Washington-Baltimore Afro-American Newspaper August 1 2015

Volume Volume 123 123 No. No. 52 20–22

August 1, 2015 - August 1, 2015, The Afro-American A1 $1.00

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AUGUST 1, 2015 - AUGUST 7, 2015

Cinci. Campus Cop Kills Father of 10 Baltimore

Inside Editorial: Why the Iran Deal Matters A5

• Exclusive: Balto.’s Gilmor Residents Claim Long Delay For Repairs B1

Fattah, CBC Chair, Indicted A3

Washington Rep. Cummings on Prison Reform A5 Should the NBA Move to a Top 8 Playoff Format? A5

• D.C. Bill Places AP Photo, John Minchillo

Mourner JeRee Wilson holds her fist in the air outside funeral services for Samuel DuBose at the Church of the Living God in the Avondale neighborhood of Cincinnati on July 28th. DuBose was fatally shot by a University of Cincinnati police officer who stopped him for a missing license plate. The police officer, Ray Tensing, was charged with murder. A2

Harsher Penalties on ATV, Dirt Bike Use D1

National Urban League Aims to ‘Save Our Cities’ 5,000 added.

That’s how many new people liked our Facebook page last week. Join our 481,000 other fans.

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By Zenitha Prince Senior AFRO Correspondent zprince@afro.com “Saving Our Cities” is the focus of the 2015 National Urban League Conference which gathers at the Greater Ft. Lauderdale/Broward County Convention Center in Fort Lauderdale, Florida from July 29 through Aug. 1.

Your History • Your Community • Your News

the National Urban League, in a preconference interview with the AFRO. Making this year more thrilling is the attendance of five of the candidates running for president in 2016—U.S. Sen. Bernard “Bernie” Sanders, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley and retired neurosurgeon Dr. Benjamin Carson.

To those for whom justice has long been denied, the criminal cases against the Baltimore police officers indicted in the death of Freddie Gray may seem to be moving at a snail’s pace. But legal experts say the progress is as should be expected.

“People should anticipate that the process is going to be longer and less predictable

than they anticipate,” said Jose Anderson, a professor of law at the University of Baltimore.

“Very few police are tried under these circumstances so there are not many cases like these.”

“It is proceeding in the most orderly fashion possible under the circumstances,” added A. Dwight Pettit, a veteran Baltimore attorney known for his involvement in major cases. “Nothing’s normal about this case because of the tremendous publicity

and the great amount of evidence involved.”

Gray, 25, died April 17 after sustaining several injuries, notably damage to his spinal cord, while in police custody.

In May, after investigations by the Baltimore Police Department and the State’s Attorney’s Office, six officers were indicted in Gray’s death.

Officer Caesar R. Goodson Jr., who drove the police Continued on A4

Boy Who Lost Hands to Infection Gets Double-Hand Transplant Associated Press

Listen to Afro’s “First Edition” Join Host Sean Yoes Monday-Friday 5-7 p.m. on 88.9 WEAA FM, the Voice of the Community.

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“The fact that we’re in a warmup year to the presidential election is exciting,” said Morial, adding that this is the first time all of these five candidates will be in the same building at the same time.

“The important element of this conference is that these five presidential candidates will be engaged in explaining how they would Continued on A3

What to Expect as Balto’s Freddie Rep. Lee Takes on Youth Solitary Confinement Gray Case Moves Forward

By Zenitha Prince Senior AFRO Correspondent zprince@afro.com

afro.com

An estimated 12,000 to 15,000 persons are expected to convene for the annual conclave which often sets the tone for the civil rights organization’s advocacy.

“The annual conference is always an exciting time when we meet together and talk about the issues of our time and the agenda we want to bring back to our communities,” said Marc Morial, president and CEO of

Double-hand transplant recipient eight-year-old Zion Harvey is the youngest patient to receive a double-hand transplant.

An 8-year-old boy who lost his hands and feet to a serious infection has become the youngest patient to receive a double-hand transplant, surgeons said Tuesday.

Zion Harvey’s forearms were heavily bandaged but his hands were visible as he flashed some big smiles on July 28th at a hospital news conference. He demonstrated his still-delicate grip and described waking up with new hands as “weird at first,

By James Wright Special to the AFRO jwright@afro.com

U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee said she wants to make the solitary confinement of juveniles in the United States illegal. On July 22, Lee (D-Texas) convened a congressional briefing on the conditions of youth confinement on Capitol Hill and said action is needed by the U.S. Congress to stop juvenile solitary confinement as soon as possible.

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Wikipedia

Sheila Jackson Lee is a U.S. representative from Texas.

Today’s Aging Minorities Most Impacted by Poor Finances

By Shantella Y. Sherman Special to the AFRO ssherman@afro.com

Editor’s Note

Even as the nation commemorates the 50th anniversary of Medicare, Medicaid, the Older Americans Act, and the 80th anniversary of Social Security, issues of race, class, and access remain recalcitrant barriers to elder security.

Particularly among Blacks, living longer has often meant subsisting on meager funds

The AFRO-American Newspapers recently consolidated it’s Washington D.C. and Baltimore editions. The amount of news from both areas remains the same, however they are now in separate sections of the paper, instead of in separate editions.

The AFRO has been re-designed to accommodate this change.

The re-design is an ongoing process and we welcome your feedback at tips@afro.com.

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Copyright © 2015 by the Afro-American Company

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Bobbi Kristina Brown, Daughter of Whitney Houston, Dies at 22 After Months in Hospital

By Jonathan Landrum Jr., Associated Press

The brief, chaotic life of Bobbi Kristina Brown was never really her own.

Born and raised in the shadow of fame and litigation, shattered by the loss of her mother, Whitney Houston, Bobbi Kristina was overwhelmed by the achievements and demons of others before she could begin to figure out who she was.

Her demise was the most awful inheritance of all.

Bobbi Kristina died on Sunday at Peachtree Christian Hospice in Duluth, Georgia, about six months after she was found face-down and unresponsive in a bathtub in the suburban Atlanta townhome she shared with Nick Gordon, the man she called her husband. She was 22-years-old.

“Bobbi Kristina Brown passed away July, 26 2015, surrounded by her family. She is finally at peace in the arms of God. We want to again thank everyone for their tremendous amount of love and support during these last few months,” Kristen Foster, a representative for the Houston family said June 26th.

Police said she was found Jan. 31 in the suburban Atlanta townhome she shared with Gordon. A police report described it as a “drowning.”

Judging from her postings online, Bobbi Kristina was focused on the approaching anniversary of her mother’s death. In one of her last tweets, she said, “Littlelady&yourgrowing young man @nickdgordon miss you mommy ..:’) SOmuch.. loving you more every sec. #Anniversary!”

Obama Lectures Kenyan President on Gay Rights; Receives One in Return

By AFRO Staff President Obama took Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta to task over the African country’s record on gay rights during his first visit to the country as president.

During a joint press conference in Nairobi on July 25th, Obama chided Kenyatta over Kenya’s laws, which punish sex between men with as many as 14 years in prison.

“When you start treating people differently not because of any harm they are doing to anybody, but because they are different, that’s the path whereby freedoms begin to erode,” Obama said, according to CNN. “And bad things happen.”

Despite many similarities between the U.S. and Kenya, Kenyatta said the countries differ in their acceptance of LGBT individuals.

“The fact of the matter is Kenya and the U.S. share so many values: common love for democracy, entrepreneurship, value for families—these are some things that we share,” Kenyatta said. “But there are some things that we must admit we don’t share. Our culture, our societies don’t accept.”

In a toast to Obama at the dinner, Kenyatta remarked on a program which decades earlier sought to send newlyindependent Kenyans to study in America—a group which included Obama’s father.

“Riding on the wings of history,” Kenyatta described Obama as a president of historic consequence “for America, for Africa and most importantly for Kenya.”

Jackson Father Reported Stable After Stroke in Brazil Following 87th Birthday Party

By The Associated Press

One of the organizers of a birthday party that brought the

father of the late Michael Jackson to Brazil says he’s in stable condition in a Sao Paulo hospital after suffering a stroke.

Paulo Andre Silva is a partner at Nexxing, the company that invited Joe Jackson to Brazil.

He says the 87-year-old Jackson remains in the intensive care unit of the Albert Einstein Hospital, where he was admitted on July 26th.

The hospital was not immediately available for comment on July 28th.

Silva said that about 10 Jackson family members are expected to arrive in Sao Paulo soon.

Jackson arrived in Sao Paulo on July 22nd and attended several events before falling ill.

Ohio Cop Indicted on Murder Charge in Traffic-Stop Shooting

By Lisa Cornwell, Associated Press A University of Cincinnati officer who shot a motorist during a traffic stop over a missing front license plate has been indicted on murder charges, a prosecutor said on July 29, adding that the officer “purposely killed him” and “should never have been a police officer.”

Hamilton County Prosecutor Joe Deters announced the grand jury indictment at a news conference to discuss developments in the investigation into the July 19 shooting of 43-yearold motorist Samuel DuBose by Officer Ray Tensing.

Authorities have said Tensing Bobbi Kristina Brown spotted a car driven by DuBose and missing the front license plate, which is required by Ohio law.

They say Tensing stopped the car and a struggle ensued after DuBose refused to provide a driver’s license and get out of the car.

Tensing has said he was dragged by the car and forced to shoot at DuBose. He fired one shot, striking DuBose in the head.

But Deters dismissed Tensing’s claim that he was dragged by the car and suggested that he shouldn’t have pulled DuBose over to begin with.

“He fell backward after he shot (DuBose) in the head,” Deters said, adding that it was a “chicken crap” traffic stop.

A warrant was issued for Tensing’s arrest. Deters said Tensing could either turn himself in or officers could arrest him.

Tensing’s attorney, Stewart Mathews, didn’t immediately return phone messages seeking comment after Deters’ announcement.

DuBose’s death comes amid months of national scrutiny of police dealings with African-Americans, especially those killed by officers. DuBose was black. Tensing is white.

Authorities haven’t indicated whether race was a part of the investigation.

Body-camera video of the shooting was also released Wednesday. Deters called the shooting “senseless” and “asinine.”

“He purposely killed him,” Deters said. “He should never have been a police officer.”

Mark O’Mara, attorney for DuBose’s family, called for a “peaceful and nonaggressive” response from the community after the officer’s indictment. O’Mara said the family wanted a peaceful reaction because “Sam was a peaceful person.”

If convicted, Tensing could face up to life in prison.

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Rep. Fattah, CBC Chair, Vows to Stay in Office Following Indictment

By The Associated Press A longtime Philadelphia congressman, who was indicted July 29, paid off a campaign loan with charitable donations and federal grants, funneled campaign money to pay down his son’s student loan debt and disguised a lobbyist’s bribe as payment for a car he never sold, federal prosecutors said.

Democratic U.S. Rep. Chaka Fattah and four associates were charged with racketeering conspiracy. They also were charged with bribery, conspiracy to commit wire, honest services, bank and mail fraud, and money laundering, among other things.

Prosecutors say the charges covered several schemes. They allege Fattah used federal grants and donations to his educational foundation to pay back part of a wealthy campaign supporter’s $1 million loan and that he helped arrange a $15 million federal grant for a nonexistent nonprofit in lieu of a $130,000 payment to a political consultant after his failed 2007 mayoral run.

“The public does not expect their elected officials to misuse campaign funds, misappropriate government funds, accept bribes or commit bank fraud,” U.S. Attorney

Zane Memeger said. “These types of criminal acts betray the public trust and undermine faith in government.”

Fattah says he’s never been involved in wrongdoing, unlawful activity or misappropriation of government funds.

A 29-count indictment returned Wednesday accuses the 11-term Philadelphia Democrat of misusing hundreds of thousands of dollars of federal, charitable and campaign funds.

Fattah addressed the charges outside his Washington office shortly after they were announced in Philadelphia. He says it’s important to his constituents that the case not be a distraction.

Fattah says he hasn’t seen the indictment and doesn’t plan on resigning from Congress.

He compared the case to the news that has dominated sports headlines about the New England Patriots using underinflated footballs. He says, “This is not Deflategate.”

Under indictment, Fattah was stepping down from his post as the top Democrat on the House Appropriations subcommittee that oversees spending for Commerce, Justice, Science and related agencies. He remains chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus.

AP Photo

Chaka Fattah faces 29 counts of racketeering conspiracy.

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said in statement the charges “are deeply saddening.”

“Congressman Fattah has been a tireless and effective advocate for America’s hard-working families across more than 20 years of distinguished service in the House,”

Pelosi said.

Despite a long-running federal investigation, Fattah maintained a busy public schedule and side-byside with top Democrats, catching a ride to a Philadelphia event earlier this month with President Barack Obama on Air Force One.

Prosecutors said the Democrat and his district director, Bonnie Bowser, passed mayoral and congressional campaign funds through a political consulting company to make 34 student loan payments on behalf of his son totaling $23,000.

To cover up the transactions, there was a scheme to portray an $18,000 bribe from Florida lobbyist Herbert Vederman, who sought an ambassadorship or a seat on the U.S. Trade Commission, as a car payment, Memeger said. FBI agents found the car in the garage at Fattah’s Philadelphia home 26 months after the sale, the indictment said.

Memeger said Karen Nicholas, a former member of Fattah’s congressional staff and the CEO of his Educational Advancement Alliance, obtained $50,000 in federal grants for a higher education conference that never took place.

Fattah was supposed to be the keynote speaker.

Instead, Memeger said, Nicholas used the money to pay a political consultant, an attorney and several checks to herself from the charity’s operating account.

Bowser, Vederman, Nicholas and Philadelphia businessman Robert Brand have also been charged.

National Urban League Continued from A1

save our cities if they became president,” the former New Orleans mayor added. “We have shared the Black community’s ‘21st Century Agenda for Jobs and Freedom’ with them and we’ve asked them to respond. It will be interesting to hear what they have to say.”

Under the banner of “Saving Our Cities,” this year’s convention will focus on education, jobs and justice in communities of color.

“The backdrop of this is all the racial justice incidents that have occurred in this past year,” Morial said, referring to a barrage of Black deaths at the hands of police and vigilantes that prompted massive protest across the nation and movements such as #BlackLivesMatter.

Issues related to poor education, joblessness and an often discriminatory criminal justice system are at the heart of many of the troubles plaguing poorer, inner-

city communities, and addressing those matters will be at the heart of efforts to “save” them.

For example, Morial said, for far too long the disparities in jobless rates—with Blacks faring the worst—have persisted. That feeds into other ills and amplifies communities’ anger and disillusionment.

“We have got to provide work opportunities for our young people. Without jobs they’re going to be hopeless, it exacerbates poverty in their communities, and it breeds a cycle of violence,” Morial said.

“And poverty and hopelessness,” he added, “are the tinder that allows police misconduct to be a spark” into demonstrations such as the sometimes violent unrest that erupted in Baltimore in April following the death of a 25-year-old Black man while in police custody.

Morial decried the inadequate response to the glaring need for criminal justice reform highlighted in the past few years.

“I am not satisfied. There are a number of cases where no indictments have been made, which underscores the idea that the justice system, in many ways, doesn’t work,” he said.

“We have to hold the presidential candidates’ feet to the fire. We have to hold the mayors’ – who appoint police chiefs – feet to the fire.

We have to hold local state’s attorneys’ and prosecutors’ feet to the fire.

“They have a responsibility to ensure police departments are serving the people.”

In terms of the high rate of Black unemployment, Morial said, “We need more investment in job creation, more investment in job training and greater effort to provide capital to small businesses.”

Throughout the conference, political

candidates and others will be challenged to find solutions to these ongoing concerns.

For example, the conference will feature a “Hackathon,” a competition in which civic leaders, technology developers and other innovators will be invited to design original applications to alleviate the direst concerns facing communities of color and possibly win $2,500 in cash and $25,000 in prizes. The event is hosted by the National Urban League in partnership with Digital Grass, TechConnect and presented by Comcast NBCUniversal.

For the full schedule of the conference, visit: nul.iamempowered.com/ The AFRO will feature interviews with the five presidential candidates on their platforms for the Black community over the coming weeks.

Rep. Lee

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“I convened this briefing because I am filled with great sorrow and frustration at the cruel and brutal conditions that continue to consume the lives of our young people,” Lee said.

“In order to have meaningful criminal justice reform we must hear from all of those impacted by and within this system. We must confront difficult and painful truths of incarcerated youth and the desperate need for immediate and continued policy reform.”

Solitary confinement is loosely defined as the placement of an inmate in isolation as punishment for violating correctional institution rules and regulations. In the U.S., every state and the District of Columbia has some sort of solitary confinement for young people with adult charges.

Lee said she is authoring three bills to stop the practice throughout the country as well as other measures to improve the juvenile justice system. “Specifically, I intend to introduce a youth incarceration reform package that includes three bills,” she said.

The Reform Alternatives to Incarceration and Sentencing to Establish a Better Path for Youth Act addresses the situation of youth charged in the federal system. Issues covered in the legislation include enhanced judicial discretion at sentencing, increased home release, an end to mandatory life without parole

for young people, and housing and programs specific to the needs of incarcerated youth. The Fair Chance for Youth Act creates a mechanism to petition for sealing or expungement of certain youth criminal records and The Effective and Humane Treatment of Youth Actemphasizes and encourages humane improvement of the criminal justice system in reference to young people.

Lee said the plight of the late New York City resident Kalief Browder spurred her to action to sponsor her bills. Browder was arrested at the age of 16 in May 2010 and was charged with robbery.

Browder spent three years at the Riker’s Island jail complex in New York City without his case being tried.

Even though the case was dismissed in 2013, Browder said he was emotionally and physically abused while incarcerated. He also said he spent long stretches of time in solitary confinement. Browder – Yango Sawyers committed suicide last month. He was 22.

Lee said she wants to make sure that no other young person has to endure what Browder went through.

“Spending three years in jail for a crime that Kalief was never convicted of, while being subjected to horrific and shocking treatment in solitary confinement, is a travesty that no one can make right,” she said. “The pain and suffering he endured while detained and the emotional turmoil that plagued him for two years following his release, begs for reconsideration of how we are treating youth who experience traumatic and excessive conditions of confinement.”

