Recent stories by Jonathan Pitts

6:52 PM EDT, May 20, 2013

Naval Academy graduation has to do without the Blue Angels

He saw his first Blue Angels show in Detroit at age 6, and Thomas Frosch says the experience inspired him to want to become a pilot. He saw four more performances while attending the Naval Academy, including one the "Blues" put on before his graduation in 1992.

9:34 PM EDT, May 7, 2013

Dalai Lama packs UM Comcast Center for address on compassion

He pulled on a Terps visor, to the crowd's delight. He rubbed noses with Gov. Martin O'Malley. And the Dalai Lama was met Tuesday with rounds of applause from a crowd of 15,000 at the University of Maryland, College Park's Comcast Center.

9:09 AM EDT, May 13, 2013

PREAKNESS 2013

Racetrack handicapper has fresh face, old-school approach

In the first week of her reporting internship for a horse-racing newspaper, Gabby Gaudet nervously approached one of the most celebrated figures in the sport. "Can you tell me how you first got involved in the game?" she asked Kelly Breen, who trained the winner of the 2011 Belmont Stakes.

7:15 PM EDT, May 2, 2013

Baltimore-area dog thefts on rise, owners, observers say

As she struggled to unload groceries from the back of her car, Sherrie Schenning got an uncharacteristically queasy feeling.

9:42 PM EDT, April 25, 2013

Glen Burnie woman rides through adversity to strength

Lauren Williams and her father unbox the treasure: a three-wheeled cycle, powered by the arms.

6:23 PM EDT, April 14, 2013

Viva House soup kitchen has provided 45 years of service

In a quiet block in Southwest Baltimore, a warm wind blows plastic bags along a sidewalk.

8:05 PM EDT, April 5, 2013

Westminster gym for the disabled specializes in small miracles

It's a sunny morning in Westminster, and the pulleys are squeaking, the weights clinking as a half-dozen members of a small gym give the equipment a workout.

12:49 PM EDT, March 31, 2013

Councilman's bill sparks back-and-forth on Tasers

Shootings in elementary schools. Violent flash mobs in malls. Robberies, home invasions, muggings.

3:29 PM EDT, March 30, 2013

On Easter, Baltimore basilica is born again

On Aug, 24, 2011, the earthquake that jolted the East Coast from Georgia to Quebec rattled through the bricks, plaster and paint of one of Baltimore's architectural jewels, the Basilica of the Assumption, sending nearly 1,000 linear feet of cracks through its ceilings and walls.

8:10 PM EDT, March 27, 2013

Survivors of March 6 shipwreck were all but lost at sea

It started as the kind of delivery Pat Schoenberger, an Annapolis sea captain, had made many times: Pick up a client's motor sailboat, ferry it to Florida and return home in a few weeks' time.

6:27 PM EDT, March 22, 2013

Significant snow unlikely Sunday night, forecasters say

Baltimore area residents can expect some precipitation, possibly including small amounts of snow, overnight Sunday, with the greatest likelihood of wintry weather occurring in the predawn hours Monday, according to Greg Schoor, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Sterling, Va.

10:48 PM EST, March 8, 2013

Man stabbed in possible road-rage incident in Catonsville

A man who had been involved in a road-rage incident was stabbed on a street in Catonsville Friday night, Baltimore County Police said.

10:22 PM EST, March 8, 2013

Man injured in Essex shooting

Baltimore County police are investigating an incident in which an unknown assailant shot a man in the leg Friday night.

10:08 PM EST, March 7, 2013

Coast Guard suspends search for two lost fishermen off Assateague

The Coast Guard suspended its search Thursday for two men missing in waters about 15 miles off the coast of Assateague Island after their fishing boat sank a day earlier.

March 10, 2013

Laura Neuman bets on herself again, this time as Anne Arundel county executive

When she entered the race to replace John R. Leopold as county executive, Laura Neuman had a far higher profile in business than she did in politics. Many of the other 15 candidates were better known. But the County Council pulled a surprise, granting her the seat in a 4-3 vote.

