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Goings on in Gaithersburg, Maryland

March 4th, 2009

The Gazette This Week, Part 2

  • Patricia M. Murret writes, Plea bargain reached for Moore, 16, in Harvey murder:

    A 16-year-old who provided testimony in the murder trial of a Landover man convicted in the April killing of a Gaithersburg woman has pleaded guilty to conspiring with the killer.

    Anthony S. Moore of Gaithersburg pleaded guilty Thursday in Montgomery County Circuit Court to conspiracy to commit armed robbery. Moore was charged in June with conspiracy to commit armed robbery, armed robbery and first-degree felony murder in the death of Lindsay Marie Harvey, 25.

  • Erin Donaghue writes, Sentencing postponed for man who killed his father:

    The sentencing for David Winters, the 19-year-old North Potomac man convicted of stabbing his father to death on Christmas Day of 2007, was postponed Feb. 25 in Montgomery County Circuit Court after Winters asked to dismiss his lawyers and accused them of lying to him.

  • Sebastian Montes writes, Immigration rule leaves quiet wake:

    “It’s an extremely complex issue, isn’t it?”

    Stopped by a reporter outside the Jewish Community Center of Greater Washington in Rockville, 48-year-old Bethesda resident Bill Kline mulled for the first time the county’s recent decision to report the names of suspects charged with gun violations and most violent crimes to federal immigration agents.

  • Meghan Tierney writes, Men plead guilty to stealing Christmas presents from homes:

    Three men charged in connection with stealing packages filled with Christmas presents from Poolesville porches in December have been sentenced to probation, according to court records.

    Police say Alfredo Moran, 20, and Luis Escurra-backus, 24, stole UPS packages that had been delivered to several homes on Dec. 16, according to police charging documents. When the two Gaithersburg men were pulled over later that day, police found a UPS uniform belonging to Moran, who was supposed to start working for the company the next week, the documents state.

  • Patricia M. Murret writes, Brainstorming abounds as businesses close their doors in Gaithersburg:

    Nearly 20 Kentlands businesses have shuttered in recent months, while at Lakeforest mall store windows remain empty. A two-story space formerly home to Borders Books and Music store has sat vacant three months at Gaithersburg Square, one of the city’s strongest leasers.

  • Patricia M. Murret writes, Holy Cross opens Olde Towne clinic for low-income, uninsured:

    Holy Cross Hospital opened a primary care health clinic in Gaithersburg last week designed to serve low-income uninsured county residents — and given the harsh economic climate, officials are preparing for more patients than expected.

March 4th, 2009

The Gazette This Week, Part 1

  • Sebastian Montes writes, County now wants whole Webb Tract:

    The unexpected change in Montgomery County Executive Isiah Leggett’s plans for the Webb Tract near Montgomery Village — which increases to four the number of major county facilities that would be built there — is being met with shock and frustration by neighbors to the 130-acre parcel.

  • Susan Singer-Bart writes, Knapp proposes change to historic preservation law:

    A proposed amendment to the county’s historic preservation law would make it more difficult to declare a property historic over the owner’s objections.

    County Councilman Michael J. Knapp (D-Dist. 2) of Germantown said his amendment, introduced last week, would make the preservation process easier to understand.

  • Janel Davis writes, Judge OKs speed camera class-action suit:

    A county Circuit Court judge has allowed attorneys to pursue a class-action lawsuit against the county and other local municipalities for allegedly violating state law by allowing the speed camera contractor to collect per-ticket fees.

  • Douglas Tallman writes, Death penalty vote takes unexpected turn:

    The Maryland Senate will take up the death penalty today, but an unexpected amendment has made a repeal of capital punishment, at least for this session, almost impossible.

    A series of procedural votes Tuesday morning seemed to put the repeal within reach. But during an afternoon session, Sen. James Brochin (D-Dist. 42 of Towson) offered an amendment that gutted the repeal from the legislation and replaced it with language that would make the death penalty harder to apply.

  • Margie Hyslop writes, Bill would forfeit local control of cable franchise fees:

    A bill to have the state’s Public Service Commission, rather than local governments, pick communities’ cable television providers and collect cable franchise fees is awaiting action in two Maryland House committees.

  • Marcus Moore writes, Report: Learning center closings still a work in progress:

    A recently released school system report does little to vindicate schools Superintendent Jerry D. Weast’s decision two years ago to close secondary learning centers for special-needs students.