A 2013 report from the Lowenstein Center for Public Interest, a law firm specializing in pro bono work, said locked isolation is forbidden in the District, but time-outs, in which the juvenile is separated from the rest of the inmate population, is allowed for a maximum of 60 minutes.

However, Yango Sawyer, a well-known activist who works with people recently released from prison in the District, disputes the survey’s assertion. “Instead of solitary confinement they call it ‘adjustment units’ at the D.C. jail,” Sawyer said.

“They generally put youth with adult charges in solitary confinement when they become unmanageable and continue to be a discipline problem. They also put young people who

“It is wrong to put a young person aged 15, 16 or 17 in a cell that is smaller than a bathroom in a house, for 23-24 hours.”

protest the conditions of the jail in solitary confinement.”

He said that youth offenders need help from corrections management not solitary confinement. “It is wrong to put a young person aged 15, 16 or 17 in a cell that is smaller than a bathroom in a house, for 23-24 hours,” Sawyer said. “Some of these young people have mental and emotional problems and the jail personnel need to help them through these situations.”

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August 1, 2015 - August 1, 2015, The Afro-American

Freddie Gray Continued from A1

van in which prosecutors said Gray sustained his fatal injury, received the toughest charges, including second-degree depraved-heart murder and manslaughter. Sgt. Alicia D. White, Lt. Brian W. Rice and Officer William G. Porter face manslaughter, second-degree assault, misconduct in office and reckless endangerment charges. And the officers who arrested Gray, Edward M. Nero and Garrett E. Miller, face the least serious charges, including second-degree assault, misconduct in office and reckless endangerment.

At this stage, defense attorneys are still reviewing the files and other artifacts proffered in discovery June 26th, that is, they are going over depositions, scientific analyses and all the other evidence gathered by the prosecution in making its case.

And, as a result of that ongoing review, several motions will be filed by both sides—a process that has already begun. Defense attorneys mirrored the state’s attorney’s office in declining to comment on the case. However, court documents show that in the lead-up to the October trial, both sides continue to fire legal volleys in an increasingly volatile exchange.

“It’s going to get more intense,” Anderson

the State’s Attorney’s Office failed to disclose all of the materials obtained during its ‘comprehensive, thorough and independent’ investigation,” the motion read. “Either the state is withholding the information from its investigation, or there was no investigation.”

Prosecutors in turn sought a protective order prohibiting the opposition from leaking evidence to the public. But Judge Barry Williams on July 20th denied that request, saying, “There simply is no basis in the assertions presented to the court for the broad and extraordinary relief sought in the motion.”

In the latest, most vicious exchange of blows, the defense filed motions to throw out the officers statements, claiming they were given under duress and without the officers being advised of their rights; and another to suppress the search and seizure of officers’ departmental cell phones, accusing prosecutors of going “judge shopping” to obtain the warrant.

In response, prosecutors not only denied any legal basis for the defense’s motions, but announced they would be seeking sanctions against the criminal attorneys for their alleged “factual mendacity and legal malarkey.”

The defense went too far, Chief Deputy State’s Attorney Michael Schatzow wrote in his motion: First, in claiming the Circuit Court judge who signed a search warrant was unaware – A. Dwight Pettit another judge previously refused to sign it, when predicted. “We’re within a few weeks of trial, evidence showed otherwise. Second, in abusing the which means lawyers on both sides are refining subpoena process to obtain the personal cell phone their strategies and trying to prepare themselves to records of an assistant prosecutor in attempt to anticipate each other’s moves.” bolster their claims.

Defense attorneys fired the first shot in May, “The Defendants continue to mock the integrity filing a motion to have State’s Attorney Marilyn of these proceedings, now to the point of brazenly Mosby removed from the case, citing conflicts of making up false ‘facts,’ baselessly attacking a interest. respected Circuit Court Judge and Assistant State’s In its response, the State’s Attorney’s Office Attorney, and shamefully using pleadings devoid called the motion a baseless one that “bounces of any conceivable merit or basis filed for the from one ridiculous allegation to another, like a sole purpose of generating favorable headlines,” pinball on a machine far past ‘TILT.’” Schatzow wrote.

The defense has also requested a change of While the joint cases are set to go to trial venue, citing officials’ promises to seek justice as beginning in October, both Pettit and Anderson say being prejudicial and intense media coverage as a the defense’s motion for severance—to try each barrier to finding impartial jurors in the city. officer individually—could be the game-changer.

Pettit says that argument is unlikely to work “[The standards for] severing the cases is a little because “the whole world” has seen and read about more difficult to predict or apply,” Anderson said. the case, not just Baltimore residents. And, while “We don’t know if any of the officers will take the some residents may identify with Gray, there are stand or if any of the officers’ statements conflicts others who may be just as supportive of police. [with] the others.”

“I can’t see why you can’t find 12 to 20 persons Added Pettit, “If there are separate trials, it in Baltimore to say they can reach an impartial could complicate things and we don’t know what decision otherwise, you insult the intelligence of kind of timeline we’d be talking about.” the Baltimore City citizenry,” he said.

Either way, Pettit added, this is going to be a Defense attorneys have also accused the “fascinating case to watch.“We’re going to see a prosecution of withholding evidence during lot of turns and twists and nothing in the realm of discovery. normalcy.”

“After an exhaustive review of the thousands of James Bentley contributed to the reporting for items contained within this discovery, it is clear that this story.

“This is going to be a “fascinating case to watch.“ We’re going to see a lot of turns and twists and nothing in the realm of normalcy.”

Lost Hands Continued from A1

hands as “weird at first, but then good.”

The boy, from the Baltimore suburb of Owings Mills, Maryland, received the transplant earlier this month at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, though doctors did not publicly disclose the nearly 11-hour operation until this week.

A 40-person medical team used steel plates and screws to attach the old and new bones.

Surgeons then painstakingly reconnected Zion’s arteries, veins, muscles, tendons and nerves.

“He woke up smiling,” said Dr. L. Scott Levin, who heads the hand transplant program. “There hasn’t been one whimper, one tear, one

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Freddy Gray: A Timeline of Events

By Jannah Johnson Special to The AFRO 4-12-15 Freddie Carlos Gray Jr. is arrested by Baltimore P.D for possessing an “allegedly” illegal switchblade. Lieutenant pursues Gray after making eye contact with him. Police request van to transport Gray and he repeatedly requests and inhaler while being transported in a police van. At some point, Gray sustained spinal cord injuries. Bystander video recording shows Gray being manhandled by the officers.

Multiple eyewitnesses say they saw Gray being beaten.

4-13-15 Police hold news briefing on incident.

4-14-15 Gray undergoes spinal surgery.

4-15-15 Gray remains in a coma until the 18th of April.

4-18-15 Protests begin in front of the Western District Police station.

4-19-15 Around 9:00 a.m. Gray dies from injuries sustained while in police custody. Gray’s family releases report saying the victim’s spine was 80% severed.

4-20-15 Protests begin at City Hall and Police Headquarters. At a news conference it is revealed that Gray requested medical care repeatedly but didn’t receive it during his arrest.

4-21-15 Six Baltimore police officers are suspended without pay pending investigation concerning Freddie Gray’s death. The United States Department of Justice announces a formal civil and criminal rights investigation into Freddie Gray’s death.

4-22-15 Baltimore Police Union President holds a press conference in which he compares Freddie Gray protests to a “lynch mob” sparking anger throughout the community.

4-23-15 Then Police Commissioner Anthony Batts meets with protesters and Gray’s family.

4-25-15 Baltimore protests turn violent with 34 arrests and 15 wounded officers.

Governor Larry Hogan sends Maryland State Troopers into Baltimore. Key witness Kevin Moore, who filmed the arrest of Gray, is arrested at gunpoint.

4-26-15 Freddie Gray’s wake takes place at the Vaughn Greene Funeral Home.

Talk of a “purge” (consisting of looting and unrest) circulate on social media sites such as Twitter and Instagram. School officials are contacting by concerned parents and alumni. Nothing comes of the talk.

4-27-15 Gray’s funeral takes place. Students from schools in the area participate in a walk out while Mondawmin Mall Transportation is shut down by police leaving students stranded. Shortly afterward riots, looting, and civil unrest take place in Northwest Baltimore, a State of Emergency is declared, and the National Guard is deployed. At a news conference, Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake calls the rioters “thugs.”

4-28-15 Obama speaks at a scheduled news conference describing rioters as “thugs” and saying they drew attention from more peaceful protests in the area.

Protesters in West Baltimore contest the citywide curfew.

4-29-15 Students stage a peaceful walkout.

4-30-15 President Obama calls for justice and the truth when speaking on the Freddie Gray case.

5-1-15 Maryland State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby announces that the medical examiners report deemed Freddie Gray’s death a homicide and filed charges against the six officers involved.

5-3-15 National Guard withdraws from Baltimore as the curfew is lifted.

5-21-15 Grand Jury indicts officers on charges of manslaughter, second-degree murder, depraved heart murder, gross negligence, criminal negligence, misconduct in office, and reckless endangerment charges.

7-8-15 Police Commissioner Anthony Batts is fired and later claims in an interview with The Afro that he faced pushback from his department over proposed reforms.

7-17-15 Three of the six Baltimore police officers charged in the death of Freddie Gray argue in court filing that they provided statements under duress. The officers claim they were speaking as witnesses, not suspects, and one officer says she provided a statement without being read her Miranda rights.

7-28-15 7,000 internal government emails are released due to a Maryland Public Information Act request. Lawyers for Freddie Gray’s family say Commissioner Batts never met with relatives of Gray.

Aging Minorities complaint.”

Zion, a bright and precocious child Levin described as having “a maturity that is way beyond his 8 years,” contracted sepsis as a toddler. The resulting multiple organ failure forced the amputation of his hands and feet; by age 4, he needed a kidney transplant, receiving the organ from his mother.

Leg prosthetics have allowed Zion to be very active, including walking, running and jumping. He learned to use his forearms to write, eat and play video games and has been attending school. Physicians hope he’ll now be able to achieve more milestones, including his goals of throwing a football and

playing on the monkey bars.

“It was no more of a risk than a kidney transplant,” his mother, Pattie Ray, said.

“So I felt like I was willing to take that risk for him, if he wanted it — to be able to play monkey bars and football.”

Several adults in the U.S. have received double-hand or double-arm transplants in the past few years. Hospital officials in Philadelphia believe Zion is the youngest person to have the surgery, which requires a lifetime of immune-suppressing drugs to ensure the body doesn’t reject the new hands.

Zion already had been taking anti-rejection drugs because of his donated kidney, which made him a good candidate for the hand transplant, doctors said.

Doctors say Zion will spend several weeks in physical rehab at the hospital before returning home. Two rows of relatives attended the news conference, and they stood to be recognized at Zion’s request.

“I want to say to you guys, thank you for helping me through this bumpy road,” he said.

The donor’s family chose to remain anonymous.

Children’s Hospital said it would not hold Zion’s family liable for any costs beyond that which may be covered by medical insurance.

Continued from A1

and with limited material resources.

The Social Security Act of 1935, designed to secure respectable, livable incomes for the nation’s seniors, excluded two groups from elder security – agricultural and domestic workers, a vast majority of whom were Black – because of prevailing racial biases during that period. As increased numbers of Blacks grow older, their health and overall quality of life – whether living independently or with the aid of care workers, requires overhauling a system initially designed to exclude them.

“When Social Security was signed into law, far too many seniors were living in poverty. When Medicare was created only a little more than half of all seniors had some form of insurance. Before Medicaid came along, families often had no help paying for nursing home costs,” President Barack Obama said at a news conference on July 13th. “Today, the number of seniors in poverty has fallen dramatically. Together we declared that every citizen of this country deserves a basic measure of security and dignity.”

Obama said that as more Americans live to reach retirement and then live longer as seniors, reassessing how the nation responds to the increased need will ultimately work to protect the solvency of elder care.

Ben de Guzman, national managing coordinator for the Diverse Elders Coalition, addressed several key concerns related to the aging of the American population and the increased number of non-white seniors among them. “Despite advances that our communities have achieved on the road to equality, there remain considerable barriers to their full participation in every facet of public life. It is often difficult enough to move through the world as a person of color, or an LGBT person; the additional barriers that age places on

the individual complicates the picture even further,” Guzman said. “Communities of color continue to experience de facto, if not de jure, discrimination and have unequal outcomes as a result.”

One key component of providing quality, non-discriminatory treatment to Black elders is ensuring they receive proper care from health and home care professionals. According to Molita Cunningham, a home care worker with more than 30 years of experience, home care jobs are the fastest growing occupation in the country, but tend to pay poverty wages.

She said she works upwards of 100 hours a week, at a pay rate of just $10 an hour, to support her three children. “I love my job, but I can’t afford to do simple things like put gas in the car, take sick leave or time off to see my son’s track meets,” Cunningham said. “To meet the growing demand of seniors who need care, we need to make home care jobs more sustainable and that starts with giving us $15 and a union.”

August 1, 2015 - August 7, 2015, The Afro-American

AFRO Editorial

EDITORIAL

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The Iran Deal

After more than two years of negotiations the Obama administration is on the cusp of finalizing a deal that limits Iran’s ability to produce nuclear weapons.

Should the deal pass muster with Congress— which is currently reviewing it—it will be a landmark accord for President Barack Obama. That Republicans, and Israel, are uniformly opposed to the deal is a given. Israel, and the Republicans, made clear their opposition when the Republicans invited Benjamin Netanyahu, prime minister of Israel, to address Congress over the objections of the Obama administration.

The accord would limit Iran’s ability to build nuclear weapons, lift billions of dollars of sanctions on the country and give U.N. inspectors access to the country’s nuclear facilities, among other things.

The Middle East is currently in the throes of revolution and oppression and Iran is a major factor in much of it. This deal could, if the parties stick to what they are supposed to do, lessen some of the conflict the region is known for.

Unstable nations such as Pakistan and North Korea already have nuclear weapons. This deal will delay Iran joining that club for at least 10 years.

COMMENTARY

Now Is The Time For Bipartisan Criminal Justice Reform

Opportunities for progress can arise even during times of social conflict and political acrimony — an insight illustrated by the current bipartisan congressional interest in criminal justice reform.

In the wake of the recent social upheaval, we are working on a bipartisan basis in the House of Representatives to advance proposed legislation that would provide body-worn cameras to law enforcement, better train officers with respect to the impact of bias, increase our information about policeinvolved deaths, and support more effective interventions for both at-risk youth and former offenders who are reentering society.

One of the most important bipartisan reform measures currently under consideration is the Safe, Accountable, Fair, and Effective Justice Act, or the SAFE Justice Act [H.R. 2944], that was introduced in the House on June 26th by Representatives Jim Sensenbrenner (R-WI) and Bobby Scott Elijah Cummings (D-VA) together with 20 bipartisan cosponsors.

“Our criminal justice system is long overdue for reform,” Rep. Scott has declared. “The SAFE Justice Act … utilizes an evidence-based approach to reduce over-criminalization and over-incarceration and reinvests the savings into community based prevention and early-intervention programs to improve public safety.”

Informed by my years of criminal justice experience on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, I welcomed this opportunity to be an original cosponsor of these potential reforms.

As Rep. Sensenbrenner has correctly observed, with just 5 percent of the world’s population, the United States accounts for 25 percent of the world’s prison population.

Through reform, the states are reducing their levels of incarceration while also sustaining reductions in crime. Yet, imprisonment in federal prisons has been increasing dramatically.

From 1980 to 2013, the number of incarcerated offenders in federal prisons skyrocketed from 24,000 to more than 215,000. However, despite these extraordinary increases in incarceration, recidivism rates have remained high with more than 40 percent of released federal offenders returning to prison within three years.

The proposed SAFE Justice Act is the result of years of efforts to identify, compile, and bring to the national level the best, evidence-based practices in criminal justice reform.

These more effective practices include (1) reducing over-criminalization by changing sentencing policies and enhancing the use of sentencing alternatives; (2) focusing federal prison resources on the most violent, career criminals; (3) reducing recidivism through efforts like expanding earned time; (4) increasing government accountability and transparency; and (5)

reinvesting the bill’s savings into resources that law enforcement officers need to do their jobs.

Currently, the federal prison system consumes more than 25 percent of the entire Department of Justice budget, limiting the funds available for other public safety priorities. Through targeted reform, we are convinced that we can reinvest the savings that this legislation would achieve into efforts that strengthen public safety.

To better understand why advocates for reform have reached these conclusions, consider some of the judicial conclusions about mandatory minimum penalties offered by Chief Judge Patti B. Saris for the Federal District of Massachusetts, Chair of the United States Sentencing Commission, during her congressional testimony last year.

• Drug offenders make up about a third of the defendants who are convicted and sentenced federally every year — and a majority of the prisoners serving in Federal Bureau of Prisons facilities.

• Mandatory minimum penalties for these offenses have contributed significantly to the staggering growth in the federal prison population.

• Existing mandatory minimum penalties, moreover, are being unevenly applied, leading to consequences far different from those that Congress intended. For example, in the drug crime context, statutory mandatory minimum penalties are often applied to lower-level offenders rather than being limited to the major drug traffickers whom the Congress intended to target.

• Mandatory minimum penalties also impact demographic groups differently, with Black and Hispanic offenders constituting the large majority of offenders subject to mandatory minimum penalties and Black offenders being eligible for relief from those penalties far less often than are other groups.

These facts are why the bipartisan federal Sentencing Commission has unanimously recommended statutory changes to reduce and more effectively target mandatory minimum penalties for drug trafficking, concluding that we should allow sentences below mandatory minimum penalties for non-violent, low-level drug offenders.

Furthermore, the Commission has recommended that federal law should permit retroactive applications by prisoners in the federal system to reduce the sentencing disparity in the treatment of crack and powder cocaine convictions. Its analysis of recidivism data following the early release of offenders convicted of crack cocaine offenses has shown that reducing these drug sentences would not lead to any increased propensity to reoffend.

At the federal level, I remain committed to addressing the plague of illicit drugs in our society with policies that are firm, humane and cost-effective. Yet, neither the public’s safety nor the federal budget is well-served by consigning more than 215,000 Americans to decades behind bars.

Congressman Elijah Cummings represents Maryland’s 7th Congressional District in the United States House of Representatives.

Pepco/Exelon Merger Has More Cons than Pros

The massive, hotlydebated $6.8 billion Pepco/ Exelon merger is now in the hands of the D.C. Public Service Commission, (PSC) with exclusive power to approve or reject the merger in July.

