Charles News

Early Muzzleloader Deer Season Opens Oct. 17, 2024 Throughout Maryland

Early Muzzleloader Deer Season Opens Oct. 17, 2024 Throughout Maryland

The first segment of Maryland’s muzzleloader deer season will be open Oct. 17-19 statewide. Hunters in Region B — the state’s central, southern, and eastern regions — can also use muzzleloaders from Oct. 21-26 for antlerless deer only. “The October muzzleloader season is a great opportunity to get outdoors and enjoy the state’s abundant...
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Virginia Man Arrested in La Plata for Drunk Driving with Two Small Children in Vehicle

Virginia Man Arrested in La Plata for Drunk Driving with Two Small Children in Vehicle

On Friday, October 4, 2024, at approximately 11:51 p.m., an officer observed a Ford Explorer traveling southbound on Crain Highway near Shining Willow Way weaving and driving in an erratic manner. Upon stopping the vehicle, the officer observed the driver presenting bloodshot and glassy eyes. A strong odor of alcoholic beverage was also noticed...
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Two Teens Flown to Trauma Centers, One Transported to Hospital After Serious Single Vehicle Collision in Charles County

Two Teens Flown to Trauma Centers, One Transported to Hospital After Serious Single Vehicle Collision in Charles County

On Saturday, October 5, 2024, at approximately 11:30 p.m., police, firefighters and emergency medical services responded to the area of Billingsley Road and Bensville Road, for the reported motor vehicle collision with injuries. Police arrived on the scene to find a single vehicle into a utility pole, off the roadway, down an embankment and...
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Office of the Maryland State Fire Marshal Celebrates 130th Anniversary as the Nation’s Oldest State Fire Marshal’s Office

Office of the Maryland State Fire Marshal Celebrates 130th Anniversary as the Nation’s Oldest State Fire Marshal’s Office

The Office of the Maryland State Fire Marshal is proud to announce its 130th anniversary this month, marking a significant milestone as the oldest State Fire Marshal’s Office in the United States. Established in 1894, the Office is also recognized as the second oldest state public safety agency in Maryland, following only the Maryland...
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Wade Elementary School Student Stabs Another Student in Leg with Pencil, Assaults Second with Book

Wade Elementary School Student Stabs Another Student in Leg with Pencil, Assaults Second with Book

On Friday, October 4, 2024, a student at Wade Elementary School purposely jabbed one student in the leg with a pencil and struck another student in the head with a book. The student who was injured in the leg received a penetrating wound that required treatment. The student struck in the head was transported...
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Board of Public Works Approves More Than $3.6 Billion in Funding for Projects Across Maryland

Board of Public Works Approves More Than $3.6 Billion in Funding for Projects Across Maryland

Comptroller Brooke E. Lierman joined Gov. Wes Moore and Treasurer Dereck Davis for Wednesday’s Board of Public Works meeting to approve more than $3.6 billion for 75 initiatives and projects throughout Maryland. The Board of Public Works approved a $2.75 million settlement following a U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) investigation into discriminatory hiring practices...
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Fall Wildlife Activity Increases Maryland Drivers’ Collision Risk

Fall Wildlife Activity Increases Maryland Drivers’ Collision Risk

Deer mating season is right around the corner, and the Maryland Department of Natural Resources reminds motorists to be vigilant. The shortening of day length, called the photo period, triggers white-tailed deer breeding season. During this time, these deer travel across roads in often unpredictable patterns at all times of the day in search of a mate. Most...
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Maryland U.S. Attorneys Office Reach Agreement with Maryland State Police to Resolve Allegations of Race, Gender Discrimination in Trooper Hiring Process

Maryland U.S. Attorneys Office Reach Agreement with Maryland State Police to Resolve Allegations of Race, Gender Discrimination in Trooper Hiring Process

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland announced today that it has reached a settlement agreement with the Maryland Department of State Police (MDSP) to resolve the United States’ claims that MDSP’s hiring process for state troopers violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. Specifically, the United States alleges that MDSP...
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Governor Moore Announces Debt Cancellation for Mandatory, Parole and Administrative Release Supervision and Drug Testing Fees