8:00 PM EST, March 7, 2013

Sophie Kerr Prize event moved to Baltimore

After a two-year detour to New York City, the ceremony to announce the winner of the nation's most lucrative undergraduate literary award, the Sophie Kerr Prize, will be held in Baltimore this year.

10:27 PM EST, March 4, 2013

Maryland starts early prep for snowstorm

With a winter storm watch in effect and the possibility of several inches of snow Tuesday into Wednesday in Central Maryland, officials at Baltimore Gas and Electric have put out a call for up to 500 out-of-state utility workers to be prepared to help in the aftermath of the storm.

March 3, 2013

Croquet is a year-round pursuit at Ginger Cove retirement community in Annapolis

Nick Markakis, Adam Jones and the other Orioles get four months off between baseball seasons. Joe Flacco, Ray Rice and the world champion Ravens have five months to go before training camp begins.

9:52 PM EST, February 22, 2013

Neuman brings business experience to Anne Arundel County executive job

When Laura Neuman heard that an Annapolis salad dressing maker was planning to move his business out of state, she arranged to meet with him.

7:27 PM EST, February 13, 2013

Quartet spreads the love when it matters most, at Valentine's Day

Professor Donald S. Sutherland was on his way to meet a big potential donor, or so he thought, so the esteemed Peabody Conservatory faculty member figured he'd better not be late.

1:41 PM EST, February 24, 2013

Council tackles county's liquid assets in pair of environmental bills

Environmental matters dominated the attention of the Anne Arundel County Council this week, as members voted to add restrictions on development in the county's so-called "critical area" near tidal waters of the Chesapeake Bay and hosted a spirited public debate on the question of imposing countywide storm-water management fees.

1:09 PM EST, February 9, 2013

Both with winning seasons, Ravens and Orioles offer rare celebration for city fans

When the Ravens rolled to their second Super Bowl victory, fending off the San Francisco 49ers in the final seconds of the game, the storylines that defined an improbable season all found happy endings.

12:09 PM EST, February 5, 2013

Twins dedicate lives to helping the dying

Two decades ago, a long-term patient at Greater Baltimore Medical Center was astonished at the quality of care he was getting. His principal nurse wasn't just cheerful and knowledgeable. She also seemed to be taking care of him day and night.

11:31 PM EST, January 22, 2013

Arundel council votes to oust health officer Wakhweya

In a meeting that drew a standing-room-only crowd to its chambers, the Anne Arundel County Council voted Tuesday to support a recommendation by State Department of Health and Human Hygiene Secretary Joshua M. Sharfstein to remove the county's health officer, Angela S. Wakhweya.

10:48 PM EST, January 30, 2013

For Anne Arundel's acting county executive, a winding road to seat of power

When he was a young city councilman in Annapolis in 1982, John R. Hammond surprised family and friends by putting his hat in the ring for the job of Anne Arundel county executive.

January 28, 2013

Ravens' O.J. Brigance brings a different power to second Super Bowl journey

He was a mighty presence when the Baltimore Ravens won Super Bowl XXXV, a warrior who busted a wedge to make the first tackle that day and went on to make four more. If current coach John Harbaugh is to be believed, even then he was the toughest man in football.

8:53 AM EST, February 10, 2013

Anne Arundel council, residents facing plan for stormwater fees

The county council will soon take up an issue that has swirled below the surface of Anne Arundel County politics, has the attention of environmentalists and constitutionalists alike, and will spark debate: Bill No. 2-13, which would impose fees on county residents toward stormwater management projects.

12:01 AM EST, January 21, 2013

People pack Federal Hill to celebrate Ravens' victory

Shortly after it was clear the Ravens were headed for the Super Bowl, the massive crowds that had made it to Federal Hill bars poured into the street to celebrate.

11:00 PM EST, January 20, 2013

Officials say aim of Crownsville hunting area is to thin herd, preserve watershed

It's close to Interstate 97, just down the road from Lures Bar and Grille and 10 minutes from the heavy traffic of Annapolis. Yet as you set foot onto Anne Arundel County's most recent environmental management enterprise, you'd swear you had entered the most remote regions of the Blue Ridge mountains.

