Monday, March 18, 2013
Howard County Executive Ken Ulman was joined by local leaders at an event on Monday to release the final report of the joint task force on school safety.
County Executive Ken Ulman said Monday that $2 million would be spent to update security measures at Howard County schools, an initiative taken following the Sandy Hook school shooting in Connecticut. In addition, a task force recommended emergency response training and measures to create a safe climate for students and help identify children who may be suffering from issues. “All of what we’re doing is trying to put together the best possible group of policies to diminish the chances that we have a tragedy in Howard County,” said Ulman. The recommendations were released Monday at an event at Thunder Hill Elementary in Columbia. and were prepared by a joint task force on school safety. By the end of this year, the county plans on …
Howard County Executive Ken Ulman said the turnout was "tremendous."
Residents turned in 631 weapons during Howard County's gun buyback event on Saturday. In all, police took in 314 handguns, 168 rifles, 149 shotguns during the event that ran long due to a wait. Police distributed about $63,000 in funds, paying $100 each for the unwanted guns, from money seized in drug investigations. “The tremendous turnout today shows that many people have firearms in their homes that they don't want or need,” said Howard County Executive Ken Ulman. “There are now hundreds of fewer rifles and handguns in Howard County that could fall into the hands of children or thieves and cause real damage." “Clearly there was an interest and a need in our community for an event like this,” said Police Chief William J. McMahon. “We …
Thursday, March 14, 2013
A survey by Goucher College finds support on issues from banning assault-style weapons and ammunition magazines holding more than 10 rounds to fingerprinting and prohibitions on owning weapons for persons who are involuntarily committed.
From bans on assault-style weapons and high capacity ammunition magazines to fingerprinting anyone purchasing a gun, a new poll finds that a majority of Marylanders want stricter state gun laws. Eighty-two percent of those surveyed in a poll conducted by the Sarah T. Hughes Field Politics Center at Goucher College believe those purchasing a gun should be fingerprinted. The poll also found: Last month the Maryland Senate approved sweeping changes to gun laws that requires a license for all handgun purchases, bans of sales of assault-style weapons and ammunition magazines holding more than 10 rounds, requires fingerprinting for new gun purchases, and prohibits anyone involuntarily committed involuntarily for mental health reasons or who …
Friday, August 31, 2012
A judge ruled Thursday that Neil Prescott, the man who reportedly threatened co-workers in Prince George's County, will now be monitored by GPS.
Neil Prescott, the 28-year-old involved in a thwarted threat incident in late July, appeared in a Prince George's County courtroom Thursday in Upper Marlboro. Although he was living in Crofton at the time of the incident, Prescott was ordered by a judge on Aug. 21 to remain with his parents at their Parkton home in Baltimore County. The Baltimore Sun reported that Prescott appeared Thursday in Mental Health Court to provide an update on his progress outside of an inpatient facility, where he'd been since Anne Arundel County police took him into custody on July 23. Prescott will now be under GPS monitoring and not have access to any guns despite a report presented in court that says he is "not a danger," according to The Sun. He faces one …
Wednesday, August 22, 2012
To face charges of telephone misuse, Neil Prescott is set to appear in court on Aug. 30.
Neil Prescott, the Crofton man who made headlines three weeks ago in what police called an "averted threat" incident, was released from the hospital Tuesday, according to online court records. Prescott, 28, was ordered to remain with his parents in Parkton—with no electronic monitoring—by a Prince George’s County Mental Health Court judge, reported The Washington Post. He faces one count of telephone misuse related to threatening calls he allegedly made. The misdemeanor charge carries a maximum penalty of three years in prison and a $500 fine. A hearing in Upper Marlboro is set for Aug. 30, according to online court records. Anne Arundel County police announced they took a man into custody during a news conference on July 23, but did not …
Thursday, August 2, 2012
Court action delays changes to state's law that would have gone into effect next week until a hearing in October.
A federal ruling striking down part of Maryland's requirements to obtain a permit to carry a handgun won't go into effect next week after all. The 4th Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond granted the state's request Wednesday to delay an order issued last week by U.S. District Court Judge Benson Everett Legg. The appeals court ordered that state requirements on those seeking a permit to carry a gun must have "a good or substantial reason to wear, carry, or transport a handgun, such as a finding that the permit is necessary as a reasonable precaution against apprehended danger" remain in effect until an appeals hearing the week of Oct. 23. Legg struck down the requirement earlier this year and on July 24 denied a state's request to stay his…
Wednesday, August 1, 2012
Charges against the Crofton man were announced during a press conference Wednesday by the state's attorney and police chief of Prince George's County.
UPDATE (2:30 p.m.)—Neil Prescott of Crofton was charged with telephone misuse related to an averted threat incident last week in which he allegedly made threatening calls to his workplace. The announcement was made Wednesday afternoon by Prince George’s County State’s Attorney Angela D. Alsobrooks and Prince George’s County Police Chief Mark Magaw at the county courthouse in Upper Marlboro. Alsobrooks said that Section 3-804 was the only Maryland law under which Prescott could be charged because the state does not have a law against making threats by phone. The charge of telephone misuse, which is a misdemeanor in the state, carries a maximum penalty of three years in prison and a $500 fine. Prescott won't be arrested until his release …
Friday, July 27, 2012
The suspect from Crofton called himself "a joker" and threatened to "load [his] guns and blow everyone up" at his Pitney Bowes office, police said.
Less than a week after a gunman opened fire on a crowded theater in Aurora, CO, police in Prince George's and Anne Arundel counties say they thwarted a "terror attack" that threatened to bring similar fear and violence closer to home. Officials from both counties announced Friday that they had a man in custody in connection with a mass shooting plot. Media reports named the suspect as Neil Prescott, 28, of Crofton, but police declined to confirm his identity. Earlier reports identified the suspect's last name as "Trescott;" however it has since been corrected. Prince George's County Spokeswoman Julie Parker said that after speaking to the state's attorney's office, the suspect would not be charged Friday. The suspect remained in the care …
Wednesday, June 6, 2012
The legislation is set to take effect at the end of July.
The Prince George's County Council unanimously approved a bill Tuesday that will require residents convicted of gun crimes to be placed on a special registry and submit to random visits by police. County Executive Rushern Baker has said he plans to sign the legislation, which will take effect at the end of July. The bill is aimed at improving safety on county streets, where police say a high number of people are illegally carrying firearms. Last year, 64 people were fatally shot in the county and hundreds more wounded. “At the end of the day, what this county is going to see is a reduction in crime,” Barry L. Stanton, the county's deputy chief administrative officer for public safety, told the Washington Post. Opponents of the bill—…
Jennifer Walters Soler
11:46 am on Wednesday, March 20, 2013
Is there anything being done to address poor cell phone reception in HCPSS schools? Texts tend to get through but calls are spotty at best. Thunder Hill Elementary feels much safer during the day with its recently updated security features. more ›