Governor Moore Announces Debt Cancellation for Mandatory, Parole and Administrative Release Supervision and Drug Testing Fees

Governor Wes Moore today announced that the Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services will cancel the debt for outstanding mandatory, parole, and administrative release supervision fees and drug testing fees for individuals who are currently under the supervision of the agency’s Division of Parole and Probation. The action will relieve administrative debt for...
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Maryland State Police Participating In National Drug Take Back Day 2024

Maryland State Police Participating In National Drug Take Back Day 2024

The Maryland State Police are participating in the 27th National Drug Take Back Day as part of the ongoing fight against opioid addiction. Police urge people to drop off unwanted prescription drugs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, October 26, at any of the 23 state police barracks—no questions asked. All Maryland State...
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Police in Charles County Investigating Motor Vehicle Crash That Killed 64-Year-Old Bel Alton

Police in Charles County Investigating Motor Vehicle Crash That Killed 64-Year-Old Bel Alton

On October 4, 2024, at 12:17 a.m., officers from the Charles County Sheriff’s Office responded to a single-vehicle crash near Chapel Point Road and Brooks Farm Road in La Plata. Upon arrival, officers and EMS discovered a Chevy Tahoe that had veered off the road, struck a tree, and come to rest back on...
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All Arrests and Criminal Summons Issued in Calvert County 9/27/2024 to 10/3/2024

All Arrests and Criminal Summons Issued in Calvert County 9/27/2024 to 10/3/2024

Each week, SMNEWSNET.COM will provide a list of all arrests and criminal summonses issued in Calvert County. In the spirit of transparency, we are committed to keeping our community informed about local law enforcement activities. This list includes arrests made by both the Calvert County Sheriff’s Office and the Maryland State Police, providing a...
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All Arrests and Criminal Summons Issued in Charles County 9/27/2024 to 10/3/2024

All Arrests and Criminal Summons Issued in Charles County 9/27/2024 to 10/3/2024

Each week, SMNEWSNET.COM will provide a list of all arrests and criminal summonses issued in Charles County. In the spirit of transparency, we are committed to keeping our community informed about local law enforcement activities. This list includes arrests made by both the Charles County Sheriff’s Office and the Maryland State Police, providing a...
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Waldorf Man Charged with Choking Girlfriend in Domestic Dispute

Waldorf Man Charged with Choking Girlfriend in Domestic Dispute

Keanu Destine Grissett, age 23, of Waldorf, is facing charges of first- and second-degree assault after an alleged domestic altercation on September 26, 2024. According to the Charles County Sheriff’s Office, officers responded to a distress call at Amber Leaf Apartments in Waldorf, where they encountered a female victim who reported being physically assaulted...
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Waldorf Man Convicted of 5 Counts of Sexual Abuse of A Minor Involving Three Young Children

Waldorf Man Convicted of 5 Counts of Sexual Abuse of A Minor Involving Three Young Children

UPDATE 10/3/2024: Tony Covington, State’s Attorney for Charles County, announced that on Wednesday, September 25, 2024, a Charles County jury, after a 3-day trial, convicted Katravien Tyrieus Vercher, 25, of Waldorf, of five counts of Sexual Abuse of a Minor and one count of Third-Degree Sexual Offense. On March 22, 2023, officers with the...
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Why Panic-Buying Toilet Paper During the Port Strike is Unnecessary

Why Panic-Buying Toilet Paper During the Port Strike is Unnecessary

As news of a major port strike across the U.S. hits the headlines, people are panic-buying toilet paper, flooding social media with reports of empty shelves at their local stores. While this scenario feels eerily similar to the shortages we saw during the pandemic, there’s an important fact to understand: There’s no actual shortage...
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No Tricks, Only Treats: October is Full of Fun and Educational Events at CSM

