There are 182 public high schools in Maryland with an approximate average of 1,030 students per school. All of the 20 largest schools when it comes to enrollment have at least double the average. Full list below using data prior to the start of the 2023/2024 school year (Montgomery County high schools in bold):
20. Broadneck High School (Anne Arundel County): 2,203 students
Per the Maryland Department of Health: The Maryland Department of Health today announced the first travel-related Powassan virus death in Maryland. The Department confirmed the presence of Powassan, which is spread by the bite of an infected tick, on Sept. 22, with subsequent follow-ups reinforcing that result.
“We are very saddened to report the first death due to the Powassan virus in our state,” said Deputy Secretary for Public Health Services Dr. Nilesh Kalyanaraman. “Powassan is very rare, and this is the first-ever case recorded in Maryland. The individual contracted the virus in Canada and returned to Maryland afterward. We do not believe that Powassan poses any threat of local transmission in Maryland. As always, we urge everyone to practice good habits when in areas that could have ticks or avoid those areas altogether.”
With the U.S. experiencing over 500 mass shootings and over 25,000 motor vehicle deaths so far this year, the personal-finance website WalletHub today released its report on 2023’s Safest Cities in America, with nearby cities like Columbia (Howard County) and Washington D.C. making appearances on each side of the list.
To determine where Americans can feel most protected against life’s hazards, including nonphysical forms of danger, WalletHub compared more than 180 U.S. cities across 41 key metrics (WalletHub compared 182 cities — including the 150 most populated U.S. cities, plus at least two of the most populated cities in each state — across three key dimensions: 1) Home & Community Safety, 2) Natural-Disaster Risk, and 3) Financial Safety). The data set ranges from traffic fatalities per capita and assaults per capita to the unemployment rate and the percentage of the population that is uninsured.
Former Maryland State Senator Jennie Margaret Meador Forehand, who represented Montgomery County for over 35 years,’passed away on October 3, 2023, at age 87, after a long struggle with Alzheimer’s Disease according to an obituary posted on orileybranson.com
Per the obituary, “Jennie was born in Nashville, TN and grew up in Charlotte, NC where she met her husband Bill in 7th grade. She graduated from UNC-Chapel Hill, married in 1958 and moved to Maryland in 1961. After Jennie’s retirement from public service in 2014, she and Bill moved to Indianapolis, IN.
Per the State of Maryland: Governor Wes Moore today released the following statement regarding Senator Melony G. Griffith’s hiring as new president and chief executive officer of the Maryland Hospital Association:
“Melony Griffith has represented Prince George’s County with distinction in the Maryland General Assembly. We are grateful for her fierce advocacy for reducing health disparities, driving economic development, and building a responsible budget. Senator Griffith’s legacy of service will strengthen our communities for generations to come.
The U.S. Marshals Service will hold an auction for the multimillion dollar car collection of the imprisoned YouTube star Bill Omar Carrasquillo on October 13th in Baltimore, MD. The live auction will include over 55 cars, motorcycles, ATV, and other vehicles seized from Carrasquillo, also known as “Omi In A Hellcat”. The collection includes exotic cars like Lamborghinis and Bentleys, Jeeps and other SUVs. The auction will be held at the historic B&O Railroad Museum on October 13th, with a preview day on Thursday, October 12th starting at 11 am EST. Also available in a separate online sale is a collection of jewelry seized from Carrasquillo along with other items from other cases.
Earlier this year, Carrasquillo was sentenced to 5 ½ years in prison for crimes arising from a wide-ranging criminal scheme that involved piracy of cable TV, access device fraud, wire fraud, money laundering, and hundreds of thousands of dollars of copyright infringement. In addition to his prison sentence, Carrasquillo is subject to a $30 million forfeiture money judgment and must pay $15 million in restitution.The event is open to the public. To place a bid on any item, registration is required. Registration information for the auto event is located at www.appleauctioneeringco.com; and jewelry sale registration is located at http://www.txauction.com/USM.
