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MD governor creates commission for African immigrants Annapolis, MD (AP) -- Gov. Martin O'Malley has created a new commission to help business and community development interests of African immigrants who have come to Maryland. O'Malley signed an executive order creating the African Affairs Commission on Thursday. The governor also swore in 21 members of the commission. One of the commission's main goals will be to expand state government outreach efforts to help Maryland citizens who have immigrated from African nations. The state also has commissions that oversee efforts to help Asian, Hispanic and Middle Eastern immigrants. The Associated Press

MD police charge six gang members with teen's murder Six members of a violent Hispanic street gang were charged with kidnapping and killing a 15-year-old boy as part of a gang ritual, according to Montgomery County police. The arrests... Suspected illegal pleads guilty in MD bus slaying A man suspected of being an illegal immigrant pleaded guilty today to charges that he fatally shot a 14-year-old honors student aboard a Montgomery County transit bus in Silver Spring,... MD Faces Music on Drivers Licenses - Janice Kephart By Janice Kephart What is equally noteworthy is the outpouring of support for the measure by Maryland residents. In a small and anecdotal measure of interest in the issue, the...

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Maryland: Gang Haven - Jon Feere

By Jon Feere Chief Manger reports that incidences of murder, rape, assault, burglary, and robbery increased in Maryland in 2008, much of it attributable to gangs. In fact, the FBI recently reported that gangs are responsible for up to 80...
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MD illegal commits rape after release

A year before Prince William County police say he raped an 8-year-old girl, court documents show an illegal immigrant from Honduras was released by Montgomery County police after being arrested for second-degree assault. Marcos Banegas has been on the run...
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Latino youths struggle in foundering MD community

Langley Park, MD -- Class at the youth center had just let out, and a gaggle of teenagers moved toward the door, turning saggy pants and ring tones thrumming with reggaetón hits into adolescent statements of Latino cool. Some had...
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MD seafood sector seeks foreign labor boost

Fishing Creek, MD -- At least eight seafood packing companies on Maryland's Eastern Shore are operating shorthanded or not at all due to employee shortages. The Dorchester Seafood Packers Association cites federal restrictions on temporary worker visas as the problem....
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MD MVA drops license appointments for illegals

Maryland's Motor Vehicle Administration is canceling appointments for thousands of immigrants applying for driver's licenses. The agency has been booking 2,000 appointments a week for drivers who provide foreign documents that lack a U.S. visa stamp. The system allowed hundreds...
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MD city sanctuary policy credited with arrests

Police in Takoma Park said yesterday that their policy of not enforcing immigration laws helped them solve a violent crime recently when a Hispanic day laborer saw suspects fleeing after an armed robbery and scratched a license plate number into...
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MD lawmakers approve license compromise

Annapolis, MD (AP) -- Illegal immigrants will no longer be able to hold Maryland licenses as of July 1, 2015, under legislation approved shortly before the state legislature adjourned its 2009 session. Legislators have wrestled all session with how to...
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MD Gov. warns of special session on ID laws

State lawmakers are at work on a compromise on whether illegal immigrants with Maryland licenses can renew them -- a signal that one of this year's trickiest legislative issues will be resolved before the session ends at midnight Monday. Sen....
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MD illegals face quandary as state poised to act on drivers licenses

As many as 350,000 licensed Maryland drivers might soon face a seemingly impossible choice that could upend daily life for their families and gum up the gears of the local economy: Stop driving or get behind the wheel illegally. They're...
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MD state senator calls for governor's input on license policy

Senate President Mike Miller says Governor Martin O'Malley needs to provide direction to lawmakers over what he wants them to do about driver's licenses for illegal immigrants. Miller's comments came less than 24 hours after the Maryland Senate and House...
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MD policies attract illegals seeking documents

No. 5284 Randolph Rd., in a Rockville shopping center, is a modest Parcel Plus store where small businesses rent mailboxes by the month. It's also the address used by at least 42 undocumented immigrants living in states along the Eastern...
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MD State House reaches compromise on license restrictions

Illegal immigrants would be ineligible for new Maryland licenses, but those who already have them could continue to renew their identification, under a compromise bill endorsed by a House of Delegates committee Thursday. The House Judiciary Committee plan would take...
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MD legislator seeks state-wide enforcement

Annapolis -- A Frederick County lawmaker wants to expand an immigration program used by the sheriff's office. The Senate Budget and Taxation Committee heard a bill by Sen. David Brinkley on Wednesday that would require every law enforcement agency receiving...
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MD Board of Education nixes tally of illegal alien students

'Flawed.' That's how Frederick County Commissioner Charles A. Jenkins describes the state Board of Education's ruling against checking the immigration status of students enrolled in public schools. 'I think the state board made a predictable decision,' said Jenkins (R). 'I...
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Illegal jailed for mugging Maryland woman

An undocumented immigrant has been sentenced to 18 months in jail for mugging a woman the day before Thanksgiving outside Arundel Mills mall. The Capital (Annapolis)...
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MD board of education forbids tally of illegal students

The Maryland Board of Education ruled that unless the local school system has a valid reason, officials cannot seek the immigration status of students. And, according to that ruling, Frederick County Commissioners need a better reason to investigate children's status...
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MD bill targets illegals' access to drivers licenses

Annapolis (AP) -- In an online Spanish language chat room, people from all over the East Coast seek tips on how to get driver's licenses in Maryland even though they don't live there. Businesses run classified ads in Spanish-language publications...
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MD county police chief notes Hispanic gang violence spreading

Montgomery County is experiencing an increase in violence among notorious Hispanic street gangs, including MS-13 and the Latin Kings, the county's chief of police said Thursday. Chief J. Thomas Manger said there was no apparent reason why gangs were targeting...
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MD bill requires proof of legal status for driver's license

Annapolis -- A local state senator is trying for the third year in a row to require that Maryland drivers prove they are in the country legally. Sen. David Brinkley, a Republican who represents Frederick and Carroll counties, testified before...
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MD group decries alleged arrest quotas

Washington, DC -- An immigrants rights group complained Wednesday that U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement agents in 2007 arrested a group of 24 Hispanics in the parking lot of a 7-Eleven in Baltimore because they had to meet arrest quotas....
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MD sheriff to join national immigration committee

Frederick County Sheriff Chuck Jenkins has been asked to be a member of the National Sheriffs' Association's immigration subcommittee. 'I'm really pleased and anxious to be a part of it,' Jenkins said. The subcommittee is led by Cochise County, Ariz.,...
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