10:37 PM EST, January 7, 2013

Anne Arundel council weighs move to oust county health officer

In a move that both the county attorney and elected officials conceded was unusual, the Anne Arundel County Council on Monday weighed a measure that would spell the ouster of the county's top health official, Angela M. Wakhweya.

January 24, 2013

Council votes to affirm ouster of county health officer

Despite the presence of an overflow crowd offering support, the County council voted to affirm the ouster of health officer Angela S. Wakhweya, the first African-American to hold the job in the history of the county department.

5:35 PM EST, December 26, 2012

Schaefer's aquarium mermaid tells her tale, three decades later

She had won a string of beauty pageants — and was the original St. Pauli Girl of beer advertising fame — so Debbie Walker, a blond model from Washington, D.C., was accustomed to her fair share of attention.

5:46 PM EST, January 20, 2013

Inauguration on King Day an emotional tie for many

She'd never seen a presidential inauguration in her life, or wanted to, but on Jan. 20, 2009, Nathasa Werts braved bone-chilling weather and a crowd of more than a million people for a trip to Washington.

12:50 PM EST, January 12, 2013

Council delays decision on dismissal of top health official

In a move that the county attorney and elected officials conceded was highly unusual, the Anne Arundel County Council weighed a measure this week that would have spelled the ouster of the county's top health official, Dr. Angela M. Wakhweya, the first African-American to hold the position in the county Health Department's 81-year history.

7:48 PM EST, December 20, 2012

Dead trees in Druid Hill Park are carved into sculptures

He has used a chain saw to carve intricate wooden sculptures for years, but when Mark Acton won a commission to hew two big new statues by the reservoir in Druid Hill Park, he wasn't sure he could pull it off.

1:02 PM EST, January 7, 2013

Winter Relief offers the homeless comfort in the cold

A year ago, if you'd asked David Moore to generalize about homeless people, he'd have said most were probably addicted to drugs or alcohol, lacking in ambition and unworthy of the general public's trust.

9:52 AM EST, December 28, 2012

Friday traffic: Three lanes of 695 closed

Friday morning, drivers on the Outer Loop of I-695 were experiencing major delays at Perring Parkway (MD-41), where all three lanes were closed due to a crash involving four vehicles. Only one shoulder remained open. Use 95 as an alternate route.

2:55 PM EST, December 23, 2012

Holly thrives as symbol of season after more than 2,000 years

It has, to paraphrase an old English carol, prickles as sharp as thorns, bark as bitter as gall and berries as bright as life-giving blood.

6:19 PM EST, December 7, 2012

Sex offender indicted in Carroll County

A grand jury in Carroll County has indicted a sex offender registered in Maryland and Pennsylvania on 20 counts of sexual offenses involving minors, according to a statement issued by the Maryland State's Attorney's Office.

9:46 PM EST, November 9, 2012

Dry Md. town of Damascus prepares to get wet after vote

At the Music Cafe on Ridge Road, the restaurant local residents call the hippest in town, owner Randy Anderson says he's thrilled he'll soon be able to add beer and wine to his menu for the first time.

7:20 PM EST, December 7, 2012

Inmate erroneously released from women's jail

An inmate serving concurrent sentences for two felonies was erroneously released from the Women's Correctional Center in Jessup last month, according to a statement released by the Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services Friday.

8:39 PM EDT, October 29, 2012

Local captain baffled by HMS Bounty accident

When Jan Miles got word that HMS Bounty, the famed ceremonial tall ship, had sunk off the coast of North Carolina in the monster Hurricane Sandy early Monday morning, he felt profoundly the loss of a historic vessel — and worried over the possible fates of the two crew members who have yet to be found in what were 40-foot waves earlier in the day.

7:44 PM EST, December 6, 2012

Remembering Pearl Harbor

Seventy-one years ago Friday, on Dec. 7, 1941, Thomas Talbott was in as fine a mood as he can remember.

7:04 PM EST, November 30, 2012

New urban farm crops up in Sandtown-Winchester

The empty lot in West Baltimore is usually a desolate spot, the sort of place people visit to leave an old mattress in the bushes or sneak a drink at night.

9:36 PM EST, November 13, 2012

Catholic bishops struggle with message on gay marriage

Meeting for the first time since voters in Maryland and two other states legalized same-sex marriage, members of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops said Tuesday that they have no plans to soften their position that genuine marriage can occur only between one man and one woman.