Per the Maryland Attorney General’s Office: Maryland Attorney General Anthony G. Brown announced today that the State has reached a multistate settlement with Blackbaud, Inc., a software company, to resolve allegations that Blackbaud failed to protect consumers’ personal information when it experienced a data breach in 2020 that impacted thousands of nonprofit organizations nationwide, including 290 nonprofits in Maryland. Under the settlement, Blackbaud has agreed to overhaul its data security and breach notification practices and make a $49.5 million payment to the states, of which Maryland will receive $820,156.
Blackbaud provides software to manage constituent data, including contact and demographic information, Social Security numbers, driver’s license numbers, financial information, employment and wealth information, donation history, and protected health information to various nonprofit organizations, including charities, higher education institutions, K-12 schools, healthcare organizations, religious organizations, and cultural organizations. This type of highly sensitive data was exposed during the 2020 data breach, impacting over 13,000 Blackbaud nonprofit organizations nationwide.
Per the State of Maryland: Governor Wes Moore today delivered remarks at the 2023 Maryland League of Conservation Voters Changemakers celebration, honoring Marylanders who have demonstrated vision, leadership, and courage in protecting the environment. The event took place at the Colwell Center in downtown Baltimore, home to the Institute of Marine and Environmental Technology.
“Being a changemaker is hard and it takes partnership. We praise these changemakers not only for their individual accomplishments, but also for how their collective accomplishments moved us forward,” said Gov. Moore. “If we follow the example of these changemakers, I know we will meet this moment united and build a better, more sustainable, more resilient, and more equitable future.”
Per the Maryland Attorney General’s Office: Maryland Attorney General Anthony G. Brown joined a multistate coalition of 17 Attorneys General in support of Hawaii’s request to the Ninth Circuit to rehear an appeal defending Hawaii’s ban on butterfly knives. The petition seeks en banc or panel rehearing of a decision, issued in Teter v. Lopez on August 7, 2023, that invalidated Hawaii’s butterfly knife ban under the Second Amendment. In its amicus brief, the coalition argues that the panel’s application of the Supreme Court’s decision in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association, Inc. v. Bruen was inconsistent with the approach taken in other Second Amendment cases.
In Hawaii, it is a misdemeanor to manufacture, sell, transport, or possess a butterfly knife, which is a type of knife where a split handle can fully encase the blade and rotate open to expose it. In 2019, plaintiffs filed a lawsuit challenging the law, claiming it violated the Second Amendment. The district court granted Hawaii’s motion for summary judgment, and the plaintiffs appealed to the Ninth Circuit. After the Supreme Court issued the Bruen decision in June 2022, the Ninth Circuit heard oral argument in Teter and ultimately vacated the district court’s decision.
Per the Maryland Attorney General’s Office: Maryland Attorney General Anthony G. Brown joined a coalition of 13 Attorneys General supporting the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) proposal to strengthen dust-lead hazard standards and post-abatement clearance levels, as authorized by the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA).
In a comment letter, Attorney General Brown and the coalition strongly support the EPA’s efforts to strengthen its dust-lead hazard standards and clearance levels, two important regulations that help to protect the public against dangerous dust-lead and lead paint exposures. The EPA’s proposed regulations are based upon several scientific studies that found that there is no safe level of lead exposure. Even very low levels of lead exposure can lead to serious health effects. For example, lead exposure is associated with delayed growth and lower academic performance in young children.
$90,977,416 million of cannabis was sold in the state of Maryland during the month of September, according to the Maryland Cannabis Administration, just short of the $91 million sold in August. These totals include both medical and recreational marijuana sales. Recreational cannabis sales became legal in the state on the July 1, 2023. Any resident over the age of 21 with a valid government ID is now legally allowed to purchase and possess cannabis products from registered dispensaries in Maryland. A complete list of cannabis dispensaries in Montgomery County below can be found below.
Bethesda: