Time Limit

Displaying the talent but not the temperament of a Kentucky Derby contender, Coronado's Quest finished second yesterday in a major Derby prep after refusing repeatedly to allow his rider onto his back.Time Limit won the seven-furlong $100,000 Hutcheson Stakes at Gulfstream Park in 1 minute, 22 2/5 seconds. He paid $5.20 to win. The exacta with favorite Coronado's Quest paid $9. Zippy Zeal was third, Red Wraith fourth and Voyamerican fifth.Winning his fifth race in 10 starts, Time Limit is from the same team that produced 1996 Kentucky Derby winner Grindstone: owner Overbrook Farm (William T. Young)

UPDATE: See end of post for update on another journalist saying Zakaria "borrowed heavily" from him. Following the lead of Time magazine, CNN Friday suspended Sunday morning show host and international affairs analyst Fareed Zakaria for plagiarism. The magazine said its suspension was for a month "pending further review," while CNN put no time limit on its removal of Zakaria from its airwaves. Plagiarism used to be a deadly journalistic sin from which there often was no redemption.  Given the lack of values and ethics in journalism today, however, who knows what will happen to Zakaria.

A state court panel voted 11-10 yesterday against a proposal to restrict the nearly complete discretion judges have to shorten violent criminals' sentences, but sent the controversial issue to the Maryland Court of Appeals, the state's highest court, for a final decision. Prosecutors and criminal defense lawyers both found a silver lining in what is simply an advisory vote by the court system's Rules Committee. Prosecutors say they are closer in their decade-long quest to see time limits on sentence reductions.

The American Legion Columbia Post 300 Patriots captured the 22nd annual Hillbilly Hardball Classic duringFather's Day weekend (June 14-17) in Elkins, WV. The Patriots went 7-0-1 in the tournament, playing eight games in four days with eight different starting pitchers, including Ben Goldsmith's 10-strikeout, one-hit shutout of then-undefeated host Elkins Post 29, the runner-up in the West Virginia state tournament each of the last two years....

Rebuilding a demolished home on an existing lot must occur within 10 years, if the property owner is to avoid the impact fee assessed on new residential construction in Harford County. The County Council enacted the 10-year limit on Tuesday despite strong objections from Councilman Dion Guthrie, who had called for giving homeowners a 15-year window to rebuild. Guthrie was advocating for a constituent with a large property, where several tenant houses were razed decades ago. The owner asked to have the fee waived for the homes he planned to build for his adult children.

In the wake of the Anne Arundel County Council chairman's admission that he violated county ethics law several times last year, some of his colleagues say future investigations should not be allowed to drag on so long. One idea being discussed is to set a time limit on inquiries by the county Ethics Commission, whose scrutiny of Daniel E. Klosterman Jr. dates to February 1999. "If there is a time limit, maybe they would put forth more of an effort to make a decision in a timely manner," said Councilwoman Shirley Murphy, a Pasadena Democrat and staunch Klosterman ally.

UPDATE: See end of post for update on another journalist saying Zakaria "borrowed heavily" from him. Following the lead of Time magazine, CNN Friday suspended Sunday morning show host and international affairs analyst Fareed Zakaria for plagiarism. The magazine said its suspension was for a month "pending further review," while CNN put no time limit on its removal of Zakaria from its airwaves. Plagiarism used to be a deadly journalistic sin from which there often was no redemption.  Given the lack of values and ethics in journalism today, however, who knows what will happen to Zakaria.

There are plenty of ``Do's'' when it comes to reading aloud to your child. Here are some ``Don'ts.''* Don't start a reading if you won't have enough time to do it justice. Having to stop after one or two pages only serves to frustrate, rather than stimulate, the child'sinterest in reading.* Don't be unnerved by questions during the reading, particularly from very young children. Answer their questions patiently. Don't put them off. Don't rush your answers. There is no time limit for reading a book but there is a time limit on a child's inquisitiveness.

For much of this decade, James Cunningham has been trying to win approval to open a rubble landfill on a site next to an older, filled-up dumping facility that for years has evoked concerns about pollution and other complaints from Gambrills-area neighbors.At a public hearing last night, the neighbors were hoping his efforts to win that approval would have to continue into the next millennium.Cunningham appeared before the Anne Arundel County Board of Appeals, seeking a variance from requirements that had allowed him until January 1999 to get the necessary permits and complete the project.

The American Legion Columbia Post 300 Patriots captured the 22nd annual Hillbilly Hardball Classic duringFather's Day weekend (June 14-17) in Elkins, WV. The Patriots went 7-0-1 in the tournament, playing eight games in four days with eight different starting pitchers, including Ben Goldsmith's 10-strikeout, one-hit shutout of then-undefeated host Elkins Post 29, the runner-up in the West Virginia state tournament each of the last two years....