10:34 AM EDT, October 30, 2012

Superstorm Sandy mostly spares Maryland as it moves up coast

Central Maryland appears to have been spared the worst of Sandy's fury, which was delivered farther up the Atlantic Coast.

7:44 AM EDT, October 29, 2012

Maryland braces for Hurricane Sandy

As the eye of Hurricane Sandy loomed a few hundred miles to the southeast and the monster storm churned toward the Mid-Atlantic coast, Marylanders braced for the arrival of a weather system with the potential to be the most damaging to hit the United States in 75 years.

November 11, 2012

Hopkins team creates device to screen for anemia

Every year, health organizations spend millions in the developing world attacking the iron-deficiency disorder known as anemia. They pay special attention to pregnant women, a population highly vulnerable to the disease.

5:37 PM EDT, October 13, 2012

Black, gay and Christian, Marylanders struggle with conflicts

While growing up in an African-American Baptist church, Harris Thomas was taught homosexuality is an "abomination in the eyes of God." As a young minister, he disparaged the gay lifestyle even while secretly pursuing it. Today he heads a Baltimore church that serves gay Christians of color "right where they are."

11:47 PM EDT, September 14, 2012

One hurt in blaze near Carroll Park

An unidentified person firefighters rescued from a fire in South Baltimore was taken to Maryland Shock Trauma Center with burns and possible smoke inhalation Friday night, according to Kevin Cartwright, a spokesman for the Baltimore City Fire Department.

3:19 PM EDT, October 28, 2012

Maryland braces for Sandy

As the eye of Hurricane Sandy loomed over the waters some 500 miles southeast of Washington and the monster storm churned toward the Mid-Atlantic coast at 15 miles per hour, Marylanders braced Sunday for the arrival of a weather system some forecasters were calling potentially the most damaging to hit the United States in 75 years.

9:11 PM EDT, October 25, 2012

Pizza delivery drivers face assaults, robberies

He pulls to the curb in his dented sedan, grabs a bag containing the extra-large pepperoni and strides to the front of a dilapidated-looking rowhouse.

3:17 PM EDT, September 7, 2012

Community health worker helps lower barriers in sickle cell treatment

Sharon Johnson is not a physician or scientific researcher. She has never been trained as a nurse. Her most recent prior occupation was as office manager in a dental practice.

10:31 PM EDT, September 28, 2012

Orioles fans are buying in to playoff hopes

It's early fall in Baltimore, that time of year when purple banners, car flags and sweatshirts normally dominate the landscape, as surely as the colors are soon to hit the trees. But Charm City isn't just NFL country now.

8:18 PM EDT, September 21, 2012

Old South River Club has met for more than 320 years

It's a sun-splashed morning in rolling southern Anne Arundel County, and a cluster of old oaks and maples make a fine canopy for the 25 gentlemen gathered at the cottage they see as a shrine.

9:13 PM EDT, September 14, 2012

Perryville man killed in motorcycle crash

A 49-year-old Cecil County man was killed shortly after 2 p.m. Friday when the motorcycle he was riding collided with a car in Harford County.

8:18 PM EDT, August 8, 2012

Workers mourn Sparrows Point steel mill

For generations of Sparrows Point steelworkers, Micky's restaurant on North Point Boulevard was the place to go for a sandwich before work, a pile of chicken gizzards for lunch or a few Natty Bohs to cap off a double shift.

11:58 PM EDT, September 14, 2012

One stabbed in fight over cellphone at light rail station

The Baltimore Sun

8:47 PM EDT, July 19, 2012

Downtown water main break offers peek into complex system

Art Shapiro was motoring south on Eutaw in his maintenance truck when the call came across his radio: Head to Lombard and Light streets, where a water leak needed attention.

9:57 PM EDT, July 14, 2012

Pictured on Page 1 in his undies, 'Fudgsicle Kid' takes fame in good humor

Back in 2000, when he was a shy and portly 8-year-old, John Boias had a grown-up-sized dilemma.

