Washington County

The day after a man with a history of escape attempts tried to flee a courtroom as his murder trial was getting under way, a Howard County Circuit Court judge dismissed the entire jury pool and asked the lawyers whether he should recuse himself from the case. Brandon T. Morris, 21, tried to escape from Judge Dennis M. Sweeney's courtroom during jury selection Thursday. Two sheriff's deputies and two potential jurors received minor injuries during the ruckus, which resulted in Morris being wrestled to the floor by security officers.

Aubrey Franklin Haynes, Sr., M.D., J.D., F.A.C.S., 85, of 1017 Oak Hill Ave., Hagerstown, Maryland died March 19, 2007 at Washington County Hospital. Born June 19, 1921, in Murfreesboro, Tennessee he was the son of the late Aubrey and Bertha Haynes. He attended Middle Tennessee State University and Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pa., and pre-med at Johns Hopkins University; he graduated from George Washington University Medical School in 1949. He served his internship and general surgical residency at Marine Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland.

Gov. Parris N. Glendening moved yesterday to inject new life into ailing downtown Hagerstown, announcing that the state will locate the University System of Maryland's new Washington County campus in the heart of the city's business district.The governor said he hopes his decision, which goes against the publicly expressed wishes of county and university officials, sends a strong statewide message that he will enforce his Smart Growth policies favoring redevelopment in existing urban centers.

OAKLAND -- The falling yellow leaves say autumn is here. The calendar disagrees. Blame the drought.Those conjuring up soothing visions of splendid fall foliage as an escape from this blast-furnace summer had better have a Plan B. Trees from Western Maryland to the Washington suburbs are losing leaves more than a month ahead of schedule as they attempt to survive the worst drought in 70 years.When stressed, trees lose leaves like some people lose their hair. "It's a defense mechanism to ease the burden," explains Jim Simms, Garrett County agricultural agent.

Lack of funding may throw a monkey wrench into Carroll County's plans to tap into the lucrative heritage tourism market, officials said yesterday.Local leaders have joined a regional effort to become a state-certified Civil War Heritage Area, though no famous battles were fought in Carroll.They are touting a skirmish in Westminster and the movement of Civil War troops through the county in a bid for state recognition. Carroll is joined in the effort by Washington and Frederick counties, the sites of well-known clashes between Confederate and Union troops.

The state has given Carroll County the green light to move forward with plans to tap into the lucrative heritage tourism market by promoting the area's little-known role in the Civil War.Gov. Parris N. Glendening is expected to announce today the award of a $100,000 grant to Carroll, Washington and Frederick counties. The counties have joined in an effort to become a state-certified Civil War Heritage Area.The state grant will be used to help pay for a $200,000 heritage area management report, a step required for state recognition.

For Haven E. Hoffman, who lived in the small Washington County community of Chewsville, Christmas was a year-round event.For more than 50 years, Mrs. Hoffman, who was known locally as "Mrs. Santa Claus," repaired and painted toys to make sure that needy children had gifts on Christmas morning and their parents had a holiday dinner to serve.Mrs. Hoffman, a deeply religious woman who had hoped to be a missionary and succeeded in becoming one dispensing seasonal joy, died Thursday of congestive heart failure at Washington County Health Systems in Hagerstown.

Elementary schools named Maryland Blue Ribbon Schools of Excellence are being honored by the Baltimore Orioles' minor league affiliates, which have offered two tickets to a designated game for each of their pupils and staff members.About 12,000 free tickets have been distributed by the Bowie Baysox, Frederick Keys and Delmarva Shorebirds. Seven of the schools will be honored at Prince George's Stadium in Bowie before tomorrow evening's game between the Baysox and the Trenton Thunder.The schools, which were named in November, are Oak Hill and West Annapolis in Anne Arundel County; Timonium in Baltimore County; Vienna in Dorchester County; Ashburton and Brooke Grove in Montgomery County; Kenilworth and Templeton in Prince George's County; Banneker/Loveville in St. Mary's County; and Salem Avenue in Washington County.

Western Maryland officials, many of whom believe that Smart Growth has hurt rural counties by directing growth to developed areas, are saying that Smart Growth II legislation being drafted looks even worse to them.David Bliden, executive director of the Maryland Association of Counties, briefed Western Maryland county officials on the proposed legislation, which he said the General Assembly will tackle in 2000."If you don't like Smart Growth, wait until you see Smart Growth II," Bliden told the Western Maryland Commission during its quarterly meeting in Westminster on Friday.

About two years ago, Bea Myers of Hagerstown joined United HealthCare's Medicare HMO.Then United pulled its Medicare HMO out of Washington County. After looking at various options, she switched to an HMO called MediCareFirst, offered by CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield.This week, CareFirst announced it, too, is leaving Washington County at the end of the year -- and 16 other Maryland counties, where, it says, federal payments are too low.She isn't sure where she'll turn next for coverage. "I haven't decided," she said yesterday.

