ANNAPOLIS – With a federal ban on assault weapons expiring in September, some Maryland lawmakers are stepping into the breach with a bill to ban transportation and possession of the armaments more suited to war than city streets, they said Tuesday

ANNAPOLIS – Two new Maryland bills are targeting computer crimes — the growing problem of identity theft and hacking into government and public utility computers

ANNAPOLIS – Spectators at illegal dog- and cockfights would be subject to criminal penalties under a bill proposed by Delegate Charles Boutin, R-Harford

ANNAPOLIS – Ousted Alabama Chief Justice Roy S

ANNAPOLIS – Harford and Cecil county delegates are gearing up to preserve local aid, particularly for education, limit pollutants fouling the Chesapeake Bay and emphasizing the link between horses and slot machines during the 418th convention of the Maryland General Assembly that began Wednesday

BALTIMORE – For Chris Hughitt, a courier with Magic Messenger courier service, the sideways glances were the worst

ANNAPOLIS – As the reward fund for the arrest and indictment of the Washington area’s serial sniper continues to soar, funds for victim families are conspicuously lacking

ANNAPOLIS – Fifteen minutes of focused attention from a parent every day can make a significant difference in the learning rate of young children, studies have found

ANNAPOLIS – Officials are crediting two state programs for a decline in the number of Maryland children in “out-of-home” care, after a steady rise in such situations throughout the 1990s

ANNAPOLIS – Politicians must tread carefully when referring to age ina primary because it has the tendency to backfire on the person who raises the issue, said David Paulson, spokesman for the Maryland Democratic Party