7:37 PM EDT, September 10, 2012

Hundreds pack church to say farewell to slain mother

Even as relatives and friends held a funeral Monday to mourn a young mother killed by a stray bullet, Baltimore police pushed to solve a spate of killings that has left 10 dead in the past 10 days.

7:53 PM EDT, August 14, 2012

Deportation reprieve for illegal immigrants starts Wednesday

When Sarita Santillan moved from Peru to Maryland with her family in 2003, she was just 11 years old — and had little clue how hard it would be to stay here.

11:20 PM EDT, August 11, 2012

Motorcylist killed in Parkton crash

A motorcylist was killed in a crash near the York Road exit on I-83 in Parkton late Saturday afternoon after attempting to pass two cars by driving between them, according to the Maryland State Police.

3:56 PM EDT, September 8, 2012

Baseball's strike zone is the hotly contested center of the game

The heater rides in at 91 miles an hour, belt-high and straight, giving Orioles hitter Matt Wieters a good view of what looks like a strike in the making. As it reaches the plate, it dives toward the ground.

11:28 AM EDT, July 13, 2012

UMBC fellow makes breakthrough in 'ghost imaging'

Visit the campus of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County on any cloudless afternoon, and you're likely to happen on an intriguing sight: a slender fellow bent over a contraption that looks like a cross between an 1890s camera and a bulky steamer trunk.

2:59 PM EDT, July 7, 2012

SpaceX flight carries Md. student project, but it never activates

Whatever goes up must come down — just not always in the condition one hoped.

4:05 PM EDT, June 16, 2012

Blue Angels' Baltimore preparations reveal demands on pilots

The plane flies a mere five feet above the ground, gaining speed until it reaches a velocity of 200 mph. It lurches skyward at a 45-degree angle, three times the climb of a commercial aircraft and sharp enough to send ripples through the flesh in your face.

8:24 PM EDT, May 25, 2012

SpaceX rocket carries Maryland science project into space

As the space capsule called Dragon hurtled toward the International Space Station at about 17,500 miles per hour on Friday, no space enthusiast was more enthralled than Paul Warren, a self-described "nerd" who attends Henry E. Lackey High School in Charles County.

9:09 PM EDT, June 14, 2012

City fixes damaged memorial to lost ship Pride of Baltimore

The Pride of Baltimore Memorial, which had been marred by 26 years' worth of exposure to the elements and recent vandalism, has undergone substantial repairs just in time for the city's commemoration of the bicentennial of the War of 1812.

7:42 PM EDT, May 16, 2012

William E. Lori takes reins of Baltimore diocese

William E. Lori became the 16th archbishop of Baltimore in a solemn ceremony Wednesday that included a nod to the nation's oldest Roman Catholic diocese and a look forward to the challenges of the 21st century.

1:17 PM EDT, April 22, 2012

Mother and daughter show adoption is good at any age

The mother and daughter relax on a cushy sofa, laughing quietly as they speak of their unusual yet utterly normal life together.

11:29 AM EDT, May 8, 2012

The rising Sun

A little more than 175 years ago, an ex-journeyman printer from New England boarded a carriage bound for America's southernmost big city. His hope was to start a newspaper there and run it himself.

6:13 PM EDT, April 21, 2012

Hopkins clinician mixes art, science in facial prosthetics

She enters the clinic on a walker, slow yet remarkably steady, and as Pauline Wood hails her host for the day, she gives him a bag of lemon tarts she rose early that morning to bake. 

10:13 AM EDT, March 11, 2012

Mayo author makes new, familiar tale from 'Secret Garden'

When she was growing up, Ellen Potter was an avid reader, and nothing thrilled her more than settling down with her well-worn copy of Frances Hodgson Burnett's classic 1911 children's novel, "The Secret Garden."

12:08 PM EST, February 19, 2012

Arundel photographers' book describes life of shared adventure

Stroll with Lynn Abercrombie through her clapboard house on the West River and check out the alabaster mask from Yemen, the head-to-toe woman's cloak from Afghanistan, the smoking implements from Egypt and the shrunken head from Ecuador. You'll see mementos of a life the retired photographer, a Shady Side resident, never set out to lead.

