Ballot Question Advocacy, Lawsuits Over Water Bills And Pit Bulls, and Weapon-Related Arrests At Area Schools

Maryland Comptroller Peter Franchot is urging voters to overturn the state's congressional redistricting map, which is on the statewide ballot next month as "Question 5" (via our wire service and the Baltimore Sun).

Gallaudet University official who was placed on administrative leave for signing a petition to put Maryland's same-sex marriage law on the ballot says she will seek compensation (via our wire service, the Baltimore Sun, and the Daily Record). The same-sex marriage law is on the ballot as "Question 6."

"Question 7" on the ballot -- a proposed expansion of Maryland's casino gambling program -- has won the backing of two prominent Republicans; former Lieutenant Governor Michael Steele and former Bowie Mayor Audrey Scott sent a letter yesterday to their "fellow Republicans," urging them to vote for the ballot measure (via the Washington Post and the Baltimore Sun).

Baltimore Circuit Court Clerk Frank Conaway has notified the city that he intends to file a class action lawsuit over overcharging by the municipal water billing system (via our wire service, the Baltimore Sun, and the Daily Record). This is the second lawsuit involving City Hall to be announced in less than a week; City Comptroller Joan Pratt filed suit on Friday to stop the Mayor's Office of Technology from installing a new phone system, alleging a bypassing of the competitive bidding process; We'll have more on that lawsuit this morning at 9, on Maryland Morning with Sheilah Kast.

A lawsuit over a court ruling that labels pit bulls "inherently dangerous" dogs is expanding -- the complaint now names Governor Martin O'Malley, Attorney General Doug Gansler, and the Court of Appeals (which issued the ruling) as defendents (via the Baltimore Sun and the Daily Record).  

All the candidates running for US Senate ahve been invited to take part in a Candidates' Forum later this month, on October 30th at Salisbury University (via the Daily Times and the Washington Post).

It's National School Lunch Week... and at schools around the country, meal programs continue to be tweaked to make them healthier to meet more stringent federal guidelines. The regulations that kicked in this year require more fruits, vegetables and whole grain items on meal trays in hopes of reducing a national obesity epidemic. WYPR’s Gwendolyn Glenn takes a look at one Baltimore school’s meals program, where a salad bar was added this year.

A Baltimore County student has been arrested after allegedly bringing a BB gun to Owings Mills High School yesterday... and in Anne Arundel County, another student was arrested for allegedly possesing a knife and an unloaded pellet gun at Southern High School. The two incidents were not related. They follow several other cases of Maryland students bringing weapons to school this year (via our wire service and the Baltimore Sun). 

Baltimore Police Commissioner Anthony Batts says a prison-based gang is largely responsible for the recent increase of violence in the city (via the Baltimore Sun).

On today's edition of Inside Maryland Politics, WYPR Senior News Analyst Fraser Smith talks to WYPR's Karen Hosler about the voter i.d. laws in various states and the efforts to restrict voters.

The population of young striped bass in the Chesapeake Bay is at its lowest level in 59 years. The State Department of Natural Resources says that fewer striped bass were found in the bay this year than in any year since surveys began. Biologists are blaming the unusually warm and dry winter for the decline in the rockfish population (via the Baltimore Sun).

Federal Emergency Management Officials are holding a regional earthquake drill on Thursday. Officials in Maryland and five other jurisdictions will practice earthquake response at 10:18 tomorrow morning. The drill comes after 5.8 magnitude earthquake that occurred in Virginia last summer, and was felt along the East Coast. A 4.0 magnitude quake hit southern Maine yesterday -- but caused no injuries or major damage (via the Baltimore Sun and our wire service).