BUSINESS
By Jamie Smith Hopkins, The Baltimore Sun | May 30, 2013
Three industry groups from Baltimore and Washington said Thursday that they've banded together to "solidify" the region as the top place for cyber-related business growth. The new Baltimore-Washington Cyber Task Force - formed by the Greater Baltimore Committee, the Greater Washington Board of Trade and the Economic Alliance of Greater Baltimore - will work with other groups on the effort. They want to capitalize on the U.S. Cyber Command at Fort Meade in Anne Arundel County, which oversees the operation and defense of the military's information networks.
NEWS
By Andrea F. Siegel, The Baltimore Sun | May 30, 2013
Anne Arundel County has launched a tip line designed to let people report possible unethical or inappropriate behavior by Anne Arundel County police. The tip line, 410-222-2400, feeds to a task force examining the agency, and is a voice mailbox where people — residents as well as county employees — can leave information. Tips can be made anonymously, though people are encouraged to leave contact information, according to a statement from County Executive Laura Neuman. Neuman, who called for an investigation into the department, said the hotline is aimed at providing confidentiality for people who want to provide information they think can help the task force.
NEWS
May 29, 2013
The only thing more amusing than Gov. Martin O'Malley's response to the incompetence and negligence of yet another of his state agencies (in this case, the Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services) by calling a "task force" ("O'Malley forms task force on city jail," May 28), is his denomination of it as a "powerful new weapon in our arsenal. " He should be a carnival barker. Thomas F. McDonough, Towson
NEWS
By Scott Calvert, The Baltimore Sun | May 21, 2013
A task force appointed last year by Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake to study the city's speed and red-light camera program violated Maryland law when it met behind closed doors in March, the state Open Meetings Compliance Board ruled this week. The task force also violated the open-meetings law by not giving reasonable advance notice of meetings and by failing to take proper minutes, the board said in the ruling published Monday. While the decision carries no penalty, a judge could assess a $100 fine on members who "willfully" participated in the meeting.
NEWS
By Pamela Wood, The Baltimore Sun | May 3, 2013
Anne Arundel County Executive Laura Neuman is asking law enforcement professionals from other jurisdictions to examine the county's troubled police department. Since she took over in February from disgraced former executive John R. Leopold, Neuman said Friday, her office has received a steady stream of anonymous notes alleging problems in the agency. Leopold was convicted of criminal misconduct in office for directing his police protection detail to perform political and personal tasks.
NEWS
By Scott Calvert, The Baltimore Sun | May 2, 2013
A lawyer for Baltimore City says a task force appointed by the mayor to study the city's speed camera program did not hold an illegal closed-door meeting during a March visit to a contractor's headquarters. But a prominent member of the task force called the city's version of events "not true. " Assistant City Solicitor Hilary Ruley told state officials this week that a presentation to the task force was stopped once members realized the public had been barred from attending by Brekford Corp., the city's new camera vendor.