10:41 PM EDT, March 23, 2012

Debate erupts over elephant training as circus comes to town

He stands on a grassy slope, right arm extended upward with an alfalfa treat, addressing his 4-ton companion in the tones of a tender friend.

4:36 PM EST, February 4, 2012

Aquille Carr looks to elevate game as basketball legend grows

It's late in the first half of a tournament game, more than 3,000 basketball fans have filled the auditorium, and as the Patterson High Clippers of Baltimore toss the ball inbounds and head up the court, a spectator leans over to speak to his young son.

9:02 PM EDT, May 8, 2012

City plans fixes for Pride of Baltimore memorial in disrepair

Twenty-six years ago this month, Roma Foti's daughter, 23-year-old Nina Schack, was one of four crew members who lost their lives when the Pride of Baltimore, a replica of a 19th century sailing vessel, sank in a sudden storm in the Bermuda Triangle.

12:52 PM EDT, March 23, 2012

For Maryland Day, communities weave historic tapestries

Outhouses. Potbellied stoves. Four-mile walks in the snow. These are legacies of the Rosenwald Schools.

9:47 PM EST, February 15, 2012

Port workers, drinking buddies lament departure of USNS Comfort

It was Happy Hour at the Poncabird Pub on Wednesday, and the South Baltimore tavern was as busy and bustling as usual, but as late-afternoon sunlight streaked through a side window, the expressions it caught on the faces at one table were decidedly grim.

7:37 PM EST, January 28, 2012

Polar Bear plungers raise record amount for charity

A man dressed in a head-to-toe Dalmatian suit, complete with fireman's hat and boots. A shirtless middle-aged fellow in swim trunks, with a lime-green fedora on his head, gyrating to the beat of rock music. A dozen young women hula-hooping in the winter sun.

11:08 PM EST, December 30, 2011

On New Year's Eve, some Maryland towns will drop anything but a glittering ball

New York City has its descending ball. Miami Beach has its giant orange. And Princess Anne has its stuffed muskrat.

8:50 PM EST, December 11, 2011

Mel Filler, coach and mentor

Mel Filler, known to generations of high-school football players simply as "Coach," and to former players as "Uncle Mel," died Dec. 5 after a three-year battle with leukemia. A longtime Forest Hill resident, he was 86.

9:20 AM EST, January 7, 2012

A chorus of friendship for all-female barbershop group

As the owner of a small business in Annapolis, Patti Platt always felt so frazzled and busy that she couldn't imagine taking even one night away to gain a little perspective.

9:35 PM EDT, March 11, 2012

At Fort Meade, tryouts for Warrior Games show 'ability over disability'

When it happened, he didn't feel a thing. Within 30 seconds, "all the pain in the world" coursed through his body. And U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Curtis Winston recalls thinking, among many other things, that he'd never play sports again.

November 22, 2011

Hazardous waste dropoff set for Dec. 2-3 in city

Baltimore city residents' next opportunity to leave household hazardous waste at the Northwest Citizen Convenience Center on Sisson Street will come between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. on Dec. 2 and 3.

10:50 PM EST, December 28, 2011

Baseball fans meet for diamond dialogue

Talk baseball with Washington native David Paulson for a few minutes, and his obsessive lifelong fandom pours out in facts, figures and lore.

10:03 PM EST, December 23, 2011

Air Jordan shoes cause frenzy at local, nationwide malls

Several people were arrested at malls across Maryland as police broke up crowds of hundreds lined up to buy Nike Air Jordan Concords, part of a nationwide frenzy over the new sneakers that prompted a number of disturbances.

9:31 AM EST, November 24, 2011

Anne Arundel officers seek handicapped parking violators

It was just after noon on a recent weekday, the parking lots at the Annapolis Westfield Mall were already full, and a woman in a dark sedan weaved through the swelling traffic, looking for a place to park.

6:09 PM EST, December 24, 2011

Marriottsville humanitarian hopes for change in North Korea

He was born into freedom in Pusan, South Korea, 60 years ago. Still, Jong C. Jang of Marriottsville spent much of his boyhood hearing his father, Ok Kyun Jang, rhapsodize about growing up in a place about 350 miles to the north.

