tom Cable is fired and Jackson replaces him, according to a source. The Raiders could not be reached for comment. The Raiders like Jackson, 45, because he played a major part in the development of Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer, and Oakland also likes what he has done working with Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco the past two seasons.

OAKLAND, Calif. -- Politics, the saying goes, makes strange bedfellows. But it also takes strange turns. Twenty years ago, Jerry Brown was governor of California and his chief of staff was an obscure fellow named Gray Davis. Today, Mr. Davis is governor in Sacramento and Mr. Brown is mayor of Oakland, the economically depressed "other" city across San Francisco Bay.But Mr. Brown, six months into the job, argues that in some ways he's got the better of it. "I don't see that much difference between governor and mayor," he said.

OAKLAND, Calif. -- Shortstop Cal Ripken had a tough time negotiating the infield at the Oakland Coliseum this week, making three errors in the final two games of the series against the Oakland Athletics.Ripken had his first multiple-error game in more than a year Tuesday night, then bobbled a fourth-inning grounder by Mike Bordick in the series finale.In the space of less than 24 hours, he committed as many errors as he did during the entire 1990 season. He nearly doubled his error total for the season, going from four to seven.

Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake has selected former Oakland, Calif., Police Chief Anthony Batts as Baltimore's next police commissioner, bringing in a leader who has been hailed as an innovator but who struggled to push his agenda at his last job. Batts, 52, spent nearly 30 years with the Long Beach, Calif., Police Department - including seven as chief - before taking over the Oakland force in 2009. He resigned in October 2011 after butting heads with the mayor and City Council. He did not return a phone message seeking comment.

OAKLAND  - If there's one thing that separates the Oakland A's and the Orioles, the American League's two upstarts, it's that the A's young pitching has been a tick better this season. On Saturday, in Oakland's 5-2 victory, A's 23-year-old right-hander Jarrod Parker was a whole lot better than 24-year-old O's lefty Zach Britton, who gave up  five runs and walked four in just four innings. "It's not as good as [Britton] is capable of or we need him to be. So we'll move on,” said Orioles manager Buck Showalter said.

Due to a limited seating capacity of 800, the only tickets to tonight's 7 o'clock Class 2A South Region boys basketball championship game between host Oakland Mills and Glenelg will be pre-sold at the two schools today during school hours.

Throwing a game away - literally - doesn't usually sit well with teams, especially when they are attempting to establish themselves as consistent winners. So when the Orioles dropped a 9-8, 10-inning loss to the Oakland A's Sunday afternoon on consecutive poor throws following sacrifice bunt attempts, it would be understandable if the players were chewing nails in post-game interviews. For the most part, that was not the case - not after the Orioles (15-10) took three of four in their personal pain chamber, the Oakland Coliseum, to kick off a brutal, three-city, 11-game West Coast swing.

OAKLAND, Calif. - The Orioles exorcised plenty of their demons in 2012 when they finally achieved a winning record and a playoff berth for the first time in 15 years. But not every lingering nightmare can be erased in one season - not after years of continual ineptitude. With a 7-3 victory Saturday afternoon against the Oakland Athletics, the Orioles can cross one more thing off their “We're back” bucket list. For the first time since 2007, the Orioles (15-9) have won a series at the O.co Coliseum.

OAKLAND, Calif. -- The Orioles rode eight strong innings from Wei-Yin Chen and a key hit from Steve Pearce to a 3-0 win over the Oakland Athletics on Friday night . Here's what some of the key figures had to say about the victory: Pearce on being able to contribute: “It was huge. Personally it feels great to do that, but when you can do something for yourself and help the club, it feels awesome.” Pearce on the tight contest: “It was a tough game. (A's starter Tommy Milone)

OAKLAND, Calif. -- The Orioles opened their 11-game road trip with a 10-2 win over the Oakland A's on Thursday night . Here's what some of the key figures had to say about the victory: Chris Davis on the first few innings malaise: “The first couple innings I felt like we had a little jet lag working. So I think it was huge for us to get a bunch of hits and everybody kind of get that monkey off  their backs after traveling across country.” Davis on the HBP that wasn't: “It hit the top of my foot.

Colleges Oakland Mills forward Long will join Patsos at Siena Oakland Mills senior Lavon Long committed to Siena during an official visit Thursday. The 6-foot-6 forward signed with Loyola in November, but received a release from his letter of intent after Jimmy Patsos took the Siena job earlier this month. Long, a second-team Baltimore Sun All-Metro selection, joins St. Frances guard Maurice White in the Saints' 2013 recruiting class. - Matt Bracken More men's basketball: Forest Park senior Wayne Hill has signed with CCBC-Catonsville, according to Foresters coach Greate White . Hill, a 6-foot-4 point guard, averaged 15 points, nine assists and eight rebounds as a senior.

OAKLAND, Calif - Orioles manager Buck Showalter's focus was on the Oakland Athletics on Friday night, but that doesn't mean he didn't have an eye on what was happening in Charlotte. Right-hander Jake Arrieta, who was demoted Monday after compiling a 6.63 ERA in four big league starts, made his 2013 Triple-A debut Friday night for the Norfolk Tides at the Charlotte Knights. Facing the Chicago White Sox's Triple-A affiliate, which has several former major leaguers including Brent Morel, Lars Anderson and ex-Orioles Josh Bell and Steve Tolleson, Arrieta passed his first test down below.

When Jason Giambi left the Oakland Athletics as a free agent and signed with the New York Yankees after the 2001 season, the fans at Network Associates Coliseum never forgave him. Giambi won the Most Valuable Player Award for Oakland in 2000, but when he returned with the Yankees the following season, the A's fans booed him and mocked him, holding up derisive signs and fake, paper money. Tomorrow night will be different, A's third baseman Eric Chavez said. Orioles shortstop Miguel Tejada, the 2002 AL MVP, will return for the first time since he left Oakland as a free agent, and Chavez expects a standing ovation.

When Oakland tumbled into the pool of NFL expansion candidates yesterday, repercussions were felt across the country in Baltimore and St. Louis.Early indications, however, were that Al Davis' decision to keep the Raiders in Los Angeles did not carry tidal wave proportions.Herb Belgrad, the front man in Baltimore's bid for an NFL franchise, certainly didn't sound like a man wrought with anxiety after Oakland took the expansion plunge.Belgrad, chairman of the Maryland Stadium Authority, said Oakland's inability to reach a long-term agreement with Davis could not be blamed solely on the team's owner.