Supporters and opponents of the merger, among them Pepco customers, consumer advocates, environmentalists and District elected officials have weighed-in about the impact of the merger--all hoping their opinions will influence the PSC’s decision.

This elevated conversation is good. And, in my role as the voice of District utility consumers, I urge D.C. residents to recognize what’s really at stake here, and consider the pros and the cons of the merger for themselves. In my view, at this point, there are more cons than pros.

The core issue is the District’s public interest standard. In lay terms, District of Columbia citizens and consumers must not only be unharmed by a merger, they must be better off following the merger than they would be without a merger. In addition, the merger must produce tangible financial benefits for consumers.

Upon review of Exelon’s offer, OPC quickly recognized that

Sandra Mattavous Frye

Pepco’s promises that the merger would lead to more reliable service and energy efficiency; affordable and stable rates; and jobs for D.C. residents were at best vague and inconclusive.

This proposed acquisition is occurring as renewable, potentially more affordable and environmentally safe energy options are reaching the marketplace. The District of Columbia has made significant advances in opening its energy market to new energy sources, especially in under-served communities.

However, this is a key area where the Exelon proposal is deficient.

Pepco’s two million customers in the District, Maryland, New Jersey and Delaware could also have the role of their local distribution companies vastly diminished, should PHI be consumed by the much larger Exelon. Exelon is primarily focused on selling the energy generated at its own plants.

Nonetheless, as the merger application has proceeded through the litigation process in all four affected jurisdictions, I am encouraged to see that the concepts and conditions OPC identified nearly a year ago remain the litmus test for calculating whether consumers can benefit. OPC strenuously litigated the case before the DC PSC and discussed settlement options with Exelon and Pepco and although the recent Maryland PSC approval is now under appeal, many of the

benefits OPC fought for in the District are mirrored in the Maryland settlement. That settlement includes 46 conditions OPC views as positive, including higher reliability standards, a $100 residential consumer rate credit and $43.2 million for energy efficiency programs. These conditions must be the starting point of any decision by the District of Columbia Public Service Commission as it reviews the record before it.

I submit that the conditions OPC has advocated and advanced throughout this case—improved reliability, a threeyear moratorium on rate increases, increased low-income energy assistance, commitments to deploying renewable energy options and creating good, green jobs for District residents--are the basis for a solid decision in the public interest.

This case represents a sea change. It is the most significant utility matter in at least a generation; the stakes are even higher than the announced sale price--and regardless of the outcome-it will reframe the landscape for utility consumers for years to come.

The bottom line and overarching premise in the debate should be that the merger must move us forward and not backwards.

Sandra Mattavous-Frye is the People’s Counsel for the District of Columbia

A6

The Afro-American, August 1, 2015 - August 7, 2015

Francis Guess, Civil Rights Advocate and Businessman Dead at 69

Francis Guess

By The Associated Press Nashville civil rights advocate, businessman and state commissioner Francis Guess has died. He was 69.

Family friend Vincent Williams said Guess died at his home July 23rd. The cause of death was not yet known.

Guess was appointed by President Ronald Reagan to the Commission on Civil Rights in 1983. He previously served as Tennessee’s labor commissioner under then-Gov. Lamar

Alexander.

Guess was an executive for Danner Co., which operated the Shoney’s chain of restaurants. He also owned and operated the Helicopter Corporation of America.

Guess was first appointed to the Tennessee Human Rights Commission in 1973. He also served as Tennessee commissioner of general services and as assistant commissioner in the Department of Personnel.

Send your news tips to tips@afro.com.

August 1, 2015 - August 7, 2015, The Afro-American

BALTIMORE

B1

The Sick & Tired Rally in Annapolis over Law Enforcement Reform

By Roberto Alejandro Special to the AFRO ralejandro@afro.com

“I have to be honest and say I’m not pleased to be here. I’m tired of being here. I’m tired of coming down here,” said Rev. Dr. Heber Brown at a recent law enforcement reform rally in Annapolis.

Advocates and residents had gathered at the Thurgood Marshall memorial in the state’s capital once again to demand that lawmakers in Annapolis pass meaningful reforms that would ensure police accountability to communities around the state, and especially to communities of color. Speaking at a rally before a town hall hearing on law enforcement issues scheduled by the Maryland General Assembly Public Safety and Policing Workgroup—which is reviewing the state’s law enforcement policies in the aftermath of Baltimore’s unrest over the death of Freddie Gray—on July 23rd, Brown expressed the sentiment many were feeling that day who had repeated this exercise so many times during the previous

“…we’re stuck with this hurt and pain, and all we’re asking for is accountability and transparency, and holding these people accountable to the fullest extent of the law.”

– Tawanda Jones

Photo by Roberto Alejandro

A vacant unit that sits next to an occupied one has no working locks, allowing access to whoever wants to use it and causing anxiety for residents living next door. legislative session.

“Fannie Lou Hamer said years ago, ‘I’m sick and tired of being sick and tired,’ and I have to confess today that I am where Fannie Lou Hamer was. I am tired of coming down to Annapolis, trying to convince lawmakers to do what is right by the citizens of the state of Maryland,” added Brown later.

The phrase ‘dog and pony show’ was among the most common ways advocates and residents present for the town hall described the day’s events. And while Del. Curt Anderson (D-Baltimore City), one of the co-chairs of the workgroup, assured those assembled at the start of the meeting that “we understand that a problem exists,” some who testified before the workgroup wondered why such a town hall was necessary if that was truly the case.

“I’m glad for the opportunity to be able to have this Continued on B2

Baltimore’s Gilmor Homes Residents Claim Long Delays for Basic Fixes Allegations of demands for sexual favors in exchange for repairs

By Roberto Alejandro Special to the AFRO ralejandro@afro.com Residents of the Gilmor Homes housing project face long waits for maintenance

repairs to serious issues from heaters malfunctioning during winter, to holes in ceilings caused by water damage from leaking pipes, to what appears to be visible mold growth inside units—not to

mention the pest and rodent problems residents often have to address on their own as best they can.

Residents report waiting months or years for repairs, and a number of women

residents say they have been subjected to unwanted sexual advances and even groping when trying to make maintenance requests, fueling a perception that the only way Continued on B2

Controversial Documents Related to Unrest after Gray Death Released

By The Associated Press Baltimore officials have released thousands of pages of documents related to unrest following Freddie Gray’s death.

Officials released the material Monday to The Associated Press and other outlets in response to public information requests. The documents include emails among officials, as well as statements and news releases.

The documents from behind the scenes include complaints and questions from the public and business groups about a curfew Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake imposed. Letters from Police Commissioner Anthony Batts, who later was fired, commend his staff, but the documents also indicate a lack of police protective gear.

Transportation Director William Johnson complains in one email, as rioting broke out on the day of Gray’s funeral, that there is “unacceptable” confusion among people looking to the Rawlings-Blake administration for guidance.

B2

The Afro-American, August 1, 2015 - August 7, 2015

Rally

Continued from B1 conversation,” said Rev. S. Todd Yeary, political action co-chair for the MD NAACP, “though I must say up front that the state conference is a bit concerned that we’re having to have this conversation at all.

There’s been a significant deterioration in the confidence of the citizens in the ability of law enforcement to not only protect property and life, but to protect their constitutional rights.”

Tawanda Jones, the sister of Tyrone West, the Baltimore man who was killed by police while being taken into custody in July 2013, addressed the need to once again tell the story of her brother’s death at an Annapolis hearing.

“This is the foolishness and the heartbreak that our families go through at the end of the day, when the timer goes off, and y’all go back to be with your families, we’re stuck with this hurt and pain, and all we’re asking for is accountability and transparency, and holding

Photo by Roberto Alejandro

A demonstrator holds up a sign during a rally at the Thurgood Marshall memorial in Annapolis on July 23. Advocates and residents had come to Annapolis that day to press for law enforcement reforms in Maryland. these people accountable to the fullest extent of the law,” added Jones later.

Marion Gray-Hopkins, who lost her son to police violence in1999, and who led

the rally before the start of the town hall, also spoke of the pain suffered by families of

police brutality victims.

“I wouldn’t want anyone to have to go through what I’m going through and the pain that I feel every morning that I wake up, so I fight for change and will do so until change comes,” said GrayHopkins.

But whether change will come is exactly the question animating the frustration of many advocates of law enforcement reform, and both Brown and Jones attacked the make-up of the workgroup for failing to include Del. Jill Carter (D-Baltimore City), viewed by many as the premiere champion of law enforcement reform issues in the state, and certainly in Baltimore. Brown also highlighted the fact that a number of workgroup members were often hostile to the idea of reform during the last legislative session.

While he did not name any legislators specifically, the workgroup includes lawmakers like Sen. Bobby Zirkin (D-Baltimore County), Sen. Wayne Norman

(R-Harford and Cecil Counties) and Del. William Folden (R-Frederick County), all of whom expressed resistance to various law enforcement reform measures over the course of the previous legislative session, which ended April 13th, the day after Freddie Gray sustained the injuries at the hands of police that resulted in his death on April 19th.

This resistance has also informed the exasperation of many who have fought for change where police reform is concerned, a sentiment Brown spoke to at the rally when he said, “Listen, they better get it right this time. You better get it right this time. . . . [Gov. Larry] Hogan, [Senate President Mike] Miller, and [House Speaker Michael] Busch, these three white men should not be setting the timetable as to when Black and brown people will get justice. They should not be in the position to set the timetable as to when we will get justice.

We’re here today to say listen, time is real short.”

Gilmor Homes Continued from B1

to receive timely repairs is in exchange for sexual favors.

One resident, who gave the name Crystal, says she moved into the West Baltimore housing complex this past January, only to find that her living room heater leaked water into the room and could not be kept on. Her bedroom heater did not work at all. Making matters worse, her living room windows did not seal properly, allowing cold air to seep into the unit during what was a particularly cold February in Baltimore.

“It got really really bad,” said Crystal of her stay in Gilmor this past winter. “It was really cold to the point where . . . my friend actually bought me a heater so I could stay warm but I was still cold because it’s a little space heater.”

According to Crystal, only her windows have been fixed since she moved in a little over six months ago.

“It’s been a long time with nothing done,” said Crystal of maintenance’s response to her various issues at the complex.

“Here it is July and I still haven’t had any [work] done.”

But Crystal is relatively lucky, having only had to wait six months so far, even if only because that has been the length of her entire stay in Gilmor. Residents who have lived there for more time report experiencing even longer wait times for service requests.

“The first couple of years [I lived in Gilmor], they came

out, they were fixing things,” said Juselle Short, who has lived in Gilmor for almost six years, of maintenance responses.

“But I’d say within the last two years, nothing is getting done.

Nothing. You put in maintenance order, maintenance order, maintenance order, they don’t come out and fix anything.”

In an interview with the AFRO conducted last October, Baltimore City Housing Commissioner Paul Graziano

“… I’d say within the last two years, nothing is getting done.

Nothing.”

– Juselle Short explained that decades of underfunding federal housing authorities by Congress has left Baltimore’s public housing stock with over $800 million worth of capital improvement needs (repairs to the physical structures), while receiving something in the area of $4 million annually with which to address it. Those numbers hardly add up, and it has left Housing with resources unequal to the task while buildings continue to fall into further disrepair.

“What we end up doing is a lot of patchwork repairs, just to hold things together,” said Graziano during that interview.

But ‘hold things together’ is almost generous in light of the conditions in Gilmor Homes. Take, for example, Victoria Smith, who described her experience of last winter in a unit whose rear door, located in the main bedroom, does not seal properly.

“It was real bad because cold air was coming in, and you

could hear the rats cutting [across] from the outside. And the mold [growing on the bottom of the door] got bad because [maintenance] painted over it, and once the paint got over it, you could see the mold [again]. When you try to open the door you have to go on the outside of the door and push it in, and the middle of my wall, it just comes out [when you open the door].

You have to push the wall back in,” said Smith, who also says the unit had issues with mice and bed bugs which she had to address herself.

To Short, the conditions in Gilmor Homes send a message that nobody cares about the plight of those in her position.

Another resident, Karen (a pseudonym granted so she would speak freely about the sexual harassment she’s received from maintenance workers at the complex) expressed a similar sentiment.

Karen said she stopped making maintenance requests about five years ago, having lived in Gilmor for about seven. Not only do requests for service go unfulfilled, but she has faced sexual harassment when approaching maintenance workers about repairs.

“I would ask if [maintenance] could fix my ceiling or things like that, and he’d be like, ‘Turn around. Your butt [is] looking fat, you’re getting thick,’ or something like that. ‘You’re looking good’—alright compliments are cool but you take things too far. I’m asking you about my ceiling and you’re worrying about my butt. That doesn’t mix,” said Karen.

Another resident, Rachel (also a pseudonym granted for the same reason) says she had a similar experience.

“The first time I had maintenance come to my house, one of the maintenance men, when he was leaving my house, he asked could he come back after he got off work in an hour to have a date with me. And I didn’t understand what he said and he kept pressing up against my breast, and he kept pressing me that he wanted to date me. And when I called to [complain] all they said was, ‘when you call to put a work order in, request that he doesn’t come to your house,’” said Rachel, who lives with her two children in a one bedroom unit with water damage to the walls, what appears to be mold growing behind the plastic baseboard as a result of the damage, broken heaters in the living room and bathroom, windows that do not lock and have caused her home to be broken into twice, as well as cockroaches and other pests.

Rachel says other residents have told her that this sort of harassment has been going on for years. The poor conditions inside the units, combined with the inability of maintenance to keep up with the repairs (or conduct any at all), has left women vulnerable to this sort of sexual aggression.

Felicia (pseudonym again) says a maintenance worker once rubbed himself against her backside when she went to place a work order, and that she no longer goes down to the maintenance office to do so.

“I didn’t like that, but, you know, what can I do?” said Felicia, who says she has heard that residents willing to trade sexual favors are more likely to receive timely service for their maintenance issues. It is a perception that others living in Gilmor, and who spoke to the AFRO, share.

Felicia’s rhetorical question of ‘what can I do?’ speaks to a basic problem, articulated by Perry Hopkins, an organizer who has been working in Gilmor for almost two months to mobilize residents to fight for better living conditions—and who alerted the AFRO to the problems in the units.

“Most of the residents in Gilmor Homes right now are living in sub-standard, sub-healthy conditions, because they have to, not because they want to,” said Hopkins.

The AFRO reached out to both Baltimore Housing (via email), and the maintenance office at Gilmor Homes (in person, twice), for comment, but neither replied or commented prior to publication. Maintenance head Joshua Johnson declined to address the timeliness of repairs, or the allegations of sexual harassment when asked.

August 1, 2015 - August 7, 2015, The Afro-American

By Valerie Fraling “I wish you bluebirds in the spring to give your heart a song to sing and then a kiss but more than this I wish you love. And in July a lemonade to cool you in some leafy glade I wish you health and more than wealth I wish you love.” -Gloria Lynne “Somerset is known as being one of the wealthiest and best-educated municipalities in Maryland; I want us to also be known as a town that gives back.” -Mayor Jeffrey Slavin Jeffrey Slavin, a friend to everyone, held his 60th birthday at the Washington Hebrew Center and it was the hottest event of the summer season. From the moment, you entered the disco themed party with the sound of Frankie Beverly filling the room you knew this was the place to be on a warm sultry summer night. More than 400 guests mingled and danced under the disco lights while sipping champagne, wine and beer from the bar stations situated throughout the room. Food stations, each with a different menu, were strategically placed throughout the large ballroom with silver chafing dishes of lamb, chicken and beef sliders or Moroccan chicken with spicy noodles, spinach and assorted cheese, breads and candies. The ice cream sundae bar was loaded with goodies to decorate your ice cream served in those scrumptious waffle cups.

What makes Jeffrey special is his ability to connect people who normally would have missed the opportunity to know each other except for the connecting link of the guy with the big heart. The question that everyone asks when he or she meet for the first time is “where do you know Jeffrey from” and there is always a connection socially, philanthropically or politically “Everyone Knows Jeffrey” the man who makes it happen.

“You are my friend; I never knew it ‘til then my friend, my friend.” -Patti LaBelle Among the friends enjoying the night was Lucinda Ware, The Honorable Valerie Ervin, Yvette Lewis, Dick Gregory, Dr. Frieda Lacey, Nichelle Schultz, Mollie Byron, Bob Fienty, Congresswoman Donna Edwards, Skip Kelly, Karen Brice, Rick Edison, Keith Green, Virginia State Senator Adam Ebbin, Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh, Maryland State Senators Susan Lee, Rich Madaleno, Jamie Raskin and Cheryl Kagan, State Delegate Marc Korman, D.C. Councilmember Mary Cheh, former D.C. Councilmember Carol Schwartz , Roscoe Dellums, Congresswomen Gwen Moore and Donna Edwards, Kathleen Matthews , Rockville Councilmember Virginia Onley, former Montgomery County Democratic Party Chair Karen Britto Montgomery County NAACP President Anita Powell, Odessa Shannon, former head of the D.C. Office on Aging, E. Veronica Pace, the honorable Bruce Adams, Montgomery County Councilmember Roger Berliner, Laytonville Mayor Dan Prats and Channel 4 political reporter Tom Sherwood.

“Round midnight” as the deejay played the Wobble guests danced out the door hugging and kissing their gracious host goodnight.

“You’re the Poetry Man. You make things all rhyme.” -Phoebe Snow Loring Cornish was commissioned to create a permanent exhibit at the corner of Charles and Lanvale Streets as a part of the Station North Koban

B3

Project. Called “Change for the Better,” the stained glass and mirrors police kiosk was the highlight at Thursday night’s grand opening including “dancing in the street” at Artscape 2015.

“It’s so good lovin’ somebody and somebody loves you back. To be loved and be loved in return. It’s the only thing that my heart desires. Just appreciate the little things I do. Oh, you’re the one who’s got me inspired keep on liftin’, liftin’ me higher.” -Teddy Pendergrass Wedding bells rang for Mellonie Boyd, formerly of Baltimore, and Damion Lowery at City Temple; the Lowey’s will reside in Houston Texas.

I do love you, yes I do now I do love you, yes I do now, I do love you, yes I do now. OH, I love a you so a right now now a my, my, baby yeah, yeah,yeah.