10:44 AM EST, December 9, 2011

Gingerbread-house contest blends history, baking, humor

When is hard candy more than just something to eat?

12:04 PM EDT, September 23, 2011

Small but vibrant crowd expected for Annapolis Comic-Con

He was always a skateboarder and action-movie fan, not to mention a punk-rock enthusiast, but from the time he turned 12, nothing excited Steve Anderson more than the approach and arrival of his favorite day, Wednesday.

4:22 PM EST, November 22, 2011

From Sun Magazine: After concussions shattered a season, Brian Roberts sees recovery ahead

Just over a year ago, on Sept. 27, 2010, the Orioles were leading the Tampa Bay Rays, 4-0, in the ninth inning of a largely meaningless road game when second baseman Brian Roberts came to the plate.

11:54 AM EST, December 3, 2011

Mini model train display in Arundel chugs through the ages

His father always set up an elaborate network of Lionel model trains late on Dec. 24, so when Frank Winner and his little brother, Jim, got up Christmas mornings, they'd find the living room of the small family home filled with moving cars, blowing whistles and flashing lights.

11:13 PM EST, December 11, 2011

Man shot in hand; city police investigating

Baltimore Police are investigating a non-fatal shooting that took place in the Midtown District of West Baltimore early Sunday morning.

9:45 AM EST, November 24, 2011

Anne Arundel officers seek handicapped parking violators

It was just after noon on a recent weekday, the parking lots at the Annapolis Westfield Mall were already full, and a woman in a dark sedan weaved through the swelling traffic, looking for a place to park.

November 22, 2011

Ex-Rosedale man pleads guilty in child sex-abuse case

Thomas Leroy Griffin, formerly of Hagerstown and Rosedale, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court on Monday to charges he sexually abused a child to produce child pornography.

5:13 PM EST, November 19, 2011

Glen Burnie's homeless share what they have for holiday

He has frequent lapses of memory, the result of a brain aneurysm he suffered as a teen in 1972. He struggled for years to keep jobs at BWI, at a discount store and in an industrial park.

4:06 PM EST, December 16, 2011

Folk act sings carols of the Chesapeake

She lived on the Eastern Shore for 30 years and generally loved the place, but one thing Janie Meneely, an Annapolis-born folk musician, never quite got used to was that it rarely snowed on Christmas.

7:26 PM EDT, October 8, 2011

Passing the past along at Korean Festival

She was born in South Korea, loves her homeland's traditions with a passion and has officially served the burgeoning Korean-American community in Maryland for more than six years now. But Michelle Kim still insists that as a cultural ambassador, she sets something of "a poor example."

3:23 PM EST, November 23, 2011

William Alfred Long, lacrosse referee

William Alfred Long, a retired fuel oil salesman and longtime referee of high school and college lacrosse, died of pneumonia Nov. 16 at Good Samaritan Hospital in Baltimore. The Homeland resident was 80.

October 1, 2011

At Laurel Park, neighbors celebrate century of glamor and grit

Just about every Friday morning, Karen Lubieniecki takes a leisurely stroll to Laurel Park, finds a place along a railing at the nearly empty racetrack and spends an hour or so watching the horses exercise as the sun climbs the sky.

9:53 PM EDT, August 6, 2011

School of Rock students make old tunes new

The band members met for the first time just two hours ago, but they're already hard at work on a rock classic, and to be honest, it's not sounding half-bad.

12:02 PM EDT, September 3, 2011

Annapolis man is crab-picking king at Md. Seafood Festival

As the shadows lengthen in Sandy Point State Park next Sunday afternoon, and another Maryland Seafood Festival winds down, six people will take the stage before a cheering crowd and press against a table piled high with steamed crabs.

1:38 PM EDT, August 19, 2011

State House's historic dome reveals secrets during restoration

It's brilliant and blustery atop the tallest building in Annapolis, a bank of white clouds scudding quickly across the sky. John Greenwalt Lee leans against a temporary railing, gazing down with fondness on the town he calls home.

June 17, 2011

Annapolis custom butcher tries to revive 'dying art'

Most people take a day off work to spend a little time with the family, hit the beach or a local park, or try to get a few errands done.