When Ken Burns' latest documentary series, "The National Parks: America's Best Idea," airs on Maryland Public Television this month, viewers will see awe-inspiring images of such natural wonders as Yellowstone's Old Faithful, Yosemite's Half Dome and the Grand Canyon. No doubt, some will decide then and there to check out a national park during their next vacation. But Maryland has its own share of scenic vistas, as the folks at MPT and the state's Department of Natural Resources are quick to point out. To drive that point home, five state parks will play host over the next two weeks to a preview screening of scenes from Burns' latest creation, as well as snippets from an MPT production devoted to Maryland's own natural wonders.

Teacher Scott Delpo never expected he would have to spend his summer break in the classroom. In fact, he had gone 17 years without having to work summer school. But this summer, Delpo, 39, says he was forced to get a job in large part because of the economy. "Honestly, I've been able to get by without having to work in the summer," said Delpo, who is a physical education teacher at Cradlerock School in Columbia during the school year. He's teaching math to rising second-graders this summer.

The time you won your town the race We chaired you through the market-place; Man and boy stood cheering by, And home we brought you shoulder-high. To-day, the road all runners come, Shoulder-high we bring you home, And set you at your threshold down, Townsman of a stiller town. A. E. Housman wrote "To An Athlete Dying Young" to offer some consolation in the tragedy of a promising life cut short. But knowing that Nick Adenhart, the 22-year-old pitcher from Hagerstown killed last week in a hit-and-run accident, will be remembered forever young and vital - as the British poet viewed a champion runner - seems hopelessly insufficient, a foolishly romanticized view of death.

Jessica Granek and a group of friends hoped to fit in a ski trip yesterday before their spring semester starts at the University of Maryland this month. As the students headed downhill on snowy westbound Interstate 70 in Western Maryland, they saw an SUV turned sideways on the highway. Cars began to slide out of control, Granek said. Tractor-trailers crashed into the cars. "We're witnessing people just smashing into each other," recalled Granek, 21. "That was probably the most frightening thing, just seeing tractor-trailers out of control."

David Miller Abercrombie, Jr., 86, of 13107 Blue Ridge Road, Hagerstown MD, passed away, Friday, January 16, 2009, at his home. Born Wednesday, December 13, 1922, in Washington DC, he was the son of the late David Miller Abercrombie, Sr. and the late Katherine Kemp Abercrombie. He was a graduate of Montgomery Blair High School and later graduated from the University of Maryland with a bachelor of Science degree and went on to receive his Master's degree from Frostburg University. He was a veteran of World War II serving in the U.S. Army, where he was awarded the Bronze & Silver Stars.

William Devereux Zantzinger, the white Southern Maryland tobacco farmer who became infamous because of a Bob Dylan song about his fatal assault on a black Baltimore barmaid in 1963, has died. Zantzinger, 69, died Saturday and was buried yesterday, according to the Brinsfield-Echols Funeral Home in Charlotte Hall. No cause of death was reported. The Southern Maryland aristocrat was convicted of manslaughter in the death of 51-year-old Hattie Carroll. His crime never escaped memory after Dylan recorded "The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll," released in a 1964 album.

Wicomico County might seem like a sleepy patch of the Eastern Shore, known for its poultry farms and wildfowl-art museum. But it's also home to more than 100 known gang members in the Salisbury area - people from the Crips and Bloods as well as local organizations - with another 700 housed within a nearby correctional facility, said Sheriff Mike Lewis. His office and a Wicomico family outreach program received a combined $219,000 federal grant yesterday to combat the growing problem by developing or continuing anti-gang efforts.

Volvo AB of Sweden said yesterday that it is cutting production and workers at its Mack Powertrain Division plant in Hagerstown to reduce costs because sales of its trucks and buses have dropped. The Hagerstown plant will reduce production of its transmissions by a third and of its engines by 25 percent, said Ilse Ghysens, a plant spokesman. The changes are effective Jan. 25. The cuts were first reported by the Herald-Mail in Hagerstown. "There is a lower demand due to the economic downturn, and we have to adjust," Ghysens said.

Robert A. McKee, a former Maryland delegate and executive director of a Washington County children's program, was sentenced to 37 months in federal prison yesterday for possession of child pornography, the Maryland U.S. attorney's office announced. U.S. District Judge William D. Quarles Jr. also ordered McKee to register as a sex offender and said that "a reputation is easier to build than it is to repair." McKee apologized to his family and community, acknowledging that he had let them down and violated their trust.

Man guilty of teen's death A man facing retrial on murder charges pleaded guilty Monday and was sentenced to eight years in prison, according to the city state's attorney's office. Jerrell Gardner, 24, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and weapons charges in the death of 15-year-old Maurice Gordon, prosecutors said. In September, Gardner's case ended in mistrial. Gordon was fatally shot June 13, 2007. Racist graffiti in pawnshop Racist graffiti was spray-painted inside a Gwynn Oak pawnshop that was burglarized overnight, Baltimore County police said yesterday.