Little darlin’ I said I love a you so a right now. Never, never gonna let, gonna let, gonna let you go, no, no, no.” -Billy Stewart Happy anniversary to Carroll and Sheila Burnett, Eugene and Sara Smalley and my daughter and son-in-law Lisa and Gregory Packer as they celebrate their 23rd wedding anniversary.

It’s your birthday Vernon Ross, Betty Hines, Judson Wood, Shirley Clinton, Tracee Strum-Gilliam Wesley Wood, Dawn Rini, Deleanor Boone, Richard Tabuteau, Joslyn Alexander, Anderson Ward, Richard ‘McClearn, Leah Jones, Sharon Pinder, Delores Harvey -Branch, Joy Owens and Sharon Price-Walker, Congratulations Daryl Wade on being the 27th head coach at Baltimore City College; and to Tobi Atkinson- Pulley on being elected international National President of J.U.G.S Inc. “Come on in the room, come on in the room; Jesus is my doctor and He writes out all of my prescriptions, He gives me all of my medicine in my room.” -Georgia Mass Choir Get well wishes to Governor Larry Hogan, Eleanor Janey, Shirley Richmond, Ora Washington, and Gwen Trader. Thinking of you Mrs. Beatrice Payne. At 106 years-old you are a source of inspiration.

“I am the same person I used to be just with some cool new hands” -Zion Harvey Out of the mouth of 8-year--old Zion on receiving the first hand transplant in the world. Praising God for this awesome kid and the Doctors at Children’s Hospital. Zion you are my hero.

“Cause your love is my love and my love is your love it would take an eternity to break us.” -Whitney Houston Rest in paradise Bobbi Kristina. “Gone too soon.” -Michael Jackson Condolences to Alice Greene on the death of her daughter Robin Greene and to Stephanie Covington and family on the death of their father Morris Lee Covington.

“I’ll be seeing you.” -Valerie and The Friday Night Bunch

BALTIMORE AREA

COMMUNITY CONNECTION Back 2 School Drive

Rising Over Standards and Excelling with Diamonds on the Rise are having their 2nd annual back to school drive on August 21 from noon to 4 p.m. at 2520 Francis Street, Baltimore. Please join us for a carnival style day filled with fun, free food and supply giveaways. Donations and Vendors are welcomed. Contact 443-379-9396 or email baltimorerose@gmail.com.

Does Your Business

Unify Baltimore Back to School Rally

The Educate One Foundation presents the 1st Annual Unify Baltimore Back to School Rally at Mondawmin Mall on August 22nd from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Radio One 92Q will be on hand to broadcast while WBAL-TV 11 News reporter Karen Campbell will host the event.

Approximately 2,500 backpacks and school supplies will be donated and distributed to Baltimore city school students and their parents

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attending the event. The Educate One Foundation, MSU School of Community Health & Policy and State Farm volunteers will be on-hand to distribute school supply items, health information and free health screenings.

For more information on how you can get involved please contact Kevin Shird, co-founder of the Educate One Foundation, at Kevin.Shird@ icloud.com

- Over 600 vacation homes in all price ranges!

- Kitty Hawk, Kill Devil Hills, Nags Head, and Southern Shores to Corolla - July and August weeks still available!

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For these pictures and more go to afro.com/slideshows.

The Afro-American, August 1, 2015 - August 7, 2015

Valerie Fraling and Cheryl Solomon Bailey

Willie L. Foreman and Elizabeth Johnson

Robert Blount, Monica Blount-Hart and Tobi Pulley

Photos and text by Dr. A. Lois De Laine

Under bright sunshine the Baltimore Rowing Club was the scene of the first-time May-Fabulous event sponsored by the Baltimore Chapter of the Drifters, International.

For 27 years the Baltimore Drifters have been involved in providing service and resources to the Baltimore community. Profits from this event will go toward providing scholarships and services.

The Drifters

Dianne Hardison and Dr. J. Laws Nickens

Mitchellville Drifters: Renée McDonald, Helen Nuttall, Lula Hicks, Carol A. Walker, Vinetta C. Jones, Ella P. High, Thelma Scott and Urlecia Cook

Drifters and their guests enjoyed dancing to the great music.

Dr. Anne O. Emery and Delores Baden

Dr. John Lamkin, Eartha Lamkin and Martin Lamkin

Rev. Allen Robinson, Patricia Tunstall and E. Gaines Lansey

Eugene Smalley, Carolyn and Steve Wainwright

Victoria M. Lamkin, Darlene and Carlton Douglass

Photos by TC Caldwell Autumn Joi and Konan from 92Q

Gospel group Zie’l enjoying a post performance interview

Gospel artist Maurette BrownClark inspiring the crowd

Philly vs. Baltimore 2015, sponsored by the One Goal Foundation and organized by Donyae Dukes

Unity in the Community was sponsored by 92Q and 106.1 Praise on July 25th at Druid Hill Park in Baltimore. Health care groups, local food vendors, and business owners were involved in the city wide event. Artist Zie’l and local artist Maurette Brown-Clark, in addition to other gospel acts, lifted up their voices and sang for the inspiration of the people with great conviction and praise. Radio personality Willie Moore Jr. was an excellent emcee.

Richard Smallwood Unity in the Community brought the community together for a spiritual community revival.

Radio host Willie Moore Jr and son

VaShawn Mitchell

Excited fans enjoying the music.

To see more of these photos and purchase them visit afro.com/slideshows. To purchase this digital photo page contact Takiea Hinton: thinton@afro.com or 410.554.8277.

August 1, 2015 - August 7, 2015, The Afro-American

Tom Cruise

ARTS & CULTURE

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Kam’s Kapsules:

What to See, and Avoid, this Week at the Movies bing.com

The End of the Tour (R for profanity and some sexual references) Road flick revolving around the five-day interview conducted by Rolling Stone reporter David Lipsky (Jesse Eisenberg) with the late David Foster Wallace (Jason Segel) while the troubled scribe was on a book tour for his inscrutable, 1,000-page best-seller, “Infinite Jest.” With Ron Livingston, Anna Chumsky and Joan Cusack.

I Am Chris Farley (Unrated) Reverential retrospective about the life of the late comedian from his meteoric rise to an early demise. Featuring reminiscences by colleagues like Adam Sandler, Mike Myers, Dan Aykroyd, David Spade, Bob Saget, Molly Shannon and Jon Lovitz.

Jenny’s Wedding (PG-13 for mature themes and a crude sexual reference) Katherine Heigl plays the title character in this out-of-the-closet comedy about a lesbian who only informs her homophobic parents (Linda Emond and Tom Wilkinson) that she’s gay the day she and her longtime “roommate” announce their engagement. Ensemble cast includes Grace Gummer, Alexis Bledel and Matthew Metzger.

Ving Rhames and Tom Cruise

By Kam Williams BIG BUDGET FILMS Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation (PG-13 for action, violence and brief partial nudity) Fifth installment of the espionage franchise finds Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) reassembling his crack team of spies to take out the international syndicate of deadly assassins targeting IMF agents. Cast includes Jeremy Renner, Ving Rhames, Simon Pegg, Alec Baldwin and Rebecca Ferguson.

Vacation (R for brief male frontal nudity, sexuality, crude humor and pervasive profanity) Seventh installment in the National Lampoon franchise revolving around now-grown Rusty Griswold’s (Ed Helms) nostalgic, cross-country road trip back to Walley World amusement park, family in tow. Featuring Christina Applegate, Skyler Gisondo and Steele Stebbins, with Chris Hemsworth, Leslie Mann, Regina Hall, Keegan-Michael Key and Michael Pena in support roles, as well as cameo appearances by original cast members Chevy Chase and Beverly D’Angelo. .

INDEPENDENT & FOREIGN FILMS Best of Enemies (R for sexuality, nudity and profanity) File footage documentary featuring the series of nine, nationally-televised, live-TV debates between liberal Gore Vidal and archconservative William F. Buckley covering such hot-button topics as politics, religion and sexuality, which degenerated into name-calling affairs where the pair referred to each other as a “crypto-Nazi” and a “queer.” Includes commentary by Dick Cavett, Kelsey Grammer, Noam Chomsky, John Lithgow and the late Christopher Hitchens.

AFRO Sports Desk

The Kindergarten Teacher (Unrated) Coming-of-age drama, set in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, revolving around a kindergarten teacher (Sarit Larry) who takes a special interest in a precocious, five year-old poet (Avi Shnaidman). With Lior Raz, Jil Ben David and Ester Rada.

(In Hebrew with subtitles) A LEGO Brickumentary (G) More than a toy documentary, narrated by Jason Bateman, examining LEGO as a cultural phenomenon.

Listen to Me Marlon (Unrated) Vanity biopic chronicling the life and times of Marlon Brando from the late screen icon’s own perspective as preserved in his personal archive of home videos and audio recordings.

The Pilgrim: Paulo Coelho’s Best Story (Unrated) Against-the-odds biopic tracing the Brazilian writer’s (Julio Andrade) rise from humble roots and mental illness to best-selling author of”The Alchemist” and dozens of other novels. (In Portuguese and Spanish with subtitles) The Seventh Dwarf (Unrated) Animated variation of the Snow White fairytale finds the seven dwarfs embarking on a perilous adventure in search of a prince to revive a sleeping princess (Peyton List) with a kiss and thereby awaken the somnolent kingdom from a centurylong slumber. Voice cast includes Nina Hagen, Cameron Elvin and Norm MacDonald.

Staten Island Summer (R for sexuality, nudity, crude humor, drug use, teen partying and pervasive profanity) Raunchy teensploitation flick revolving around a couple of recent high school grads (Graham Phillips and Zack Pearlman) who take summer jobs as lifeguards while trying to decide what to do next with their lives. With Kate McKinnon, Bobby Moynihan, Will Forte, Method Man, Fred Armisen, Cecily Strong and Jim Gaffigan.

That Sugar Film (Unrated) Super Size Me-style expose’ written and directed by Damon Gameau in which the Aussie actor conducts an experiment on his own body to illustrate the deleterious effects of a high-sugar diet.

SPORTS

Should the NBA Move to a Top 8 Washington’s NFL Team Training Camp Preview Playoff Format? A Debate.

By Perry Green and Stephen D. Riley, AFRO Sports Desk The NBA is discussing eliminating the guaranteed playoff spot that accompanies division winners, and moving to a new structure that would award playoff berths to the eight teams in the Eastern and Western conferences with the best records.

That potential move would remove the automatic bump that division winners receive in playoff seeding; currently, the four division winners are assured placement within the top four seeds in each conference. The current system can be a gift for fans, but a curse for the players. Basketball fans were treated to a first-round matchup last summer between the San Antonio Spurs and Los Angeles Clippers, despite both teams having already squared off against each other on the last night of the regular season in competition for the West’s second seed.

Both the Spurs and the Clippers had better records than the Portland Trailblazers, who opened the playoffs as the No. 4 seed.

However, the Spurs entered the playoffs as the No. 6 seed because they didn’t win their division. San Antonio and Los Angeles delivered one of the most exciting series of the playoffs, but critics of the playoff seeding system maintained that the two high-powered teams met too early in the postseason. Should the NBA redo their playoff format? Perry Green and Stephen D. Riley of the AFRO Sports Desk debate the question.

Riley: I like the current format the way it is. Teams should be rewarded for winning

their own division. Winning their division is every team’s first priority in several different sports, so why not guarantee a division winner a playoff berth? In the regular season, division rivals will play each other four times, and it’s only appropriate to reward the team that was able to withstand the rigors of their division.

The Spurs were clearly a better team overall than the Blazers last year, but no team was better than Portland in their own division, and they were recognized for that.

Green: Taking away that automatic topfour seed for division winners is fair when you’re factoring in the regular season. You have to account for teams that pile up wins in the regular season, but might not be placed in the top four playoffs slots because a team in their own division had a similar campaign.

Hypothetically, a team could finish the regular season with 66 wins, but place second in their own division to a team with 67 wins. Under the current system, the team with 66 wins might be seeded lower in the playoffs than a third team that won their division with just 50 wins. That doesn’t translate well, in my opinion. Surviving the regular season is more of a grind than winning a division. Preparing and winning against unfamiliar teams is a much more impressive feat, all things considered.

Riley: It’s easier to get away with certain plays and strategies when two teams are seeing each other for the first or second time in a season. In the playoffs, teams advance if they are able to tally four wins against the same Continued on C6

By Breana Pitts Special to the AFRO

Washington’s NFL team opens training camp on July 30th at their Bon Secours Training Center in Richmond, Va. Here are some storylines to keep an eye on as the team heads into camp, which runs through Aug. 16.

Quarterback Saga Continues The biggest storyline of training camp involves none other than Robert Griffin III. Although he enters camp as starting quarterback, there is doubt within the organization and around the league about what he can do. Will he hold onto the position?

An anonymous league insider in ESPN’s 2015 NFL Quarterback Rankings said they believe Griffin is done, partly due to his injuries, but also because his “ego will not allow him to hit rock bottom and actually grind his way back up the right way.” However, it’s hard to completely count out a 25-year-old quarterback who was rookie of the year just three seasons ago, despite his recent struggles.

Griffin has to find a way to be successful both inside and outside the pocket. He has to adjust to head coach Jay Gruden’s system, and while he may not return to his rookie year form, he has a supporting cast that will allow him to be an effective quarterback.

Kirk Cousins and Colt McCoy will compete for the No. 2 spot on the depth chart. The winner could get a chance to start this season, if Griffin doesn’t play well.

The Run Game Second-year head coach Jay Gruden wants his team to be versatile on the ground this season. Although Washington has lethal weapons in the passing game, to succeed they must commit to running the ball.

Running back Alfred Morris is a key returning starter, as well as one of the most consistent and durable backs in the NFL. However, after Morris, Washington’s running backs are a bit inexperienced.

Washington drafted Matt Jones (Florida) in the third round this year, and the rookie has generated a lot of buzz during the offseason. In fact, Jones is poised to be second on the depth chart entering training camp. Jones wasn’t a prolific runner at Florida, but he will most likely get third-down touches, and is ultimately the one to beat.

Chris Thompson, Silas Redd and undrafted free agent Trey Williams are left to battle for two spots on the 53-man roster.

Defensive Improvements Washington’s defense ranked No. 20 in the NFL last season, but received a major facelift Continued on C6

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The Afro-American, August 1, 2015 - August 7, 2015

D.C. Event Planner Uses Engineering Background for Success

By Christina Sturdivant Special to the AFRO When Jamel Shuford graduated from Drexel University with a degree in mechanical engineering, she didn’t plan on a career in event planning. However, after years of working in the industry, she found her academic background to be quite useful.

“I can look at the process that a client has taken to plan an event and identify places within that process that they have wasted time, money or resources and then give them ideas on how to reduce that waste,” Shuford told the {AFRO}. “I think that’s a real benefit to the client because they want to get the most bang for their buck.”

In 2009, Shuford started Plan Ahead Events, a Washington, D.C.-based company specializing in conferences, galas and fundraisers.

The key to producing any successful event is establishing a game plan, she said.

Shuford said she likes to work backwards. “I take my clients through a visualization exercise so I tell them [to imagine] the end of the night when this event is all done and ask them what did the event look like, how many people were there, what did they say about the event the next day or are they putting it on social media, are they tired from too much dancing – that sort of thing, to get an idea of how they visualize the event and then we create all the little details from there,” she said.

Shuford got her start in event planning in 1998, working as mechanical engineer for the U.S. Navy. As a collateral duty, she planned picnics and appreciation events while based in Philadelphia. She was then given the opportunity to work at the Navy headquarters in Washington, D.C. “I met a wonderful woman who took me under her wing and started to help me with event planning,” she said. “At the Navy yard, we have thousands of employees so we did fundraisers for all of the employees, we did conferences for the admiral, we did breakfast meetings, seminars, road shows, and all kinds of wonderful events.”

After becoming a mother of two, Shuford decided to launch her own company in

INVITES YOU AND A GUEST TO EXPERIENCE

Jamel Shuford, owner of Plan Ahead Events event planning. “I realized that I wanted to have a career that I could still be totally involved in my kids’ lives and not feel guilty when I needed to take a sick day to take them to the doctor or things like that. So it was really because I wanted the best of both worlds – flexibility as a mother and business professional,” she said.

Organizing multi-day conferences has become a personal favorite and she plans about four per year. Though it’s a lot of work, the end result is well worth it. “When people are on their way home it’s nice to hear ‘Oh, I had a wonderful time’ or ‘This conference was better than the last one, I’m definitely coming back,’”she says. “It gives me a certain satisfaction.”

To reach Shuford, call 301-272-7333 or email paedc@pae-washingtondc.com or visit planaheadevents.com/washingtondc/.

Slave Drama ‘Underground’ Snares John Legend to Handle music

By The Associated Press

FOR YOUR CHANCE TO WIN A PRIZE PACK INCLUDING TWO TICKETS TO SEE THE FILM AND A COPY OF THE SOUNDTRACK, EMAIL YOUR NAME AND FULL ADDRESS WITH ZIP TO BALTIMORE@43KIX.COM (SUBJECT LINE: VACATION) THIS FILM IS RATED R FOR CRUDE AND SEXUAL CONTENT AND LANGUAGE THROUGHOUT, AND BRIEF GRAPHIC NUDITY. PLEASE NOTE: Prize packs are limited and will be distributed on a first come, first served basis while supplies last. No phone calls, please. Limit one pass per person. Each voucher admits two. Voucher valid at participating theaters only.

Check local listings for showtimes and locations.

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(AP Photo)

John Legend will provide the score for a drama about slaves fighting for freedom.

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John Legend is bringing his talents to a TV drama about Southern slaves fighting for freedom.

WGN America says Legend and his production company will be in charge of the score and soundtrack for “Underground.”

The drama is in production in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

It stars Aldis Hodge as the organizer of an escape effort by plantation slaves. Jurnee Smollett-Bell and Christopher Meloni co-star.

WGN America told a Television Critics Association meeting on July29th that Legend’s company will also serve as an executive producer for the drama.

In a statement, Legend says he believes the story of people brave enough to risk everything for freedom will be inspirational.

He and his songwriting partner, Common, won an Oscar this year for the song “Glory” from the civil rights movie “Selma.”