Rockets center Yao Ming will be limited to playing no more than 24 minutes in each game next season as he returns from a foot injury, the team's athletic trainer said Thursday. Keith Jones told the Houston Chronicle the time limit would be applied strictly and the 7-foot-6 Yao would skip a lot of practice sessions to limit the impact on his left foot. "Twenty-four is his number all year," Jones said. "Playoffs come, things could change. We're trying to get him through April.

If cooking for one has you in a carryout rut, it's time to take control of your kitchen, your wallet and your health. So throw away the TV dinners, diet shakes and leftover pizza. Make room for fresh, versatile ingredients with easy-to-cook recipes and time-saving tips to get the culinary juices flowing. After all, cooking for one doesn't have to be a bore. It all comes down to planning and organization. How we eat Lin Oliver, 27, of Fells Point says she strives to cook healthful meals at home four nights a week but still ends up eating out often.

Rebuilding a demolished home on an existing lot must occur within 10 years, if the property owner is to avoid the impact fee assessed on new residential construction in Harford County. The County Council enacted the 10-year limit on Tuesday despite strong objections from Councilman Dion Guthrie, who had called for giving homeowners a 15-year window to rebuild. Guthrie was advocating for a constituent with a large property, where several tenant houses were razed decades ago. The owner asked to have the fee waived for the homes he planned to build for his adult children.

Wish list in hand, Baltimore County Executive James T. Smith Jr. asked state transportation officials yesterday for millions of dollars to pay for improvements to roads, bridges and train stations, but a tough economy means he will not get everything he wants. In a meeting in Towson, Smith told John D. Porcari, Maryland's secretary of transportation, that with an expected influx of residents under the military's Base Realignment and Closure process, "it is imperative that we have the appropriate infrastructure to accommodate the new residents and jobs that we anticipate adding to this area."

WASHINGTON -- Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi announced yesterday that she'll use a rare procedural option to block fast-track consideration of the Colombia free-trade agreement, a draconian step that counters President Bush's push to get Congress to vote on the controversial deal this year. Pelosi said she'll present to the House floor a rule change suspending the limit of 90 legislative days to pass or reject the Colombia free-trade agreement, just two days after Bush dispatched the text to Congress.

ATLANTA -- It was a Friday night in a rough part of town when Officer Mark A. MacPhail of the Savannah Police Department showed up to work his second job, moonlighting as a security officer for the Greyhound bus station. A few hours later, early on a Saturday morning in August 1989, MacPhail was shot and killed as he tried to break up a fight over a can of beer. He never drew his weapon. The man convicted of shooting the officer that night in 1989, Troy A. Davis, is likely to be the focus of an unusual clemency hearing before the Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles.

Rockets center Yao Ming will be limited to playing no more than 24 minutes in each game next season as he returns from a foot injury, the team's athletic trainer said Thursday. Keith Jones told the Houston Chronicle the time limit would be applied strictly and the 7-foot-6 Yao would skip a lot of practice sessions to limit the impact on his left foot. "Twenty-four is his number all year," Jones said. "Playoffs come, things could change. We're trying to get him through April.

The July death of a Baltimore man who was shot in 1974 has been ruled a homicide, but no one can be charged with murder in the case, according to a legal expert. State law at the time of the shooting set strict limits on when homicide charges could be filed, said Byron Warnken, a law professor at the University of Baltimore. Frank Phillips of the 100 block of S. Gilmore St. was shot in the 1500 block of Vine St. in July 1974, suffering massive injuries and eventually becoming a paraplegic, police said.

The touchy topic of whether to change the generous property tax cut for seniors approved just before November's election is proving a test for the new Howard County Council. Two issues - time limits and membership - are awaiting a likely council work session discussion Tuesday on a resolution creating a citizens task force to examine the full implications of the cut and recommend changes. The law, unanimously approved Oct. 30 and signed by former County Executive James N. Robey, gives homeowners 70 and older with incomes of $75,000 or less a permanent 25 percent property tax cut. Howard also allows seniors 65 or older with the same income limits to defer property tax increases as long as they own their homes.

The Baltimore City Board of Liquor License Commissioners has allowed a handful of people, many of them vendors who lease poker machines and pool tables to bars, to hold onto and sell valuable liquor licenses long after the licenses should have expired. State law dictates that inactive licenses die after 180 days without an extension by the liquor board, or 360 days maximum. But a review of inactive licenses by The Sun shows that a number of people have gotten around the law, including Gilbert Sapperstein, owner of All-State Boiler Service Inc., who in May pleaded guilty to conspiracy, bribery and theft in connection with a scheme to defraud the city school system.