NEWS ANALYSIS Which came first: the chicken or the executive order? After months of loud citizens versus farmers feuding over the future of large chicken farms in Cecil County with no clear resolution in sight, there are now some menu alternatives on the county government’s plate: a largely symbolic “executive order” proposed by County...
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“CRIMINAL NUISANCE” PROPERTIES FACE COUNTY CRACKDOWN For years, Cecil County government, law enforcement and neighbors have been trying to clean up run-down properties, especially in trailer parks, that have become home to drug dealing and criminal activity. Now the county government is looking to crack down on absentee landlords with proposed legislation that could...
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COMMENTARY Cecil County State’s Attorney Edward D.E. “Ellis” Rollins III was sentenced to probation, a fine, community service and a mandatory psychological evaluation on Tuesday (2/14/2017) for his conviction on charges of indecent exposure and disorderly conduct in a sex-related case. But Cecil County taxpayers have yet to get justice for the salary and...
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Edward D.E. “Ellis” Rollins III has resigned as Cecil County State’s Attorney, after clinging to his job and its nearly $150,000 taxpayer-paid salary and benefits for months after he was charged with indecent exposure and disorderly conduct stemming from alleged sex-related incidents in Ocean City. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Tuesday 2/14/2017...
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A CECIL TIMES SPECIAL REPORT About 96 percent of Cecil County residents are now covered by health insurance, a substantial gain since the federal Affordable Care Act took effect in 2014. But uncertainty over the fate of the federal law, which the Trump administration has vowed to repeal, poses fiscal concerns for the Maryland...
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CECILTON—In just the first month of the new year, there have been nine fatal drug overdoses in Cecil County, amid concerns that new strains of deadly fentanyl is being mixed with heroin to create a serious new threat, Sheriff Scott Adams told a community “town hall” meeting in Cecilton Wednesday evening. (2/1/2017) “We’re really...
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Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan proposed an anti-drug initiative Tuesday 1/24/2017 that would boost spending by $4 million on treatment and monitoring programs, along with tougher laws aimed at drug traffickers and over-prescribing of opioids by physicians. At the same time, a new out-patient detox and treatment center held a ribbon-cutting ceremony in conjunction with...
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COMMENTARY There are no words to express the appropriate level of shock and revulsion at new President Donald Trump’s Saturday (1/21/17) appearance and speech, using the hallowed ground of the CIA’s tribute wall to the anonymous heroes who sacrificed their lives in service to the nation, as a political prop to launch yet another...
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NEWS ANALYSIS Cecil County had some good economic development news this week, for a change, with the formal announcement of 700 jobs with online retailer Amazon coming to a mega-warehouse near Perryville. But enthusiasm should be tempered with a dose of economic reality on the shortcomings of the local workforce and the paucity of...
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“Alexa, bring 700 jobs to Cecil County, ASAP.”—Cecil County government “Of course. My Pleasure.”—Amazon Echo’s “Alexa” virtual assistant Online retailer Amazon will open a $90 million mega-warehouse, employing up to 700 full-time workers, in the Principio Business Park off Route 40 near Perryville. State loan/grants of over $1.2 million and a Cecil County government...
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Major crimes in Cecil County declined significantly in 2015, according to new data submitted to state and federal authorities, but the number of murders increased and separate health reports showed drug overdose deaths continued to be a serious problem in the county for most of 2016. The Maryland State Police compiled data from its...
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NEWS ANAYLSIS Cecil County State’s Attorney Edward D.E. “Ellis” Rollins III has filed a motion for a new trial after his jury conviction on two sexual misconduct-related charges– thus prolonging the taxpayer-funded agony and embarrassment of having to continue to pay a salary and benefits to a disgraced prosecutor who hasn’t appeared in Cecil...
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Cecil County home and business property values rose by a combined rate of about 6 percent in new state property tax assessments in northern areas of the county in 2016, providing some welcome news for homeowners looking to sell their houses as well as a potential boost in revenues to the Cecil County government...
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COSTS OF LOCAL CHANGE, STATE CLOUT for CECIL The Cecil County Council is considering a proposed $157,000 budget amendment for severance pay costs to three ousted department heads under the new administration of Cecil County Executive Alan McCarthy and to hire lobbyists in Annapolis to get the state government to pay more attention to...
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NEWS ANALYSIS Cecil County State’s Attorney Edward D.E “Ellis” Rollins III was convicted of indecent exposure and disorderly conduct on Friday 12/9/16 in Worcester County Circuit Court, stemming from nudity and sex acts observed while he was at an Ocean City hotel during a taxpayer-financed visit to a state legal conference. But the next...
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