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Carl O. Snowden, a longtime Annapolis alderman and a leading mayoral candidate, heads an organization that has collected thousands of dollars in the name of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. over the past nine years but is not registered as a charity.Whether the organization -- the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Awards Committee -- has violated state law by not registering is being examined by the office of Maryland's secretary of state.Under the Maryland Charitable Solicitations Act, if an organization raises $1 or more in charitable contributions, it must register with the secretary of state, said Jennifer Light, a spokeswoman for the office's Charitable Organization Division.

Former Maryland basketball player Travis Garrison won't have to register as a sex offender or serve jail time for a 2005 incident in which he was accused of assaulting a woman at a College Park bar. A judge approved a sentence revision yesterday in which a fourth-degree sex offense charge against Garrison was declared "inactive," said his attorney, Thomas C. Mooney. "We mutually agreed to place the case in limbo. He did not admit to anything," Mooney said after a hearing in the courtroom of Prince George's Circuit Court Judge Michael Whalen.

NEW CARROLLTON - Some rode for hours on buses from New England, and others arrived in luxury sedans from nearby Virginia. Christians and Muslims, new immigrants and longtime U.S. citizens, the bunch was diverse in so many ways but one: the hope for a free Iraq. Iraqi immigrants living in the northeastern United States arrived by the hundreds at the New Carrollton Ramada Inn yesterday. Security was tight as they registered to vote in their native country's Jan. 30 election. As many as 22,000 Iraqis are expected to vote at the Ramada Inn here.

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- Texas-billionaire Ross Perot hinted yesterday that he will sue California over its election laws if his attempt to register a new party in time for the 1996 election cycle fails to meet an Oct. 24 deadline."

REHOBOTH BEACH - A train of receipts runs over the checkout clerk's sensible shoes, which are untied for additional comfort. After six decades of service, these feet should be barefoot on the beach.Eleanor Lingo has been behind the counter at Lingo's Market for 60 of the store's 100 years. Three generations of shoppers have checked through Mrs. Lingo's stubby counter, where there's no room for groceries to stretch out. Three generations of shoppers have, perhaps, wondered whether Mrs. Lingo rang up all their items in the heap.

WASHINGTON - Having no home and no money should not exclude someone from voting, according to two national groups that are trying to register thousands of homeless people to vote in the presidential election. "The message that the poor and homeless are voting is part of a bigger strategy to get the issues of the poor heard," said Donald Whitehead, executive director of the National Coalition for the Homeless. On July 22, his group and the National Low Income Housing Coalition registered roughly 1,150 homeless people nationwide in a one-day drive in 16 states and the District of Columbia.

A Democratic blogger is stirring an online discussion over whether Maryland's main Tea Party group is operating out of bounds by pushing for state legislation without having registered as a lobbying organization. It's not unusual for small, new groups to run afoul of the state Ethics Commission by failing to file required paperwork, but the issue has captured attention in this case because members of the conservative group Americans for Prosperity rail against "registered lobbyists" in their pitches to supporters.

Imagine buying a toy or product for your child that poses a danger but getting no warning. After it happened to Paul La Porte -- he discovered on his own that a front-carry backpack for his 5-month-old daughter was unsafe -- he imagined a way to prevent it from happening again. Drawing on his experience and his high-tech background, La Porte launched Columbia-based RegistrationVillage.com last week. Consumers can register all their products on the site, and receive personal e-mail notices if a recall or warning is issued on an item they own. "The important distinction is we take the onus off the consumer," said La Porte, chief executive officer of RegistrationVillage.

LAS VEGAS - Block by block, house by house, Cesar Auyb and Irene Rodriguez are changing politics in Nevada. But the change is coming slowly. Since May, the two have been on leave from their jobs in Las Vegas casinos to work as organizers for a union-sponsored, nonprofit organization trying to increase voter registration among the state's exploding Hispanic population. On a bright and breezy morning last weekend, each was diligent and cheerful while pursuing potential voters in a heavily Hispanic neighborhood west of the downtown strip.

Get in the mud! Here's a look at some of the region's upcoming obstacle mud runs. Note: Check each organization's web site for more race day options. Fees increase for most of these events as the race day approaches. Tough Mudder May 12 and 13: Pocono Manor, PA, final entry by May 5, $200 Sept. 8 and 9: Frederick, MD, "tough" discount through April 30, $125 Oct. 20 and 21: Englishtown, NJ: "tough" discount through April 30, $125 Register at: http://www.toughmudder.com Spartan Race July 14 and 15: Palmerton, PA, $60-$100 Aug. 25 and 26: Leesburg, VA, $95-$145 Register at: http://www.spartanrace.com Warrior Dash May 19 and 20: Mechanicsville, MD; $75 Saturday, $65 Sunday; registration closes May 7. June 16 and 17: Long Pond, PA, $75 July 14: Morristown, NJ, $55 through May 29, $65 through July 2 Register at: http://www.warriordash.com Rugged Maniac July 14: Englishtown, NJ, $68 by May 4, $78 by June 8, $88 through July 6 Register at: http://www.ruggedmaniac.com —Catherine Mallette