Stories

The farm in Delmar where April Ferrell grew up and still lives is surrounded by chicken farms.  Sitting on a golf cart in her yard, Ferrell indicated the lot next door, where she said her parents built two small chicken houses in the 1980s. Then she pointed in the other direction, across the street, where…

A 13-year-old boy in the custody of the Baltimore City Department of Social Services was admitted to an inpatient psychiatric hospital in September 2018. About two weeks later, an administrative law judge ruled that there was no medical reason for him to stay there. But Social Services didn’t pick him up for nearly four more…

Gov. Larry Hogan spent much of this week attacking the Democrat-led General Assembly for not advancing his bills aimed at reducing crime in Baltimore. On Thursday, Democratic leaders fought back. Hogan’s latest comments came during a press conference Thursday. He accused legislators of ignoring a “crisis” in Baltimore by not voting his crime package out…

Amber is in Maryland’s foster care system, but she was admitted to a psychiatric hospital in mid-October, shortly after she tried to kill herself. WYPR is not using her real name to protect her privacy. Most of Amber’s days for the last three months have followed the same schedule. The teenager wakes up, eats breakfast,…

When Democrat Kweisi Mfume won Tuesday’s special primary election to represent Maryland’s 7th Congressional District, he became the presumptive winner of the late Congressman Elijah Cummings’ seat — even though there’s also a Republican nominee for the seat and less than a fifth of the district’s voters cast a ballot. Political analysts say that’s in…

Typically when state lawmakers return to Annapolis for the annual 90-day legislative session, each brings a unique set of priorities. But when the General Assembly convenes for its 441st session on Wednesday, one subject is poised to overshadow almost everything else:  A proposal to overhaul public education in Maryland.  Democratic leaders in the state Senate…

Maryland Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller announced Thursday that he is relinquishing his gavel when the General Assembly returns to Annapolis in January. The 76 year old has cancer and several related health issues. “My mind is still strong but my body is weak,” Miller said at a press conference Thursday. “This is a…

Howard County, Md., is home to roughly 50,000 federal employees and government contractors. County officials estimate the government shutdown affected at least 10 percent of the people who live there. And the three-week funding agreement that Washington, D.C., political leaders reached yesterday gives many of those federal workers little reason for optimism. This story aired…

In his quest for the Democratic nomination for governor, Ben Jealous raised more than $2 million. Nearly half of his roughly 20,000 donors had addresses in California, Maryland or New York. But several dozen donors listed addresses outside the United States. Read the full story.