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Recent Articles from Heather Cobun
News
April 8, 2020
Force majeure discussions expand as coronavirus pandemic continues
The historic business disruptions caused by the coronavirus pandemic will likely lead to unprecedented litigation as parties to contracts debate whether force majeure provisions apply to their situations, Maryland attorneys say. With nonessential businesses closed and citizens, with limited exceptions, required to stay home, attorneys are fielding questions from clients who wonder whether the pan[...]
News
April 3, 2020
OPD petitions high court to act quickly to reduce juvenile jail population
Maryland’s public defenders are asking the Court of Appeals to immediately reduce the number of youths in juvenile jails and prisons in light of the coronavirus pandemic. “This petition seeks extraordinary relief for extraordinary circumstances,” begins the petitioners’ brief, filed Friday. The filing was made on behalf of several detained juveniles and “others simila[...]
News
April 3, 2020
Man sues Elkton police for excessive force, wrongful arrest
An Elkton man has filed suit against the town’s police department and two officers, alleging he was forcefully arrested without cause at his home in 2018. Darryl T. Wilson claims Officers Enos Detweiler and Jakob Brown came to his home for a report of a disturbance in October 2018 though no disturbance had occurred, according to […]
News
April 2, 2020
City IG finds timesheet fraud, misuse of vehicle by DPW employee
A Baltimore City Department of Public Works employee was terminated last month for submitting false timesheets and using a city vehicle for personal business, according to a report from the Office of the Inspector General. The OIG received a complaint that the employee, who worked for the DPW’s Water and Waste Water Bureau, violated multiple […]
News
April 1, 2020
Judge dismisses counts, keeps potential claim against city in GTTF suit
A federal judge dismissed portions of a man’s lawsuit against former Gun Trace Task Force members Tuesday but preserved a claim that the city is liable for allowing the Baltimore Police Department to develop a culture of violating citizens’ rights. Robert Johnson, the passenger in a car stopped by GTTF officers Momodu Gondo and Jemell […]
News
March 31, 2020
Frederick faces suit over alleged free speech violations at protests
A Virginia man filed suit against Frederick and its police chief Monday, alleging officers violated his free speech rights by restricting the abilities of animal rights advocates to protest horse-drawn carriage rides. Jason Saltz wanted to protest the carriage rides — which are offered by the city and offered by a third party in November […]
News
March 30, 2020
Baltimore Clean Air Act is invalidated by federal judge
A federal judge has struck down Baltimore’s Clean Air Act, finding the ordinance is preempted by state environmental law. The BCAA, signed into law in March 2019, imposed emissions standards that were intentionally more stringent than state and federal laws. Incinerator operators Wheelabrator Baltimore L.P. and Curtis Bay Energy L.P., as well as a trash removal […]
News
March 27, 2020
4th Circuit requests additional facts in cell site simulator case
A federal appeals court remanded a Baltimore man’s lawsuit over the use of a cell site simulator to locate him, ordering the trial court to make more factual findings about the device. Kerron Andrews filed suit arguing the Baltimore Police Department violated his Fourth Amendment rights when it used the device, known as Hailstorm, to track him in […]
News
March 26, 2020
Ombudsman: Agencies should aim to respond to information requests
State and local agencies are adjusting to reduced in-office staffing and to remote work but are still receiving Maryland Public Information Act requests — which they may not be able to process. PIA Ombudsman Lisa Kershner said her office has shifted to remote work amid the COVID-19 pandemic and is fielding questions and providing practical […]
News
March 26, 2020
Maryland courts extend closure, restricted operations to May 1
Maryland courts will remain closed to the public until May 1, Chief Judge Mary Ellen Barbera announced Wednesday in a new administrative order.
News
March 25, 2020
Potomac River nonprofit sues paper mill owners over alleged pollution
A now-closed paper mill being sued by the Maryland Department of the Environment is now also facing a citizen suit from a clean water nonprofit that is seeking to force the mill’s owners to take steps to clean up the Potomac River. Luke Paper Mill, in Allegany County, manufactured paper products until its closure in […]
News
March 24, 2020
Bill to hide non-convictions passes, partial expungement faces study
Under a bill now on the governor’s desk, Maryland’s public Case Search website would no longer display criminal charges that did not end with a conviction. The bill passed the Maryland General Assembly shortly before legislators adjourned last week. The bill also establishes a workgroup to study the issue of “partial expungement,” which would eliminate […]