“Underground” will air in 2016 on WGN America.

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TYPESET: Tue Jul 21 LEGAL NOTICES Superior Court of the District of District of Columbia PROBATE DIVISION Washington, D.C. 20001-2131 Administration No. 2015ADM833 Alton Stanton Cox, Jr. Decedent James E. McCollum, Jr. McCollum & Associates, LLC 7309 Baltimore Ave., Suite 117 College Park, MD 20740 Attorney NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Deloris Machel Cox, whose address is 32645 Racquet Club Way, Lake Elsimore, CA 92530 was appointed personal representative of the estate of Alton Stanton Cox, Jr., who died on April 24, 2015 with, a will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose where-abouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment (or to the probate of decedent´s will) shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., 3rd Floor Wa s h i n g t o n , D . C .

20001, on or before January 24, 2016.

Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before January 24, 2016, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address and relationship.

Date of Publication: July 24, 2015 Name of newspaper: Afro-American Washington Law Reporter Deloris Machel Cox Personal Representative TRUE TEST COPY REGISTER OF WILLS 07/24, 07/31, 08/07/15

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TRUE TEST COPY REGISTER OF WILLS

Superior Court of the District of District of Columbia PROBATE DIVISION Washington, D.C. 20001-2131 Administration No. 2015ADM843 Edith Blanche Murray Decedent NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Patricia Anne Murray, whose address is 1735 33rd PL SE #202, Washington, DC 20020, was appointed personal representative of the estate of Edith Blanche Murray, who died on June 8, 2015 without a will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose where-abouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment (or to the probate of decedent´s will) shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., 3rd Floor Wa s h i n g t o n , D . C .

20001, on or before January 24, 2016.

Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before January 24, 2016, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address and relationship.

Date of Publication: July 24, 2015 Name of newspaper: Afro-American Washington Law Reporter Patricia Anne Murray Personal Representative TRUE TEST COPY REGISTER OF WILLS

07/24, 07/31,Tue 08/07/15 TYPESET: Jul 21 13:20:06 EDT 08/07/15 2015 07/24, 07/31,

TYPESET: Tue Jul 14

Superior Court of the District of District of Columbia PROBATE DIVISION Washington, D.C. 20001-2131 Administration No. 2015ADM773 Columbus Jones Jr. NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Chicquita Johnson, whose address is 3109 E Street SE, Washington, DC 20019, was appointed personal representative of the estate of Columbus Jones Jr., who died on May 3, 2015 without a will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment (or to the probate of decedent´s will) shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., 3rd Floor Wa s h i n g t o n , D . C .

20001, on or before January 24, 2016.

Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before January 24, 2016 , or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address and relationship.

Date of Publication: July 24, 2016 Name of newspaper: Afro-American Washington Law Reporter Chicquita Johnson Personal Representative TRUE TEST COPY REGISTER OF WILLS 7/24, 7/31, 8/07/2015

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Superior Court of the District of District of Columbia PROBATE DIVISION Washington, D.C. 20001-2131 Administration No. 2015ADM724 Judy A Christian Decedent Nathan A. Neal, Esq Law Offices of Nathan A Neal, PLLC 209 Kennedy Street, NW, Washington, DC 20011-5214 Attorney NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Erik P. Christian , whose address is 1729 Juniper Street, NW, Washington, DC 20012, was appointed personal representative of the estate of Judy A Christian, who died on March 24, 2015 without a will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment (or to the probate of decedent´s will) shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., 3rd Floor Wa s h i n g t o n , D . C .

20001, on or before January 17, 2016.

Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before January 17, 2016, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address and relationship.

Date of Publication: July 17, 2015 Name of newspaper: Afro-American Washington Law Reporter Erik P. Christian Personal Representative TRUE TEST COPY REGISTER OF WILLS 07/147, 07/24, 07/31/15

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Superior Court of the District of District of Columbia PROBATE DIVISION Washington, D.C. 20001-2131 Administration No. 2015ADM826 William Andrew Corley Decedent NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Andrew Bonds, whose address is 3519 14th Street, NE Washington, DC 20017, wasappointed personal representative of the estate of William Corley, who died on October 29, 2014 without a will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., 3rd Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before January 31, 2016.

Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before January 31, 2016, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address and relationship.

Date of Publication: July 31, 2015 Name of newspaper: Afro-American Washington Law Reporter Andrew Bonds Personal Representative

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1 Col. Inch Up to TYPESET: Jul 21 13:19:47 EDTTue 2015Jul 28 13:17:29 EDT 2015 TYPESET: TYPESET: Tue Jul 21 13:19:31 EDTTue 2015 LEGAL NOTICES 20 Words

Superior Court of the District of District of Columbia PROBATE DIVISION Washington, D.C. 20001-2131 Administration No. 2015ADM810 Horace Brown Decedent John A Waller 3130 Cherry Rd. NE Washington, DC 20018 Attorney NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Emma Jo Brown, whose address is 4021 22nd Street, NE, Washington, DC 20018, was appointed personal representative of the estate of Horace Brown, who died on February 9, 1995 without a will, and will serve with Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment 13:17:16 EDT 2015 shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., 3rd Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before January 24, 2016.

Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before January 24, 2016, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address and relationship.

Date of Publication: July 24, 2015 Name of newspaper: Afro-American Washington Law Reporter Emma Jo Brown Personal Representative

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PROBATE DIVISION Washington, D.C. 20001-2131 Administration No. 2015ADM857 PROBATE DIVISION Maurice B. Lyles Decedent (Estates) Thomas H. Queen, Esq TYPESET: Tue Jul 21 13:17:36 EDT 2015 7961 Eastern Avenue 202-332-0080 Suite 304 PROBATE NOTICES Silver Spring, MD Superior Court of 20910 the District of Attorney District of Columbia a. Order Nisi $ 60 per insertion $180.00NOTICE per 3 weeks OF PROBATE DIVISION APPOINTMENT, b. Small Estates (single publication $ 60 per insertion Washington, D.C. NOTICE TO 20001-2131 c. Notice to Creditors CREDITORS Administration No. AND NOTICE TO 1. Domestic $180.00 per 3 weeks 2015ADM793$ 60 per insertion UNKNOWN HEIRS Arthur R. Smith, Jr. 2. Foreign $ 60 per insertion $180.00 per 3 weeks Avon E. Barbour, Sr., Decedent whose per address is #62 d. Escheated Estates 60 per insertion $360.00 6 weeks James C. Beadles,$Esq Joshua Drive, Magnolia, 2 3 4 1 M a s s a n u t t e n TYPESET: Tue Jul 28 $125.00 13:15:22 EDT 2015 e. Standard Probates DE 19962, was apDrive pointed personal repreSilver Spring, MD sentative of the estate of 20906 CIVIL NOTICES Superior Court of Maurice B. Lyles, who Attorney the District of died on June 24, 2015 a. Name Changes 202-879-1133 80.00 NOTICE OF District of Columbia $ with a will, and will serTRUE TEST COPY APPOINTMENT, PROBATE DIVISION $ vice REGISTER OF WILLS without Court sub. Real Property 200.00 NOTICE TO Washington, D.C. pervision. All unknown TYPESET: Tue Jul 21 13:16:55 EDT 2015 CREDITORS 20001-2131 07/31, 08/07, 8/14/15 heirs and heirs whose AND NOTICE TO Administration No. whereabouts are unCOURT 15 days of its first publicaUNKNOWNFAMILY HEIRS 2015ADM857 known shall enter their tion to each heir and qual- E d w a r d A l l e n M e t z , Maurice B. Lyles Superior Court of appearance in this 202-879-1212 ified beneficiary of the whose address is 832 the District of Decedent proceeding. Objections trust and any other person Dryden DOMESTIC District of Columbia Road, Zanes- RELATIONS 13:36:55 EDT DIVISION 2015 w h o w o u l d b e a n ville, OH 43701, was ap- Thomas H. Queen, Esq to such appointment PROBATE 7961 Eastern Avenue shall be filed with the interested person within 202-879-0157 Washington, D.C. Register of Wills, D.C., the meaningof D.C. Code, pointed personal repre- Suite 304 20001-2131 sentative of the estate of S i l v e r S p r i n g , M D 515 5th Street, N.W., 3rd sec. 20-101(d) Administration No. Arthur R. Smith, Jr., who 20910 Floor Washington, D.C. Date of Publication: 2015NRT21 a.

Absent Defendant $ 150.00 on or before died on January 24, 2015 Attorney 20001, July 24, 2015 Mary Ellen Hilliard witha will, and will serve NOTICE OF J anuary 31, 2016.

Name of newspaper: b.

Absolute Divorce $ 150.00 Decedent without Court superviAPPOINTMENT, Claims against the deAfro-American NOTICE OF sion.

All unknown heirs NOTICE TO cedent shall be prec.

Custody Divorce $150.00 Washington Law EXISTENCE OF and heirs whose CREDITORS sented to the underReporter REVOCABLE AND NOTICE TO signed with a copy to the Carl Messineo whereabouts are unTRUST shall enter their ext.

UNKNOWN HEIRSNotices Register of Wills or filed To place Personal your ad, known call 1-800-237-6892, 262, Public $50.00 & up Mary Ellen Hilliard (name Avon E. Barbour, Sr., with the Register of Wills Representative a p p e a r a n c e i n t h i s of deceased settlor) proceeding.

Objections whose address is #62 depending on size, Baltimore Legal Notices are $24.84 per inch. with a copy to the underTRUE TEST COPY whose address was 3747 to such appointment (or Joshua Drive, Magnolia, signed, on or before REGISTER OF WILLS H u n t i n g t o n S t . , N W, 1-800 (AFRO) 892 was ap- January 31, 2016, or be DE 19962, of de07/24, 07/31, 08/07/15 to the probate Washington, DC 20015 personal repre- forever cedent´s will) shallplease be pointed barred. Persons created a revocable trust For Proof of Publication, call 1-800-237-6892, ext. 244 filed with the Register of sentative of the estate of believed to be heirs or on February 5, 2015, Maurice B. Lyles, who Wills, D.C., 515 5th which remained in exislegatees of the decedent tence on the date of her Street, N.W., 3rd Floor died on June 24, 2015 who do not receive a death on April 29, 2015 , with a will, and will ser- copy of this notice by mail Wa s h i n g t o n , D . C .

LEGAL a n d C a r l Tue M e sJul s i n 21 e o , 13:16:55 EDT 2015 vice without Court su- within 25 days of its first TYPESET: 20001, on or beforeNOTICES whose address is 617 J a n u a r y 2 4 , 2 0 1 6 . pervision. All unknown publication shall so inF l o r i d a Av e . N W, 15 days of its first publica- Claims against the de- heirs and heirs whose form the Register of Washington, DC 20001 is tion to each heir and qual- cedent shall be pre- whereabouts are un- Wills, including name, Superior Court of the currently acting the District of the ified beneficiary of the sented to the under- known shall enter their address and relationtrustee, hereinafter trust and any other person signed with a copy to the a p p e a r a n c e i n t h i s ship.

DistrictCommunications of Columbia Trustee. who would be an proceeding. Objections toPROBATE the trustDIVISION should be interested person within Register of Wills or filed to such appointment Date of Publication: July 31, 2015 Washington, D.C. mailed or directed to Carl the meaningof D.C. Code, with the Register of Wills with a copy to the under- shall be filed with the Name of newspaper: 20001-2131 Messineo at 617 Florida sec. 20-101(d) Register of Wills, D.C., Afro-American signed, on or before Administration No.DC Ave. NW, Washington, January 24, 2016, or be 515 5th Street, N.W., 3rd Washington 200012015NRT21 The Trust is subject Date of Publication: forever barred. Persons Floor Washington, D.C. Law Reporter to claims ofHilliard the deceased July 24, 2015 Mary Ellen Avon E. Barbour, Sr. settlor’s creditors, costs of Name of newspaper: believed to be heirs or 20001, on or before Decedent Afro-American Personal administration legatees of the decedent J a n u a r y 3 1 , 2 0 1 6 .

NOTICE of OFthe setWashington Law Claims against the deRepresentative tlor’s estate, the expenses who do not receive a EXISTENCE OF Reporter cedent shall be preof the deceased settlor’s REVOCABLE copy of this notice by mail Carl Messineo within 25 days of its first sented to the under- TRUE TEST COPY funeral and disposal of reTRUST Personal publication shall so in- signed with a copy to the REGISTER OF WILLS mains, statutory Mary Ellenand Hilliard (name Representative form the Register of Register of Wills or filed oallowances f d e c e a s etod a ssurviving ettlor) spouseaddress and children to the TRUE TEST COPY whose was 3747 Wills, including name, with the Register of Wills 07/31, 08/07 & 08/14/15 extent the deceased setREGISTER OF WILLS H u n t i n g t o n S t . , N W, addressEDT and2015 relation- with a copy to the underTYPESET: Tue Jul 21 13:17:36 tlor’s residuary 07/24, 07/31, 08/07/15 ship. signed, on or before Washington, DC probate 20015 estate is inadequate to January 31, 2016, or be created a revocable trust Date of Publication: You now you’re satisfy those claims, forever barred. Persons on February 5, 2015, July 24, 2015 Superior Court of costs, expenses, and which remained in exisbelieved to be heirs or in the know...

Name of newspaper: allowances. the District of tence on the date of her legatees of the decedent Afro-American Claims the29, deceased District of Columbia death onofApril 2015 , who do not receive a When you read Washington PROBATE DIVISION asettlor n d C ’s a r l creditors M e s s i n eare o, copy of this notice by mail barred as against the Law Reporter Washington, D.C. whose is prop617 within 25 days of its first the AFRO! Trusteeaddress and the trust Edward Allen Metz 20001-2131 Ferty lorid a Av e . N W, to unless presented Personal publication shall so inAdministration No. Washington, DC 20001 is the Trustee at the address Representative form the Register of 2015ADM793 the currently Wills, including name, provided herein acting on or be- Arthur R. Smith, Jr. trustee, hereinafter the6 address and relationfore January 24, 2016 TRUE TEST COPY Decedent Trustee.

Communications ship. months after the date of REGISTER OF WILLS James C. Beadles, Esq to the trust should be the first publication of this Date of Publication: mailed directed notice).orAn action to to Carl con- 2 3 4 1 M a s s a n u t t e n TYPESET: Tue Jul 28 13:15:22 July 31, EDT 2015 2015 Messineo at 617 Florida 07/24, 07/31, 08/07/2015 Name of newspaper: test the validity of this trust Drive Ave. NW, Washington, DC must be commenced by S i l v e r S p r i n g , M D Afro-American 20001 The Trust is April subject the earliest of (1) 29, 20906 Superior Court of Washington to2016(one claims ofyear the deceased from date Attorney the District of Law Reporter settlor’s costs of NOTICE OF of deathcreditors, of the deceased District of Columbia Avon E. Barbour, Sr. administration of the setsettler) or (2) January 26, APPOINTMENT, PROBATE DIVISION Personal “2-Night Free Vacation!” tlor’s estate, the expenses 2016(6 months from the NOTICE TO Washington, D.C. Representative ofdate theofdeceased settlor’sof first publication CREDITORS 20001-2131 funeral and disposal of rethis notice) or (3) ninety AND NOTICE TO Administration No. TRUE TEST COPY mains, andthe statutory days after Trustee UNKNOWN HEIRS 2015ADM857 REGISTER OF WILLS allowances to a surviving sends the person a copy E d w a r d A l l e n M e t z , Maurice B. Lyles spouse and instrument children to the of the trust and whose address is 832 sponsored by boat angel outreach centers STOP CRIMES AGAINST CHILDREN Decedent 07/31, 08/07 & 08/14/15 extent the deceased a notice informing thesetper- Dryden Road, ZanesThomas H. Queen, Esq tlor’s residuary probate son of the trust’s exisville, OH 43701, was ap- 7961 Eastern Avenue estate is inadequate to tence, the Trustee’s name satisfy thoseand claims, and address, the time pointed personal repre- Suite 304 costs, anda sentative of the estate of S i l v e r S p r i n g , M D allowedexpenses, for commencing Arthur R. Smith, Jr., who 20910 allowances. proceeding.

Claims of themay deceased The Trustee proceed died on January 24, 2015 Attorney witha will, and will serve settlor ’s creditors are to distribute the trust propNOTICE OF Mold, mildew and water leakage into your basement causes health erty in as accordance with without Court supervibarred against the APPOINTMENT, and foundation damage. What can be done to fix the problem? the terms the trust be- sion. All unknown heirs Trustee andofthe trust propNOTICE TO fore unless the expiration of the and heirs whose erty presented to CREDITORS Allstate American Waterproofing is an honest, hardworking local company. time withinatwhich an ac- whereabouts are unthe Trustee the address AND NOTICE TO tion mustherein be commenced provided on or beWe will give you a FREE evaluation and estimate and a fair price. We known shall enter their UNKNOWN HEIRS unless the Trustee knows fore January 24, 2016 6 appearance in this Avon E. Barbour, Sr., have repaired thousands of basements in the area; we can provide local of a pending months after the judicial date of proceeding. Objections whose address is #62 proceeding contesting the to such appointment (or the first publication of this references. When your neighbors needed waterproofing, they called validity An of the trusttoor the to the probate of de- Joshua Drive, Magnolia, notice). action conAllstate American. Why don’t you? Call now to receive a 20% discount with Trustee has received no- cedent´s will) shall be DE 19962, was aptest the validity of this trust pointed personal repretice be from a potential must commenced by your FREE ESTIMATE. MHIC#36672 filed with the Register of sentative of the estate of contestant who thereafter the earliest of (1) April 29, Wills, D.C., 515 5th Maurice B. Lyles, who commences a judicial 2016(one year from date sixty Street, N.W., 3rd Floor died on June 24, 2015 ofproceeding death of thewithin deceased Wa s h i n g t o n , D . C . with a will, and will serdays after notification. settler) or (2) January 26, This Notice be 20001, on or before vice without Court su2016(6 months must from the J a n u a r y 2 4 , 2 0 1 6 . mailed postmarked within pervision.

