The Daily Record (Baltimore)

Md. Legal Briefs: March 9, 2004

Nutter found guilty Franklin C. Showell, 62, the president of Nutter Funeral Homes Inc. in Baltimore was found guilty yesterday in Anne Arundel County Circuit Court of failure to remit withholding taxes, according to a joint announcement by the state attorney general's and comptroller's offices. Showell entered an Alford plea - equivalent to a guilty plea - acknowledging that the state had enough evidence to convict him. He admitted that between February 2000 and March 2001 he failed to pay $...

Maryland Hospitals Split Over a Bill to Restrict Elective Heart Surgeries

Maryland hospitals are split over a bill that would restrict the ability of some of them to perform elective heart surgeries - and take away a significant revenue stream. Proponents of the bill said the restriction is necessary for patient safety, but opponents argue it is unfounded.

Md. Court of Appeals Hears Corporal Punishment Case

The Court of Appeals considered yesterday whether a father may be held responsible for child abuse for bruising his 6-year-old child with a cowhide belt and metal buckle during the course of corporal punishment. Sandra Barnes, arguing the case for the Charles County Department of Social Services, asked the top court to reinstate an administrative law judge's finding that Charles Vann was responsible for indicated child abuse under Section 5-701 of the Family Law Article.

Baltimore-Area Colleges Will Offer Simulation and Digital Entertainment Degree

A growing computer game industry in Baltimore County has sparked a partnership between two colleges to create a new degree program. The Community College of Baltimore County and the University of Baltimore have worked together for the last six months to create a new Simulation and Digital Entertainment degree, according to Professor Kathleen Harmeyer, director of CCBC's Internet, Multimedia and Technology program.

Columbia-Based Corvis Corp. Agrees to Pay $210m for Chicago-Based Telephone Company

Corvis Corp. continued its transformation from equipment maker to service provider yesterday with a $210 million agreement to buy a Chicago-based telephone company, giving it access to 23 top-tier markets. Columbia-based Corvis said it will acquire Focal Communications Corp. in a stock-and-debt deal,

University of Maryland Law Students Challenging Board of Regents' Last Minute Tuition Increase

Setting aside a commercial law class and some internship work, a small contingent of University of Maryland law students traveled to Annapolis yesterday to hear the state's highest court in action. The second case on yesterday's docket - a class-action suit against the Board of Regents of the University System of Maryland challenging a last minute increase in school tuition - just happened to be their own. I think this will be a neat experience, to see how this plays out, third-year student J...

Baltimore's Security Square's New Anchor Targets Asian Community

Targeting the region's growing Asian community, Seoul Plaza - a retailer offering everything from groceries to furniture, a tea shop to a pool hall - will open Saturday in Security Square Mall, a struggling Baltimore County shopping mall that is showing renewed life. Seoul Plaza, offering one-stop shopping, will fill approximately 160,000 square feet of retail space formerly occupied by the J.C. Penney department store in the Woodlawn shopping mall.

Cancer Center to Open in Prince George's Co.

A new cancer care center in Bowie's Maryland Science and Technology Center will make it easier for cancer patients in the area to get state-of-the-art treatment closer to home. Maryland Regional Cancer Care will open the $4 million, 5,000- square-foot facility in April. There are other cancer treatment facilities in Silver Spring, Rockville, Waldorf and College Park, but the Bowie center is the first new one for the organization, which is a partnership of Holy Cross Hospital and Adventist Hea...

Md. Court of Special Appeals Rules in Favor of Dentists' Group in Mercury-Filling Case

The Maryland State Dental Association's pronouncement that mercury-containing dental fillings do not pose a significant health risk neither constitutes fraud nor violates the state Consumer Protection Act, the Court of Special Appeals held yesterday. The decision affirms the Baltimore County Circuit Court, which last April dismissed a suit by Lisa Hogan and Victoria Bolton for failure to state a claim.

Md. Court of Special Appeals Rules Dad has Right to Findings When Indigence Waiver Is Denied

A trial court cannot deny a fee-waiver application for a paternity test without clearly stating its findings on the applicant's claim to be indigent, the Court of Special Appeals has held. The decision vacates and remands the case of Timothy Wiggins, a Baltimore man who sought a determination on whether he fathered Teri Griner's child in 1990, but was unable to afford the test.

Md. Dept. Of Business and Economic Development Seeks Compromise Over Delaware Tax Shelters

The business community and the Maryland comptroller should compromise over how much businesses must pay for using Delaware tax shelters, said an official from the Department of Business and Economic Development yesterday. The only way to do it is for the comptroller and the business community to sit down and both take something that is going to hurt, said Jim Rzepkowski, DBED's associate deputy secretary.

St. Charles-Based American Community Properties Trust to Sell Residential Lots to U.S. Home Corp.

Bethesda-Based National Institutes of Health Publishes Results of Kidney Disease Study

Columbia-Based Metastorm Supplies La. Dept. Of Social Services with Its E-Work Software

Baltimore-Based Thomson Prometric and Pa.-Based Project Management Institute Renew Their Agreement

Gaithersburg-Based Aws Energy Services and Genscape Launch Partnership

Rockville-Based Institutional Shareholder Services to Hold Online Investor Forum

Bethesda-Based Lockheed Martin Says Its Pension Funding Requirements Will Rise This Year

Columbia-Based Corporate Office Properties Trust Acquires Gaithersburg Office Building

Hanover-Based Dialysis Corp. Of America Opens New Facility in Aiken, S.C.