No Tricks, Only Treats: October is Full of Fun and Educational Events at CSM

Gallery Exhibit Entitled ‘NEW’: Works by Jerry Truong, Coy Gu, Andrew Wodzianski, and George Bedell. See gallery art created by the College of Southern Maryland (CSM) faculty through Oct. 18 at the Tony Hungerford Memorial Art Gallery located at the La Plata Campus. CSM’s Studio Art Professors exhibit their latest creations, resulting in a group...
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Maryland State Police To Celebrate National Faith & Blue Weekend 2024 With Communities Across The State

Maryland State Police To Celebrate National Faith & Blue Weekend 2024 With Communities Across The State

Maryland State Police will join faith-based organizations and law enforcement agencies across the state to celebrate National Faith & Blue Weekend, set for October 11-14, 2024. National Faith & Blue is a collaborative initiative that builds bridges and breaks down biases through activities and outreach amongst law enforcement professionals and the communities they serve....
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Maryland Car Rally Task Force Dismantles Over Twelve Unlawful Exhibition Driving Events In Maryland Counties Saturday Night

Maryland Car Rally Task Force Dismantles Over Twelve Unlawful Exhibition Driving Events In Maryland Counties Saturday Night

Members from the Maryland Car Rally Task Force, working in collaboration with the Maryland State Police Special Operations Division, and allied police agencies disrupted twelve unlawful exhibition driving events throughout multiple Maryland counties, including Prince George’s, Anne Arundel, Howard and Baltimore, Saturday night. Police responded to several locations where up to 500 participants gathered...
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Justice Department Awards $4B to Support Community Safety

Justice Department Awards $4B to Support Community Safety

The Justice Department announced today that it is awarding $4 billion to support public safety and community justice activities in the states and territories and in local and Tribal communities. The grants, from the Department’s Office of Justice Programs (OJP), will fund efforts across the country to reduce violence, expand services for crime victims and...
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Rescheduling of Marijuana: DEA’s Proposed Rulemaking and Hearing

Rescheduling of Marijuana: DEA’s Proposed Rulemaking and Hearing

The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), a part of the Department of Justice, has announced a public hearing regarding a significant change in how marijuana is classified under federal law. The proposal seeks to reschedule marijuana from a Schedule I to a Schedule III substance under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA). This move, which has...
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Fatal Motorcycle Crash in La Plata Under Investigation, Victim Identified as 24-Year-Old Nanjemoy Man

Fatal Motorcycle Crash in La Plata Under Investigation, Victim Identified as 24-Year-Old Nanjemoy Man

UPDATE 9/29/2024: On Saturday, September 28, 2024, at approximately 4:33 p.m., Maryland State Police (MSP) Troopers from the La Plata Barrack responded to a serious motor vehicle collision on Maryland Route 488 at Grant Chapman Road. Due to the nature of the incident, the MSP CRASH Team was called to assume the investigation. Preliminary...
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One Transported to Trauma Center After Multi-Vehicle Crash in Mechanicsville

One Transported to Trauma Center After Multi-Vehicle Crash in Mechanicsville

On Friday, September 27, 2024, at approximately 9:32 p.m., police, firefighters and emergency medical services responded to the area of Three Notch Road and New Market Turner Road in Mechanicsville, for a serious motor vehicle collision with injuries and entrapment. Crews arrived on the scene to find a three vehicle collision involving a Dodge...
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Police Investigating Report of First Degree Assault Involving a Piccowaxen Middle School Bus

Police Investigating Report of First Degree Assault Involving a Piccowaxen Middle School Bus

On Friday, September 20, 2024, at 2:30 p.m., officers responded to Piccowaxen Middle School after a school bus driver returned from his bus route after a student reported seeing someone with what appeared to be a gun pointing it toward the bus as the bus was dropping students off at a bus stop. The...
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Hughesville Man Arrested After Alleged Assault and Gunfire Incident

Hughesville Man Arrested After Alleged Assault and Gunfire Incident

On September 23, 2024, at approximately 7:40 p.m., officers from the Charles County Sheriff’s Office responded to a domestic violence call on Meadow Court in Hughesville. The suspect, identified as Brandon Wayne Blitch, 38, of Hughesville, allegedly fired a gun during an argument with the adult female victim. Three juveniles were also present in...
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