All unknown date of first publication of Claims against the de- heirs and heirs whose this notice) or (3) ninety cedent shall be prewhereabouts are undays after the Trustee sented to the under- known shall enter their sends the person a copy signed with a copy to the appearance in this of the trust instrument and Register of Wills or filed proceeding. Objections a notice informing the per-

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C4 The Afro-American, August 1, 2015 - August 7, 2015

TYPESET: Jul 28 13:16:43 EDTTue 2015Jul 14 13:38:40 TYPESET: Tue Jul 28 13:15:05 EDTTue 2015 TYPESET: Tue Jul 14 13:38:17 EDT 2015Jul 14 13:39:46 TYPESET: Tue EDT 2015 TYPESET: EDT 2015 TYPESET: Tue Jul 21 13:18:54 EDT 2015 LEGAL NOTICES LEGAL NOTICES LEGAL NOTICES LEGAL NOTICES LEGAL NOTICES LEGAL NOTICES

07/31, 08/07,Tue 08/14/15 TYPESET: Jul 28 Superior Court of the District of District of Columbia PROBATE DIVISION Washington, D.C. 20001-2131 Administration No. 2015ADM86 Ivan Minas-Bekov Decedent NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Patrick C. Horrell, Esq, whose address is 1304 Rhode Island Ave, NW, Washington, DC 20005, was appointed personal representative of the estate of Ivan MinasBekov, who died on November 24, 2014 with a will, and will serve with Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose where-abouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment (or to the probate of decedent´s will) shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., 3rd Floor Wa s h i n g t o n , D . C .

20001, on or before January 31, 2016.

Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before January 31, 2016, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address and relationship.

Date of Publication: July 31, 2015 Name of newspaper: Afro-American Washington Law Reporter Patrick C. Horrell, Esq Personal Representative

07/31, 08/07,Tue 08/14/15 TYPESET: Jul 14

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA 13:16:08 EDT DIVISION 2015 PROBATE Washington, D.C. 20001-2131 Foreign No. 2015FEP70 Date of Death November 14, 2014 George J. Katinas Decedent NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT OF FOREIGN PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVE AND NOTICE TO CREDITORS Paul G. Katinas, John G. Katinas and Diane K. Burnes whose addresses are 9 W Melrose St. Chevy Chase, MD 20815 were appointed personal representatives of the estate of George J. Katinas, deceased by the Circuit Court for Montgomery County, State of Maryland., on November 25, 2014, Service of process may be made upon Philip N. Margolius 4201 Connecticut Avenue, NW, Suite 600, Washington, DC 20008 whose designation as District of Columbia agent has been filed with the Register of Wills, D.C. The decedent owned the following District of Colombia real property: 50% interest in 1632-34 1 7 t h S t r e e t , N W, Washington, DC Claims against the decedent may be presented to the undersigned and filed with the Register of Wills for the District of Columbia, 500 Indiana Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20001 within 6 months from the date of first publication of this notice.

TRUE TEST COPY REGISTER OF WILLS

Paul G. Katinas John G. Katinas Diane K. Burnes Personal Representative(s) TRUE TEST COPY REGISTER OF WILLS Date of first publication: July 17, 2015 Name of newspapers and/or periodical: The Daily Washington Law Reporter The Afro-American

07/31, 08/07, 08/14/2015

07/17, 07/24, 07/31/15

14:42:19 EDT 2015

TRUE TEST COPY REGISTER OF WILLS

TYPESET: Jul 28 07/17, 07/24,Tue 07/31/15 Superior Court of the District of District of Columbia PROBATE DIVISION Washington, D.C. 20001-2131 Administration No. 2015ADM842 Doris Lee Beynum Decedent NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Willetta Young , whose address is 3521 Minnesota Ave SE, 202 Washington, DC 20019, was appointed personal representative(of the estate of Doris Lee Beynum, who died on May 20th 2015 without a will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., 3rd Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before January 31, 2016.

Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before January 31, 2016, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address and relationship.

Date of Publication: July 31, 2015 Name of newspaper: Afro-American Washington Law Reporter Willetta Young Personal Representative TRUE TEST COPY REGISTER OF WILLS 07/31, 08/07, 08/14/15

13:17:05 EDT COPY 2015 TRUE TEST

REGISTER OF WILLS

TYPESET: Tue Jul 21

07/17, 07/24, 07/31/15

Superior Court of the District of District of Columbia PROBATE DIVISION Washington, D.C. 20001-2131 Administration No. 2015ADM794 Evadne D. Brooks Decedent NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Stephen Victor Brooks, whose address is 5718 1st Street, NW, Washington, DC 20011, was appointed personal representative of the estate of Evadne D. Brooks , who died on April 7, 2015 without a will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose where-abouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment (or to the probate of decedent´s will) shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., 3rd Floor Wa s h i n g t o n , D . C .

20001, on or before January 24, 2016.

Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before January 24, 2016, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address and relationship.

Date of Publication: July 24, 2015 Name of newspaper: Afro-American Washington Law Reporter Stephen Victor Brooks Personal Representative TRUE TEST COPY REGISTER OF WILLS 07/24, 07/31, 08/07/15

Superior Court of the District of District of Columbia PROBATE DIVISION Washington, D.C. 20001-2131 Administration No. 2015ADM805 Agnes L.Craftan Decedent NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Lana Garvin, whose address is 13814 Carlene Dr., Upper Marlboro, MD 20772was appointed personal representative of the estate of Agnes L. Crafton , who died on September 3,2013 withouta will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding.

Objections to such appointment shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., 3rd Floor Wa s h i n g t o n , D . C .

20001, on or before January 17, 2016.

Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before January 17, 2016, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address and relationship.

Date of Publication: July 17, 2015 Name of newspaper: Afro-American Washington Law Reporter Lana Garvin Personal Representative TRUE TEST COPY REGISTER OF WILLS

Superior Court of the District of District of Columbia PROBATE DIVISION Washington, D.C. 20001-2131 Administration No. 2015ADM818 Harriet E Brown AKA Harriet Evangeline Brown Decedent NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Michelle Teresa Scott, whose address is 20404 Heritage Farm Terr., Gaithersburg, MD 20886 was appointed personal representative of the estate of Harriet E Brown AKA Harriet Evangeline Brown, who died on March 7, 2015 with a will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment (or to the probate of decedent´s will) shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., 3rd Floor Wa s h i n g t o n , D . C .

20001, on or before January 24, 2016.

Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the January 24, 2016, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address and relationship.

Date of Publication: July 24, 2015 Name of newspaper: Afro-American Washington Law Reporter Michelle Teresa. Scott Personal Representative

D.C. CAREER CORNER CAD OPERATOR PROBATIONARY Southern Maryland Electric Cooperative, Inc. (SMECO), an electrical distribution cooperative near Washington, D.C., is seeking applicants for the position of CAD Operator Probationary.

Responsibilities include, and not limited to the following: Prepares tracings, sketches and scale drawings in the preparation of work orders, and under supervision, the layouts of subdivision and plot plans; also prepares other drawings which may be needed for the Co-op´s use. Revises and keeps up-to-date various types of maps, records, graphs and construction drawings. Checks completeness of all information received from others to be used in the preparation of all types of drawings. Uses various mathematical methods for determining directions, distances, areas and volumes. Assists with maintaining map filing system and related records and logs.High school diploma or equivalent is preferred, but not required. Must demonstrate CAD knowledge and hand-drafting skills by successfully completing the Cooperative?s related tests for this entry level position. No previous work experience required. Must hold a valid Maryland Driver’s License, Class C or above.

Salary $24.69/hr. Robust benefits package including wellness incentives and on-site gym. For the complete job description and to apply online, please visit SMECO Careers at https://smecocareers.silkroad.com.

SMECO is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer committed to diversity in the workplace.

Applicants receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, age, sexual orientation, gender, disability, protected Veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.

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Superior Court of the District of District of Columbia PROBATE DIVISION Washington, D.C. 20001-2131 Administration No. 2014ADM1363 James McRae Decedent NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Donte Mcrae, Dion Mcrae, Arza Gardner, whose addresses are 2224 16th Street, NE Washington DC, 20018 and 7204 Quantum Leap Lane, Bowie MD 20720 were appointed personal representatives of the estate of James Mcrae, who died on June 25, 2014 without a will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment (or to the probate of decedent´s will) shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., 3rd Floor Wa s h i n g t o n , D . C .

20001, on or before January 17, 2016.

Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before January 17, 2016, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address and relationship.

Date of Publication: July 17, 2015 Name of newspaper: Afro-American Washington Law Reporter Arza Gardner Dion Mcrae Donte Mcrae Personal Representative

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Superior Court of the District of District of Columbia PROBATE DIVISION Washington, D.C. 20001-2131 Administration No. 2015ADM629 Valerie Defillipo Decedent NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Ioannis Pasparakis and Christina Pasparakis, whose address is 250 Sunrise Dr. Apt D, Key Biscayne FL 33149, 3206 Oliver St. NW, Washington, DC 20015 were appointed personal representative of the estate of Valerie Defillipo, who died on April 16, 2015 with a will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment (or to the probate of decedent´s will) shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., 3rd Floor Wa s h i n g t o n , D . C .

20001, on or before January 17, 2016.

Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before January 17, 2016, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address and relationship.

Date of Publication: July 17, 2015 Name of newspaper: Afro-American Washington Law Reporter Ioannis Pasparakis Christina Pasparakis Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY TYPESET: Jul 21 13:18:15 EDTOF2015 07/17, 07/24,Tue 07/31/15 REGISTER WILLS

Superior Court of the District of District of Columbia 13:19:11 EDT DIVISION 2015 PROBATE Washington, D.C. 20001-2131 Administration No. 2015ADM830 Pauline M. Carr Decedent Michael B McGovern Esq 1320 Nineteenth Street NW Suite 300 Washington, Dc 20036 Attorney NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Julian M Carr Jr., whose address is 1813 Tulip Street NW, Washington, DC 20012, wasappointed personal representative of the estate of Pauline M Carr who died on October 7, 2014 without a will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., 3rd Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before January 24, 2016.

Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before January 24, 2016, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address and relationship.

Date of Publication: July 24, 2015 Name of newspaper: Afro-American Washington Law Reporter Julian M Carr Jr. Personal Representative

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TRUE TEST COPY REGISTER OF WILLS

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA PROBATE DIVISION Washington, D.C. 20001-2131 Foreign No. 2015FEP75 Date of Death May 18, 2013 Wyseola Fannell Jordan Decedent NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT OF FOREIGN PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVE AND NOTICE TO CREDITORS Randall Fitzgerald Jordan whose address is 2505 Ann Arbor Lane, Bowie, MD 20716 was appointed personal representative of the estate of Wyseola Fannell Jordan, deceased, on September 19, 2013, by the Orphans Court for Prince Georges County, State of Maryland.

Service of process may be made upon Wanda Jackson, 3346 Pennsylvania Ave, Washington, DC 20020, whose designation as District of Columbia agent has been filed with the Register of Wills, D.C. The decedent owned the following District of Columbia real property: 4618 Sargent Road, NE, Washington, DC 20017.

Claims against the decedent may be presented to the undersigned and filed with the Register of Wills for the District of Columbia, 500 Indiana Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20001 within 6 months from the date of first publication of this notice. (Strike preceding sentence if no real estate.)

Randall Fitzgerald Jordan Personal Representative(s) TRUE TEST COPY REGISTER OF WILLS Date of first publication: 07/31/15 Name of newspapers and/or periodical: The Daily Washington Law Reporter The Afro-American

07/24, 07/31,Tue 08/07/15 TYPESET: Jul 21 13:18:37 EDT 2015 Superior Court of the District of District of Columbia PROBATE DIVISION Washington, D.C. 20001-2131 Administration No. 2014ADM1343 William Lewis Cowling Decedent NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Nathan A. Neal, Attorney at Law, whose address is Law Offices of Nathan A. Neal, 209 Kennedy Street, NW, Washington, DC 20011, was appointed successor/ personal representative of the estate of William Lewis Cowling, who died on November 1, 2014 without a will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment (or to the probate of decedent´s will) shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., 3rd Floor Wa s h i n g t o n , D . C .

20001, on or before January 24, 2016.

Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before January 24, 2016, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address and relationship.

Date of Publication: July 24, 2015 Name of newspaper: Afro-American Washington Law Reporter Nathan A. Neal Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY REGISTER OF WILLS

TRUE TEST COPY REGISTER OF WILLS

07/24, 07/31, 08/07/15

07/24, 07/31, 08/07/15

D.C. CAREER CORNER

Superior Court of the District of District of Columbia PROBATE DIVISION Washington, D.C. 20001-2131 Administration No. 2015ADM874 Annette Wooten Decedent Whitney Cleaver Smith Esq 11414 Livingston Rd Fort Washington, MD 20744 Attorney NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Joanne Wooten, whose address is 1231 Delafield Place, NE, Washington, DC 20017, was appointed personal representative of the estate of Annette Wooten, who died on May 31, 2015 without a will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose where-abouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment (or to the probate of decedent´s will) shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., 3rd Floor Wa s h i n g t o n , D . C .

20001, on or before January 31, 2016.

Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before January 31, 2016 , or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address and relationship.

Date of Publication: July 31, 2015 Name of newspaper: Afro-American Washington Law Reporter Joanne Wooten Personal Representative

TYPESET: Tue Jul 28 13:17:48 EDT 2015

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August 1, 2015 - August 7, 2015, The Afro-American

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Payment Policy for legal notice advertisements. Effective immediately, The Afro American Newspapers will require prepayment for publication of all legal notices. Payment will be accepted in the form of checks, credit card or money order. Any returned checks will be subject to a $25.00 processing fee and may result in the suspension of any future advertising at our discretion.

TYPESET: Wed Jun 24 13:07:35 EDT 2015

LEGAL NOTICES

CITY OF BALTIMORE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION Public Notice CHARM CITY CIRCULATOR The original intent of the Charm City Circulator (CCC) was to reduce traffic congestion, spread the use of the existing parking supply, tie growing communities together for residents and visitors, and connect transportation modalities by providing a safe, alternative mode of public transportation while reducing automobile congestion and air pollution in the City’s Central Business District.

Funding for the CCC program was achieved by restructuring the City’s parking tax. While the CCC’s operating expenses have increased over the years, the revenue derived from the parking tax adjustment has remained stagnant. In addition, issues with the supplier of the initial CCC fleet have necessitated significant unforeseen and unfunded expenditures. Subsequently, the CCC is operating at a deficit and will be for the near future.

In an effort address this deficit and maintain our goal of traffic mitigation, it is proposed that the CCC system be restructured. Through this process, CCC operations will be adjusted to make the program sustainable while continuing to meet ridership needs. Adjustments to the program include: *Elimination of the Banner Route * Federal grant funding for the Banner Route has ended. Commuters can utilize MTA Local Bus Route #1 to access Fort Avenue and Fort McHenry. *Implementation of uniform operating hours for all routes: *Monday through Thursday 7:00 am - 8:00 pm *Friday 7:00 am - 12:00 am *Saturday 9:00 am - 12:00 am *Sunday 9:00 am - 8:00 pm *The Orange Route will be modified and the following stops will be eliminated: 207, 209, 210, 211, 212, 213, 226, 227 *The following Orange Route stops will be added: Fayette Street at Poppleton Street, Fayette Street at Fremont Avenue, Fleet Street at Exeter Street, and Central Avenue at Bank Street *The Green Route will be modified and the following stops will be eliminated: 101,104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 109, 110, 111, 112, 113, 114, 116, 119, 120, 121, 122, 123, 125, 126 *The following Green Route stops will be added: Fayette Street at Colvin Street, Fayette Street at Holliday Street, Fayette Street at St. Paul Street, Baltimore Street at Calvert Street, Fleet Street at Exeter Street, Fleet Street at Caroline Street, Fayette Street at Wolfe Street (eastbound), Washington Street at Jefferson Street, and Madison Street at Wolfe Street *Purple Route Northern Extension will be implemented The majority of the proposed changes are scheduled to take effect on July 20, 2015, except for the Purple Route Northern Extension which is expected to occur in the Fall of 2015. The restructured Charm City Circulator map is available at www.charmcitycirculator.com and www. baltimorecity.gov/Government/AgenciesDepartments/Transportation.aspx for public engagement and comment.

Interested members of the public are encouraged to provide feedback and comments on the proposed changes. The comment period is currently open through July 8, 2015. Citizens may mail or email testimonies/ comments through midnight, July 8, 2015 to the Department of Transportation, 417 E. Fayette Street, Room 559, Baltimore, MD 21202 or to info@charmcitycirculator.com (using ”CCC Proposed Changes July 2015” as the subject). All public comments received will considered by the responsible administrator prior to taking final action on the proposed service adjustments.

Several public informational sessions will also be held during the month of July. Please visit www.charmcitycirculator.com and www.baltimorecity.gov/ Government/AgenciesDepartments/Transportation.aspx for additional information and updates on meeting dates and times.

Persons unable to attend the hearings may mail or email testimonies/ comments through midnight, July 8, 2015 to Department of Transportation, 417 E. Fayette Street, Room 559, Baltimore, MD 21202 or info@ charmcitycirculator.com (with CCC Proposed Changes July 2015 as the subject).

In accordance with Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, all Baltimore City, Department of Transportation meetings are conducted in locations accessible to persons with disabilities and materials can be provided in accessible formats or translated into languages, other than English, upon request. All requests for reasonable and/or special accommodations must be made at least five (5) business days prior to the scheduled meeting date If you would like to request accessibility or language accommodations (foreign or sign), please telephone 410-396-6818 between 8am and 4pm, Monday through Friday.

Individuals with hearing or speech impairment may use Maryland Relay TYPESET: 22 13:03:38 EDT 2015 Service TTYWed 711 Jul + 410-396-6818.

CITY OF BALTIMORE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION NOTICE OF LETTING Sealed Bids or Proposals, in duplicate addressed to the Board of Estimates of the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore and marked for BALTIMORE CITY NO. TR15019; CONDUIT SYSTEM REPAIRS AT VARIOUS LOCATIONS CITYWIDE (JOC) will be received at the Office of the Comptroller, Room 204 City Hall, Baltimore, Maryland until 11:00 A.M. September 9, 2015. Positively no bids will be received after 11:00 A.M. Bids will be publicly opened by the Board of Estimates in Room 215, City Hall at Noon. The Contract Documents may be examined, without charge, at the Department of Public Works Service Center located on the first floor of the Abel Wolman Municipal Building, 200 N. Holliday Street, Baltimore, Maryland 21202 as of July 24, 2015 and copies may be purchased for a non-refundable cost of $75.00. Conditions and requirements of the Bid are found in the bid package. All contractors bidding on this Contract must first be prerequalified by the City of Baltimore Contractors Qualification Committee.