July 30, 2011

Cool Anne Arundel

The temperatures may no longer be topping records as they were for a time in mid-July, but with the dog days of August and early September looming in Anne Arundel County and elsewhere, few are forgetting the importance of finding ways of keeping chill.

8:04 PM EDT, July 15, 2011

Where medical masterpieces are made

As an oil painter in college, Elizabeth Cook expected to pursue the life of the typical aspiring American artist: get an advanced degree, move to a big city, embark on a future of creative struggle.

November 22, 2011

Baltimore man gets 151 months for cocaine possession

A federal judge sentenced a Baltimore man, Stephen Johnson, to 151 months in prison Monday for possession with intent to distribute cocaine, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney's Office for Maryland.

9:45 PM EDT, June 25, 2011

Horseshoe pit helps build Pigtown's neighborhood spirit

It started about 30 years ago — no one seems to recall the exact date — when three men who'd grown up together in Pigtown took a vacant lot at the corner of Ward and Bayard streets, sank two metal pegs into the ground and started tossing horseshoes back and forth.

7:12 PM EDT, August 11, 2011

Anne Arundel Community College's clowning class is serious fun

It's late on a steamy August morning. Forty scholars and their lecturer have been at their studies for a couple of hours.

6:41 AM EDT, September 16, 2011

Kunta Kinte festival provides a glimpse into black families' heritage

When she was a child growing up in Lothian, Lyndra Pratt loved spending time with her grandmother, Margaret Ann Easton, at Easton's nearby farm.

11:30 PM EDT, May 29, 2011

Firefighter sustains minor burns in city apartment blaze

A Baltimore City firefighter responding to a single-alarm blaze was injured and taken to the hospital with minor burns early Sunday evening, according to Capt. Roman Clark, a spokesman for the department.

6:58 AM EDT, May 19, 2011

From Sun Magazine: Grayson Gilbert's divine strength

The boy approached the marble statue, gazing up — miles up, as he remembers it now — into the face of the benevolent figure it depicted.

10:24 AM EDT, July 24, 2011

Shady Side schools exhibit shows student life, segregation

Carmelia Hicks' favorite grade-school teacher, Julia T. Smith, was a kindly human being, but she kept a thick paddle in her desk drawer and was never afraid to use it.

June 25, 2011

Ballet class for seniors shows power of the pirouette

She fell in love with ballet as a child, as many young girls do, and Susan Savage didn't lack for promise.

4:53 PM EDT, September 17, 2011

Some want State House dome returned to multicolor scheme

Imagine driving into Annapolis along Rowe Boulevard or sailing into the city's harbor, glancing up toward the tiered State House dome, and seeing that it's colored not in the brick red and Colonial white you've known your entire life, but in lemon gold, muted blue and honey bordering on apricot.

August 26, 2011

Pumpkin ash, first in Arundel, now state champ

It's cool one August morning in a forest near the marsh, quiet but for the occasional bellowing of a few green frogs, and two experts on Maryland's flora and fauna are preparing for a sticky mission.

May 14, 2011

Commodore Mayo: A man of adventure and tragedy

He was a famed seaman — a prodigy who won a congressional medal at 18, fought in three wars and ended up commanding the 44-gun USS Constitution, "Old Ironsides," as it tracked slave ships off the coast of Africa.

12:41 AM EDT, May 27, 2011

Old City, Fresh Look

She remembers having "wonderful" history teachers growing up in 1940s and 1950s Annapolis, and she has explored and chronicled this area's past for more than 40 years.

6:29 PM EDT, June 27, 2010

'Carousel technician' also keeps music going round

He arrives early one steamy morning, an hour or so before opening his domain to the public, and kicks open two big doors to start ventilating the place.

9:15 PM EDT, May 29, 2011

Hollins Market comes alive at 26th SoWeBo art, music festival

He was shielded from the afternoon sun by the awning that covered his booth, but the bright mood emanating from Larry Stevens was hard to miss.

May 7, 2011

At Annapolis showcase, musicians have a night of their own

For as long as he could remember, Jordan Page had dreamed of becoming a rock star, but the harder he strummed and the louder he sang his music, the more distant his goal seemed.