Interested parties should call (410) 396-6883 or contact the Committee at 3000 Druid Park Drive, Baltimore, Maryland 21215. If a bid is submitted by a joint venture (”JV”), then in that event, the document that established the JV shall be submitted with the bid for verification purposes.

The Prequalification Category required for bidding on this project is B02553 Duct Line Construction. Cost Qualification Range for this work shall be $2,000,000.00 to $3,000,000.00. A ”Pre-Bidding Information” session will be conducted at 10:00 A.M. on August 7, 2015 at 417 E. Fayette Street, Charles L. Benton Building, Room 724. Principal Items of work for this project are Rodding Existing Conduit Ducts - 20,000 LF, Break Out Existing Ducts to Clear Obstructions - 2,000 LF, Concrete Encased Ducts - 2,700 LF, Cast in Place Electrical Manhole - 20 CY, and Precast Manholes - 4 EA. The MBE goal is 6% and WBE goal is 1% APPROVED: Bernice H. Taylor, Clerk Board of Estimates

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BALTIMORE AFRO-AMERICAN NEWSPAPER Legal Advertising Rates Effective October 1, 2008 PROBATE DIVISION (Estates) 202-332-0080 PROBATE NOTICES a. Order Nisi $ 60 per insertion b. Small Estates (single publication $ 60 per insertion c. Notice to Creditors 1. Domestic $ 60 per insertion 2. Foreign $ 60 per insertion d. Escheated Estates $ 60 per insertion e. Standard Probates

CIVIL NOTICES a. Name Changes 202-879-1133 b. Real Property

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FAMILY COURT 202-879-1212 DOMESTIC RELATIONS 202-879-0157 a. Absent Defendant b. Absolute Divorce c. Custody Divorce

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To place your ad, call 1-800-237-6892, ext. 262, Public Notices $50.00 & up depending on size, Baltimore Legal Notices are $24.84 per inch.

1-800 (AFRO) 892 For Proof of Publication, please call 1-800-237-6892, ext. 244 TYPESET: Tue Jul 28 13:24:30 EDT 2015 LEGAL NOTICES CITY OF BALTIMORE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC WORKS OFFICE OF ENGINEERING & CONSTRUCTION NOTICE OF LETTING Sealed Bids or Proposals, in duplicate addressed to the Board of Estimates of the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore and marked for Sanitary Contract No. 903-Improvements to Patapsco Sewershed will be received at the Office of the Comptroller, Room 204, City Hall, Baltimore, Maryland until 11:00 A.M. on Wednesday, August 26, 2015. Positively no bids will be received after 11:00 A.M. Bids will be publicly opened by the Board of Estimates in Room 215, City Hall at Noon.

The Contract Documents may be examined, without charge, at the Department of Public Works in Room 6 located on the first floor of the Abel Wolman Municipal Building, 200 N. Holliday Street, Baltimore, Maryland 21202 as of Friday, July 24, 2015 and copies may be purchased for a non-refundable cost of $100.00.

Conditions and requirements of the Bid are found in the bid package.

All contractors bidding on this Contract must first be prequalified by the City of Baltimore Contractors Qualification Committee. Interested parties should call 410-396-6883 or contact the Committee at 3000 Druid Park Drive, Baltimore, Maryland 21215. If a bid is submitted by a joint venture (”JV”), then in that event, the document that established the JV shall be submitted with the bid for verification purposes. The Prequalification Category required for bidding on this project is B02552-Sewer Construction or G90099-Cured-in-Place Pipe Lining Cost Qualification Range for this work shall be $20,000,000.01 to $30,000,000.00 A ”Pre-Bidding Information” session will be conducted at 300 Abel Wolman Municipal Building, Large Conference Room on July 30, 2015 at 10:00 A.M. The CCTV videos of the sewers included in this project will be made available for viewing/copying to interested parties at the Office of Whitman, Requardt & Associates, LLP, 801 South Caroline, Baltimore, MD 21231. Refer to IB-8 for additional details Principal Items of work for this project are: *Sewer cleaning and closed circuit television (CCTV) inspection *Cured-in-Place pipe (CIPP) lining of sanitary sewers *Excavate and replace segments of sanitary sewer via point repairs *Manhole repair and rehabilitation work *Sewer house connection (SHC) repair and rehabilitation work *New manhole and cleanout installation work This project is a recipient of the State Revolving Loan The MBE goal is 17% The WBE goal is 16% SANITARY CONTRACT NO. 903 APPROVED: Bernice H. Taylor Clerk, Board of Estimates APPROVED: Rudolph S. Chow, P.E. Dorector of Public Works

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TYPESET: Tue Oct 15 19:39:04 EDT 2013 Become a Foster Parent!

Treatment Foster Parents work from home, receive a tax-free stipend and professional 24 hour on-call support for providing shelter for a young person who has suffered abuse or neglect. For more information, call the CHOSEN Treatment Foster Care Program at 1-800-621-8834.

C5

C6 The Afro-American, August 1, 2015 - August 7, 2015 TYPESET: Tue Jul 28 13:26:17 EDT 2015 TYPESET: Tue Jul 28 13:25:09 EDT 2015 LEGAL NOTICES City of Baltimore Department of Finance Bureau of Purchases Sealed proposals addressed to the Board of Estimates of Baltimore will be received until, but not later than 11:00a.m. local time on the following date(s) for the stated requirements: August 12, 2015 BITUMINOUS PAVING MATERIALS (HOT & COLD PATCH) B50004177 0 STORM DRAIN INLET CLEANING SERVICES B50004193 0

August 26, 2015 ROLL-OFF CONTAINERS REHAB & REPAIR B50004195 0 R E C Y L C E C O N TA I N E R S & L I D S B50004208 0

THE ENTIRE SOLICITATION DOCUMENT CAN BE VIEWED AND DOWN LOADED BY VISITING THE CITY’S WEB SITE: www.baltimorecitibuy.org

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CAREER CORNER

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To advertise in the AFRO Call 410-5548200

TYPESET: Tue Jul 28 13:19:05 EDT 2015

HOUSEKEEPING - ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES SPECIALIST CARROLL COMMUNITY COLLEGE has a full-time, 12 month position available as Environmental Services Specialist. Additional information may be obtained at www.carrollcc. edu. EOE/M/F TYPESET: Tue Jul 28 13:19:27 EDT 2015

TYPESET: Tue Jul 28 13:34:27 EDT 2015

EDUCATION - CYBER TECHNOLOGY COORDINATOR/ FACULTY MEMBER IN CYBER SECURITY CARROLL COMMUNITY COLLEGE has a full-time, 12 month position available as Cyber Technology Coordinator/ Faculty Member in Cybersecurity. Additional information may be obtained at www.carrollcc.edu .EOE/M/F

EDUCATION - COORDINATOR OF STUDENT ACTIVITIES AND LEADERSHIP CARROLL COMMUNITY COLLEGE seeks a fulltime, 12 month position as a Coordinator of Student Activities and Leadership. Additional information may be obtained at www.carrollcc.edu. EOE/M/F

AFRO.COM •Your History •Your Community • Your News

SPORTS

Should the NBA Move to a Top Playoff Format? A Debate.

Continued from C1

Baltimore Native Learns Programming at All Star Code

opponent in a seven-game series. So why not reward a team that is able to prevail in repeated regular season matchups against the same division opponents? Removing the guaranteed playoff spot deals a major blow to the importance of winning a division. If the NBA is going to remove that guarantee, why not remove divisions altogether, and just let teams compete to be among the top 8 in the Eastern and Western conferences?

NBA commissioner Adam Silver could be opening a box of worms if he changes the current playoff structure.

Green: The Association could flourish if the divisions are eliminated. There would be better and more diverse rivalries, more exposure for fans and players and less predictable games. If three games between the Washington Wizards and New York Knicks in a given season have been 20-point blowouts, then it’s safe to say what the outcome of Game Four will look like. How much better would basketball be if Washington replaced four annual games against the lowly Knicks with four games facing off against division-leading Chicago, for example? I don’t have a problem with seeing the winningest teams compete against each other. Silver appears set on moving away from the guaranteed playoff spots and I think the NBA will be better because of it.

Washington Training Camp Preview Continued from C1 in the offseason. After a few power moves, it appears Washington has finally addressed its greatest flaw.

Replacing Jim Haslett as defensive coordinator is Joe Barry, who spent the last four seasons as the linebacker coach for the San Diego Chargers, and served as defensive coordinator for the Detroit Lions for two years. Under Barry, Washington will continue to stick with the 3-4 defensive scheme.

New nose tackle Terrance “Pot Roast” Knighton is one of the most impactful additions of the offseason. The 6-foot, 3-inch, 331-pound Knighton is one of the top run-stoppers in the NFL, recording 30 tackles and two sacks last season. Knighton, along with defensive ends Jason Hatcher and newcomer Stephen Paea, are expected to be instrumental in ushering in a new era of Washington defense.

Photo credit Tyrone Rasheed The “Rising Stars” participated in the All Star Code event in the New York Hamptons.

By Anica Green

Special to the AFRO

In every area of the technology field, Blacks are not only under represented, they are nearly nonexistent. Blacks comprise less than 1% of startup founding teams at tech companies like Twitter, Google, and LinkedIn. On July 25th, celebrities, philanthropists, and high school participants gathered at the Second Annual Summer Benefit for All-Star Code (ASC), a tech education nonprofit that aims to provide resources, mentorship, and educational opportunities for young, Black men interested in the tech field.

The benefit opened with a cocktail reception which featured game stations with games developed by ASC students and alumni. Following the reception was a dinner, awards ceremony and auction. Altogether the event raised over $600K. Maurice DuBois, award winning anchor of ‘CBS 2 This Morning’, hosted the awards ceremony over dinner provided by Chef Marcus Samuelsson of Red Rooster Harlem. Co-Chair Loida Nicolas Lewis presented Frank A. Baker, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Siris Capital Group, with the Visionary Award. Co-Chair Troy Carter, Founder, Chairman and CEO of Atom Factory, presented Goldman Sachs Gives with the Cor-

porate Leadership Award. Co-Chair Valentino D. Carlotti accepted the award on behalf of Goldman Sachs Gives. And current All Star Code student Cameron King presented Marcus Mitchell with the Community Award. Mitchell is a Senior Engineering Director at Google.

In addition to the funds raised that night, ASC was also celebrating receiving $100,000 from AT&T to increase the number of coders who attend the program.

Zavier Jenkins, a Baltimore native who will be a senior at the High School for Math, Science and Engineering at City College New York is a member of the first ASC summer intensive group. He spoke about how ASC has helped him to become a “hacker”. He said, “Yes, it can mean a black hat who breaks into the federal government’s servers and does terrible things, but to be a hacker can also mean to be an explorer, an inventor, an innovator.

To me to be a hacker is to solve problems, to make new things out of old ones. This is what ASC has taught me, to love solving problems and how to make new things. It made me into an explorer, and an inventor, and an innovator. It changed my life.”

This article was originally published in INSIDE NEW YORK’s section of the Afro-Times and is reprinted with permission of INSIDE NEW YORK.

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College Democrats Urge Millenials to Get Involved at D.C. Convention

August 1, 2015 - August 7, 2015, The Afro-American

WASHINGTON

Council Member Orange Offers Bill to Get 1 Million Signatures for D.C. Statehood

By James Wright Special to the AFRO jwright@afro.com

By James Wright Special to the AFRO jwright@afro.com The College Democrats of America held its annual convention from July 22-25 at the University of the District of Columbia. Dozens of delegates representing various colleges and universities from around the country attended workshops and plenary sessions.

Ashley Spillane, president of Rock the Vote, a nonpartisan organization whose mission is to get young people involved in the political process, said she understands

D1

AP Photo

D.C. Council members are proposing legislation to crack down on the illegal use of dirt bikes and ATVs in the District.

A veteran D.C. Council member seeks to launch a petition drive to get one million people to support making the District of Columbia the 51st state in the union.

D.C. Council member Vincent Orange (D-At Large) submitted a “sense of the council” resolution on July 7 called the “’Statehood or

D.C. Council Members Seek to Increase Penalties for Illegal Dirt Bikes and ATVs

and a fine up to $500 or no more than 90 days in jail for the second violation; and suspension of an individual’s provisional or operator’s permit for a year and a fine up to $1000 or no Several D.C. Council members are proposing legislation more than 180 days in jail for the third or subsequent violation. to crack down on the illegal use of dirt bikes and All-Terrain Allen told Newschannel 8 the growing trend of dirt bikes Vehicles (ATVs) in the District. Judiciary Chairman and and ATVs are creating a public hazard in neighborhoods. “Just Councilmember Kenyan R. McDuffie (D-Ward 5), along on my own street I’ve seen dirt bikes flying through stop signs with Councilmembers Charles Allen (D-Ward 6) and Brianne and red lights,” he said. “And then we’ve seen dirt bikes in Nadeau (D-Ward 1), introduced the bill to discourage residents several different violent crimes and murders.” from using the modes of transportation, which have been linked Allen said the murders of Charnice Milton, 27, and Tamara to several crimes across the city.

Gliss, 31, were examples of crimes “I’ve heard complaints about illegal committed by dirt bike riders.

ATVs and dirt bikes from all around Ward “They [vehicles] are already illegal in 6,” Allen told the AFRO on July 27. “I the streets, but as most neighbors have seen was happy to co-introduce the “Enhanced you’ll have groups that fly by on H Street Penalties for Operation of All-Terrain or other corridors,” Allen said. “Public Vehicles and Dirt Bikes Amendment Act safety is paramount.” of 2015” with Councilmember McDuffie According to NBC 4 Washington, the to help get these vehicles off District bill is expected to be discussed at a public – Charles Allen (D-Ward 6) hearing in the Fall. “Currently our laws streets. This is a safety issue. We’ve seen these bikes being used to commit crimes just do not serve as a sufficient deterrent to including murder. It’s time to give MPD the use of these machines. Dirt bikes and more tools to step up enforcement and ATVs are not appropriate for use on our crack down on illegal ridership.” roads, are dangerous, and have been used The bill would allow the Metropolitan completely irresponsibly on sidewalks and Police Department (MPD) to tow any dirt bike or ATV parked in packs to intimidate pedestrians and drivers,” McDuffie said on public property and require registration of all ATVs and dirt in a press release. bikes with the Department of Motor Vehicles.

According to recent reports on WUSA9, the bill has a good The bill would also enhance penalties for offenders, chance of passing and being signed by Mayor Muriel Bowser. including a fine up to $250 or more than 30 days in jail for the The station also reported that District residents are divided on first violation; suspension of an individual’s provisional or whether the bill is fair, even though they agree that dirt bikes operator’s permit for six months from the date of the conviction and ATVs are a safety concern.

By Linda Poulson Special to the AFRO

“Young Black people will look up to and listen to people who look like us and are authentic.”

– Deshawn Jamison why young people don’t participate in politics heavily.

“You are the millennial generation,” Spillane said, speaking about the huge group of Americans born roughly from 1980-2000.

“Millennials like to get things done and in politics things can really be slow at times and that can be frustrating for young people. We need you involved because in 2016, there will be 20 million more millennials than Baby Boomers that will eligible

“Public safety is paramount.”

Continued on D2

New Program to Offer Free Broadband in HUD Properties

By Shantella Y. Sherman Special to the AFRO ssherman@afro.com For millions of

schoolchildren across the country, the end of the school day means the end of highspeed, broadband Internet access. Winter and summer

Photo by Shantella Y. Sherman

Students are increasingly accessing the Internet for school-related projects using hotspots in local coffeehouses or libraries because of a lack of broadband in many neighborhoods.

breaks, additionally, produce a virtual “blackout” of Internet service.

This separation of resources creates what President Barack Obama calls a “homework gap,” wherein young people, especially those living in subsidized housing, are limited in their ability to be effective students.

Obama, along with U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Julián Castro recently announced, ConnectHome, an initiative to extend affordable broadband access to families living in HUD-assisted housing, as a remedy for the homework gap. While Obama’s previous efforts with ConnectEd secured broadband in 98 percent of the nation’s public schools, members of his administration said there was a need for additional services.

“America must remain the undisputed land of opportunity in a rapidly Continued on D2

Courtesy Photo

Vincent Orange (D-AtLarge) D.C. Council member Else’ Signature Campaign of 2015.” Partially using the slogan of the 20th anniversary of the Million Man March – “Justice or Else” – the event will take place on Oct. 10.

“The time is now for the District to push for statehood and collecting one million signatures demonstrates that sense of urgency,” Orange said. “It is important to have the signatures by next summer so that the future leadership in the White House makes statehood in the District a priority of their administration.”

Orange said he wants to collect one million signatures for a petition supporting D.C. statehood and submit them Continued on D2

‘Fight of the Century’ Louis vs. Schmeling

Cassandra White of BGP and Attorney Claude Roxborough honored American Boxing Legend Joe Louis on June 21 with a wreath ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia. The ceremony was a commemoration of the 77th anniversary of the historical “fight of the century” between Louis and Max Schmeling. The heavyweight championship is symbolic of the struggle between competing ideologies –American Democracy versus Hitler’s philosophy of dictatorship and oppression. Among the speakers were Herbert Ruffin, retired sergeant and champion army boxer; Sharriff Salim, manager and inductee into the D.C. Boxing Hall of Fame and Claude Roxborough, nephew of the late manager of Joe Louis – John Roxborough. Louis’ daughter, Gwendolyn Courtney also attended the commemoration. Roxborough announced that he and Michael Stein have completed registering for a Broadway musical about the June 22, 1938, “Fight of the Century.”

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The Afro-American, August 1, 2015 - August 7, 2015

New Program

Orange

Continued from D1

Continued from D1

changing 21st century. When more than 90 percent of college applications are online and 80 percent of job applications are online, it becomes clear how important access is,” Castro said during a White House press call on July 15. “We believe that the same level of access should follow kids from the school to their homes.”

Castro expects ConnectHome to impact more than 275,000 lowincome households – offering broadband access, technical training, digital literacy programs, and devices for residents in assisted housing units in 27 cities across the country, including D.C. and Baltimore, and the Choctaw tribal nation.

Jeff Zients, White House National Economic Council director, said in a teleconference on July 15, that local housing authorities for each of the selected cities will work with ConnectHome to officially launch the initiative in their areas.

The D.C. Housing Authority (DCHA) has not set an official launch date.

He also said, that while nearly two-thirds of households in the lowest-income quintile own a computer, less than half have a home Internet subscription. “While many middle-class U.S. students go home to Internet access, allowing them to do research, write papers, and communicate digitally with their teachers and other students, too many lower-income children go unplugged every afternoon when school ends,” Zients

said. “This “homework gap” runs the risk of widening the achievement gap, denying hardworking students the benefit of a technology-enriched education. This means making Internet access a priority.”

ConnectHome works with HUD and several corporations, including Google Fiber, which will offer free home Internet service to residents in select public housing properties and Best Buy, which is slated to provide D.C. students residing in HUD properties with free afterschool technical training. Additionally, Castro announced new measures requiring HUD-funded new residential construction and substantial – Jeff Zients rehabilitation projects to support broadband Internet connectivity.

“My hope is that there will be great results. Right now this is a demonstration project whose success will be measured by how many who did not have access, now have access,” Castro said. “A longitudinal study on what kinds of impacts ConnectHome had on student learning or education is also coming. We are finding and addressing a need, while making a study of filling those voids.”

Private industries, local leaders, and nonprofits have so far committed to spending $70 million over the next several years on ConnectHome. The federal government, according to Castro, will not contribute more than $50,000 allocated by the Department of Agriculture for broadband-related equipment to the Choctaw tribal nation.

“…too many lower-income children go unplugged every afternoon when school ends.”

College Democrats Continued from D1

to vote and that will make a difference in the presidential election.”

The power of the millennial vote was shown in 2012.

The Center for Research and Information on Civic Learning and Engagement at Tufts University did an analysis of the 2012 presidential election and it showed that President Obama won the youth vote, defined as voters aged 18-29, with 67 percent as opposed to his Republican Party opponent, Mitt Romney, who got only 30 percent.

Wikimedia Commons The 2012 analysis said Julián Castro is the U.S. the youth vote provided the difference for Obama in swing Secretary of Housing and states such as Florida, Virginia, Urban Development.

Pennsylvania, and Ohio. The president won at least 61 percent of the youth vote in those states.

However, it was a different story in 2014. The Center for Research and Information did an analysis on the 2014 midterm

elections and found that only 21.5 percent of young people voted as opposed to 45 percent in 2012. The 2014 analysis showed that young people favored Democratic candidates for the U.S. House of Representatives and they backed Democratic hopefuls for the U.S. Senate.

Spillane said college-aged citizens are not in tune with the current system of voting. “We have an antiquated system,” she said. “Registering to vote is an arduous process for some young people because you have to manually fill out an application and mail it in or take it by the courthouse in many states. Young people want online registration which is quicker and tends to be more efficient.”

Spillane said that many states make it difficult for young people to participate in the political process. “There are many states where a college identification is not good enough to cast a ballot,” Spillane said, referencing states like Texas and North Carolina. “Also, some state legislatures put college campuses voting precincts with residential precincts and that is done to dilute the college vote. What should be done is that college precincts should be left intact.”

The conference included speakers such as U.S. Sens.

Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), U.S. Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Calif.), and Obama Cabinet members U.S. Secretary of Labor Thomas Perez and Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Julián Castro.

Castro told the young Democrats that the nation needs their leadership. “I hope that all of you go into public service,” Castro, the former mayor of San Antonio, said. “We need people who are getting into politics for the right reasons.

He added, “The events of Ferguson, the shootings in South Carolina, and what happened to Sandra Bland in Texas make you realize that some things change and yet something things stay the same.”

“You must learn and respect the past,” Castro said, “and move forward in a positive direction.”

Political observers say that Castro is on former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s short list of vice presidential prospects.

He downplayed that speculation, saying that “I’m focused on what I’m doing now and what happens in the future will happen.”

The convention didn’t come up with an organization strategy to get the vote out in 2016. However, it did motivate individuals to think in that direction.

Deshawn Jamison will be a sophomore this Fall at the College of Coastal Georgia in Brunswick, Georgia, and was inspired by the convention. He said he knows how to get young Blacks to the polls to vote in 2016.

“Young Black people will look up to and listen to people

to the White House, the 535 members of the U.S. Congress, and to the leaders at the 2016 Democratic and Republican conventions.

The resolution is legislation that expresses the determination, decision, and direction of the D.C. Council, according to the latest edition of the D.C. Council Handbook.

The resolution only has to go through one full reading by the Council and doesn’t have to be approved by the mayor or the U.S. Congress. Orange’s bill will likely be taken up after the D.C. Council’s summer recess, which ends on Sept. 15.

D.C. Council members Charles Allen (D-Ward 6), LaRuby May (D-Ward 8), Brandon Todd (D-Ward 8), Brianna Nadeau (D-Ward 1), and Jack Evans (D-Ward 2) are co-sponsoring the legislation. However, while Orange has enough support to pass his bill through the council, he said that more political and

“We need to have a national campaign to get statehood and we need to take our message beyond D.C. and its borders.”

– Franklin Garcia

governmental leaders need to be on board.

“For the campaign’s success, we need Mayor Bowser, all 13 council members, [D.C.] Attorney General Karl Racine, the Chief Financial Officer Jeffrey S. DeWitt, [D.C.] Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton, [D.C.] Senators Paul Strauss and Michael D. Brown, [D.C.] Representative Franklin Garcia, D.C. Vote, D.C. Appleseed and all District residents and citizens of the United States to aggressively support this campaign for D.C. statehood,” Orange said.

“The ‘Statehood or Else’ campaign is an opportunity to present a unifying front with the goal of achieving statehood for the District.”

Garcia said he supports Orange’s initiative enthusiastically.

Garcia, Strauss, and Brown are non-paid elected officials charged with lobbying Congress to grant the District statehood.

“It is a good initiative,” Garcia told the AFRO on July 25. “We need to have a national campaign to get statehood and we need to take our message beyond D.C. and its borders.”

Garcia said that any effort to highlight the political plight of D.C. residents is worth it. “I was in Rhode Island recently and I explained to an audience that D.C. residents don’t have a vote in Congress and people were shocked to hear that,” he said.

“A lot of people don’t know what is going on in D.C. We need to do whatever we can do see that people across the nation are informed about our lack of democracy.”

Orange also has the support of Stand Up! for Democracy – Free D.C., a grassroots organization that is pro-D.C. statehood.

The organization posted that it “has already planned to work to mobilize and educate visitors for D.C. statehood [on Oct. 10] and will work in coalition with council member Orange and ‘Justice or Else.’

However, Orange’s approach does have its critics. Josh Burch, the founder of Neighbors United for Statehood, said on his website, the51st.org, that he supports the spirit of what the council member wants to do, however, some aspects should be changed. “There are many good components in Council member Vincent Orange’s resolution to promote the statehood cause through a multi-media campaign and a petition drive,” Burch said. “The name D.C. Statehood or Else, should be tabled but the basic premise should be preserved, nurtured and developed into something meaningful, impactful and inspiring.”

Burch proposes that a march, rally, and a peaceable and nonviolent storming of the U.S. Capitol by District residents takes place on April 16 instead of a petition drive. who look like us and are authentic,” Jamison said. “We don’t need rappers and superstar athletes to tell us how to vote.

We need people who are involved in politics to talk to us and encourage us to get involved.”

Jamison said that he will run for political office someday and that the convention only heightened his sense of obtaining that goal. “I want to be in politics so that I can be a champion for the people,” he said.

August 1, 2015 - August 7, 2015, The Afro-American

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WASHINGTON AREA

COMMUNITY CONNECTION Washington, D.C.

For Children of Incarcerated Parents Awards Ceremony

For Children of Incarcerated Parents will host its 4th Annual Awards ceremony to honor and award six $2,500 scholarships and $250 book awards to area students. The ceremony will be held at Pepco Edison Place Gallery, 702 Eighth Street, NW, on July 30 from 6:30 p.m.-8 p.m. Awardees are all students from the D.C., Maryland and Virginia area who will be attending a number of prestigious universities across the country. The event is free and open to the public. The 2015 scholars are: Marshawne Stokes, Paul Lawrence Dunbar High School, Maryland; Mahni Hellams, Eastern Senior High School, D.C.; DeRonte Craig, Northwestern High School, Maryland; Autumn, Huntingtown High School, Maryland; Sadiah Crawford, Calvin Coolidge High School, D.C.; and Divine Brooks, Indian River High School, Virginia. For more information, contact Yasmine Arrington by phone at 202-813-5439 or by email at yarrington@elon.edu.

& Evening Gown Preliminary on Aug. 7, Miss Black USA Talented Teen & Jr. Teen National Pageant on Aug. 8 and Miss Black USA Talent & On Stage Q&A Preliminary on Aug. 8. Miss Black USA will also stream live at MissBlackUSA.org.

Silver Spring, Md.

D.C. Blues Festival Fundraiser

The D.C. Blues Society will hold a fundraiser for its D.C. Blues Festival on Aug. 8 at American Legion Post 41, 905 Sligo Avenue from 4 p.m.-11:20 p.m. Musical acts include JaneliaSoul, Three Song Sadie, Shakedown, The Mojo Priests, Margo Hope & Adelphi Bluz, Reggie Wayne Morris, Jesi Terrell and The Love Mechanic Band, Mike Westcott, and Ron Hicks Project. Admission to the event costs $15. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit dcblues.org.

Fort Meade, Md.

Free Summer Concert Series

The annual Fort Meade Summer Concert Series is scheduled to begin on Aug. 1 at Constitution Park on Fort Meade, 4409 Miss Black USA Llewellyn Avenue. The free concert The 2015 Miss Black USA series features four distinct performances pageant will make its return that will occur every Saturday at 7 back to the Nation’s Capitol p.m. until Aug. 22. The concert series to crown Miss Black USA is open to the public and will include: 2015 on Aug. 9. The big night Aug. 1 – “100 Years of Billie Holiday” will be held at the Theatre performed by the Jazz Ambassadors, for Performing Arts at the Aug. 8 – “Army Goes to the Movies” University of the District performed by the Concert Band and of Columbia,4200 Soldiers’ Chorus, Aug. 15 -- “Kings of Connecticut Avenue the Highway: America’s Road Music” NW. The pageant will Kalilah Allen-Harris will performed

by The Volunteers, and be hosted by Kalilah host the 2015 Miss Black Aug. 22 – “Finale Concert with 1812 Allen-Harris, who is an USA pageant.

Overture, Continental Color Guard actress, physician and a and the Presidential Salute Battery” former Miss Black USA performed by the Concert Band and Soldiers’ (2007). The crowning event will also showcase Chorus.

Visitors should enter Fort Meade at a special performance by Grammy Nominated the main gate at Route 175 and Reece Road.

Singer, Producer and Musician Johnny Britt All privately-owned vehicles are required to be performing his hit single “Beautiful Queen”. licensed, registered, inspected and insured.

Other events include, Miss Black USA Fitness

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Update Your Contact Information

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Call 202-833-7500 to ensure that your current phone number is displayed on your account. That way we can accurately identify you if you call to report an outage.

Assemble an Emergency Storm Kit Take a few minutes to gather important items to keep handy in the event of a storm. Your kit should contain bottled water, non-perishable foods, blankets, flashlights and extra batteries, a first-aid kit and prescription medications, special medical supplies, hand tools and other essential items.

Make a Plan in Case of Extended Power Outages Know where you will go in the event of a power outage lasting multiple days. Most communities have a designated location with back-up power, or you can plan to stay with a relative, friend or neighbor. Important: If you have a generator, never run it indoors or inside a garage or carport – only operate it outdoors in a well-ventilated area, following all safety guidelines.

Register for the Emergency Medical Equipment Notification Program This program is important for customers who rely on electricity to power life-support equipment in their homes. Call 202-833-7500 and ask for a Customer Care representative or visit pepco.com/EMENP to learn more.

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all 1-877-PEPCO-62 (1-877-737-2662) to report outages and C downed wires, and please request a call back so we can verify if individual or small groups of outages still exist. se our mobile app on your smartphone or tablet to get the U latest news, report an outage or a streetlight problem, access outage maps of your area, call us directly and get estimates for when power will be restored – it’s free and available from your app store or at pepco.com/mobileapp. o online to pepco.com, click “Outage Center” and enter your G account information to get the latest news, report an outage, access outage maps of your area, get important contact information and estimates for when power will be restored – from anywhere you can access the Internet.

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By Shari L. McCoy n June 6, the annual Jurisdictional Scholarship Awards Program was held at the Masonic Temple, 1000 U Street, NW. The event was sponsored by the Prince Hall Freemason and Eastern Star Charitable Foundation (PHFESCF), in conjunction with the Most Worshipful Prince Hall Grand Lodge, Free and Accepted Masons, Prince Hall Affiliation of the District of Columbia and the Georgiana Thomas Grand Chapter, Order of the Eastern Star, Prince Hall Affiliation of the District of

Scholarship Recipient Kennedy Cymone Bell singing “Hero”

Courtesy photos

For these pictures and more go to afro.com/slideshows.

The Afro-American, August 1, 2015 - August 7, 2015

Columbia. Over $80,000 was awarded to graduating seniors or continuing college students in the Washington Metropolitan area.

The Honorable Norman L. Campbell, Most Worshipful Grand Master, congratulated the students on their first step in life toward adulthood and challenged students to remember the sacrifices of their families.

Dr. Venecia C. Bessellieu, Grand Worthy Matron of the Georgiana Thomas Grand Chapter, Order of the Eastern Star, further challenged the scholarship recipients to

Order of the Knights of Pythagoras member Clarence “CJ” Berry Prince Hall Free Mason and Eastern Star Charitable Foundation President George C. Lacy

Keynote speaker Dr. Ramona Hoage Edelin, executive director, D.C. Association of Chartered Public Schools

Kailah Doles, granddaughter of MWPGM John T. Doles Sr., singing “The Greatest Love of All”

Norman L. Campbell, Most Worshipful Grand Master

Dr. Venecia C. Bessellieu, Grand Worthy Matron of the Georgiana Thomas Grand Chapter, Order of the Eastern Star, PHA

2015 Jurisdictional Scholarship Committee: Past Matron Lynne Fairfax, Associate Matron Dorothy Kitrell, Past Matron Glaceria Mason, Associate Matron Tanya Slaughter, Worshipful Junior Grand Deacon William “Jay” Jones, Past Matron Kelli J. McCoy, Past Matron Karen Robinson, Past Matron Shari L. McCoy, Associate Matron Margo Skinner and Sister Latorsha Patterson

Grand Worthy Patron Albert Pope, Grand Worthy Matron Venecia C. Bessellieu, scholarship recipient Ciara Montgomery, Most Worshipful Grand Master Norman L. Campbell and Foundation President George C. Lacy

Jurisdictional Chairs: Past Matron Kelli J. McCoy-Burkett (VP) and Past Matron Glaceria Mason

dedicate themselves to advancing their education and pursuing their dreams. The 2015 scholarship program was chaired by Kelli J. McCoy-Burkett, vice president of the foundation. Her committee selected approximately 70 students. The keynote speaker was Dr. Ramona Hoage Edelin, executive director of the D.C. Association of Public Charter Schools. Since the inception of the scholarship program in 1957, this Masonic organization has awarded over $50,000,000 in scholarships.

Most Worshipful Grand Master Norman L. Campbell, Grand Worthy Matron Venecia C. Besselliu, Grand Worthy Patron Albert Pope with scholarship recipients

The Washington Government Relations Group (WGRG), in conjunction with the embassy of Canada, held its Sixth Annual Tin Cup Awards on July 15. The event, held at the Canadian embassy, honored U.S. Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.); U.S. Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.); Federal Housing Agency Finance Director Melvin L. Watt; Jackie Ellis, chief of staff to Rep. Al Green (D-Texas); MSNBC’s Joy Reid; and lobbyists Darlene Taylor presents The Tiffany M. Moore and Linda Banton. They each received a trophy Adam Clayton Powell Award for and recognition for their works.

Leadership in Diversity to Rep. Elijah E. Cummings (D-Md.)

Eulada Watt; The Honorable Melvin L. Watt, recipient of The President’s Award for Career Achievement - Leadership & Excellence; Darlene Taylor; Linda Banton, recipient of The Reginald Gillian Award for Lifetime Achievement and Brooks Banton

Marcus Mason, president, WGRG, Nicole Venable, Darlene Taylor, Marie Sylla-Dixon, Tusla Cole and Alyssa Beta - (Top Row) Yul Edwards, Nigel Stephens and Janatha Betz

Robert Drummer, Eden Shiferaw, Rodney Emery, Erica J. Johnson and Norman Ross

Recipient of the Lucile Harris Bluford Spotlight Award for Journalism, Joy-Ann Reid, National Correspondent, MSNBC being presented by Angela Rye

Judge Eric T. Washington

Tasha Cole, Lakeitha Anderson, Yolonda Faulkner, Lisa Ranson and J. Dominique Joseph

United States Secretary of Transportation Anthony Foxx presents The President’s Award for Career Achievement - Leadership & Excellence to The Honorable Melvin L. Watt

The recipient of The Adam Clayton Powell Award for Leadership in Diversity, Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) - Presenting the Award, Norman Ross, vice president, Regional and Federal Government Affairs at MGM Resorts International

Daron Watt, partner, Sidley Austin, LLP and Patrice Webb (right), American Beverage Association presents the Terri Grier Memorial Scholarship to Khaleeq Everett, a senior at Marymount University

Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas) and Marcus Mason, president, Washington Government Relations Group

The Recipient of The Augustus F. Hawkins Award for Leadership in DiversityOrganization, Jacqueline “Jackie” Ellis, chief of staff, Rep. Al Green (D-Texas) and Rep. Al Green

Lisa Ramsom, Yolanda Hendricks-Roach and J. Dominique Joseph Photos by Rob Roberts

To see more of these photos and purchase them visit afro.com/slideshows. To purchase this digital photo page contact Takiea Hinton: thinton@afro.com or 410.554.8277.