Court of Appeals Webcast Archive 2011 Term

September Term 2011

 

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August 2012 Schedule
Date Docket # Title
08-16-12 No. 132 Fraternal Order of Police, Lodge 35, et al. v. Montgomery County, Maryland, et al.
Issues - Election Law - 1) Is an error in the address information in the sworn circulator affidavits fatal to petition pages containing that error? 2) Does Tyler v. Secretary of State require a circuit court to invalidate each and every signature on an “imperfect” petition page? 3) Is it constitutional to invalidate petition signatures for “imperfect” information from a circulator? 4) Is a challenge to a Board of Elections decision subject to the rules and tenets of judicial review of an agency decision? 5) Did the circuit court err in finding that Montgomery County, Maryland, lacked standing?
08-16-12 No. 133 Dennis Whitley III, et al. v. Maryland State Board of Elections, et al.
Issues - Election Law - 1) Does allowing a circulator of a referendum petition to attest to his or her own signature violate the requirement of Md. Const., Art XVI § 4 that each petition must have attached "an affidavit of the person procuring those signatures that the signatures were affixed in his presence;" and/or the requirement of Md. Code Ann., Elec. Law § 6-204(a) that the affidavit be "made and executed by the individual in whose presence all of the signatures on that page were affixed and who observed each of those signatures being affixed"? 2) Does allowing a petition sponsor's computer program to pre-fill the signer's identifying information on the petition form violate the requirement of Md. Code Ann., Elec. Law § 6-203(a) that the individual signer shall "include" that information and/or the requirement of the State Board's regulation, COMAR § 33.06.03.06B(1) that the signer shall "[p]rovide" such information?
June 2012 Schedule
Date Docket # Title
06-12-12 No. 131 John Doe, et al. v. Maryland State Board of Elections, et al.
Issue - Constitutional Law - Is the Maryland DREAM Act, which directly mandates & requires an increase in future appropriations for community colleges & which regulates the amount of tuition revenue received by the University System of Maryland, a law “making any appropriation for maintaining the State Government” within the meaning of Art. XVI, sec. 2, of the MD Constitution & thereby exempt from referendum?
06-12-12 AG 16 Attorney Grievance Commission of Maryland v. John Wayne Walker-Turner
06-12-12 No. 128 Heavenly Days Crematorium, LLC v. Harris, Smariga and Associates, Inc.
Issues - Torts - (1) Whether CSA erred in applying Sections 3-2C-01 and 3-2C-02 of the Cts. & Jud. Proc. Art. of the MD Code to a non-licensed professional? (2) Whether CSA violated canons of statutory construction by interpreting these sections in a way that ignores critical statutory language and is contrary to the plain and unambiguous meaning of the statute? (3) Whether CSA erred by interpreting these sections to require petitioner to file a certificate of qualified expert within ninety days of filing its complaint against respondent, where the claim was based solely on the negligent acts and omission of a non-licensed employee? (4) Whether CSA erred in finding that the trial court did not abuse its discretion in finding that petitioner did not show good cause to grant its request for waiver or modification of requirement to file a certificate of qualified expert within ninety days of filing its complaint?
06-12-12 No. 130 Konnyack A. Thomas v. State of Maryland
Issue - Criminal Law - Did CSA correctly apply the well-settled factors used to determine custody for purposes of Miranda when concluding that petitioner was not in custody during his interview with the police?
06-11-12 No. 118 Mercy Medical Center, et al. v. Emerson R. Julian, Jr., et al.
Issues - Medical Malpractice - (1) Did the lower court err when it interpreted the MD Uniform Contribution Among Joint Tort-Feasors Act (UCATA) to require a stipulation of joint tort-feasor status in order to comply with Sec. 3-1405 & relieve a settling tort-feasor from liability to pay contribution? (2) Did the lower court err when it concluded that parties released by a pro rata release could be sued in a later action for contribution based on Swigert v. Welk, 213 Md. 613, 133 A.2d 428 (1957)? (3) If a joint tort-feasor may pursue a post-judgment action for contribution against a party released by a “Swigert” pro rata release, may he recover money damages from the “Swigert” defendant or is the remedy limited to a reduction of the judgment?
06-11-12 No. 119 Wycinna L. Spence, et vir. v. Emerson R. Julian, Jr., et al.
Issues - Medical Malpractice - (1) Did the lower court err in holding that Sec. 3-1405 of the MD Uniform Contribution Among Joint Tort-Feasors Act (UCATA) does not bar respondents’ right to obtain contribution from Mercy? (2) Did the lower court err in determining that respondents did not waive their right to claim the benefit of a release & their right to contribution by failing to raise an affirmative defense of release & failing to prove negligence by Mercy in the medical malpractice action?
06-11-12 AG 32 Attorney Grievance Commission of Maryland v. Donya Tarraine Zimmerman
06-11-12 No. 127 Kenneth Thomas v. State of Maryland
Issue - Criminal Law - Under Maryland Rules 5-802.1(b) and 5-616(c), did CSA correctly affirm trial court’s admission of a witness’s prior consistent statements when it held that if a witness had multiple motives to fabricate, the prior consistent statement was admissible so long as it predated at least one of those motives?
06-07-12 AG 13 Attorney Grievance Commission of Maryland v. Tiffany T. Alston
06-07-12 No. 115 CR-RSC Tower I, LLC, Second CR-RSC Tower I, LLC, CR-RSC Tower II, LLC and Second CR-RSC Tower II, LLC v. RSC Tower I, LLC and RSC Tower II, LLC
Issues - Contract Law - (1) Under what circumstances should a Court permit evidence of post-breach market conditions affecting a claim for lost profits? (2) Is a defendant entitled to present evidence that the plaintiff would never have recouped its investment in a business venture where a plaintiff seeks reliance damages as an alternative to proving lost profits? (3) Does a defendant, in denying a plaintiff’s charge of bad faith, waive the attorney-clients privilege as to communications relevant to the subject matter of the claim of bad faith? (4) May a court award the related attorneys’ fees on a joint & several basis where two defendants are not jointly and severally liable on separate contracts? (5) Under what circumstances can a plaintiff recover lost profits that, if the transaction proceeded as planned, would have belonged to a non-party entity? (6) May the petitioners be found jointly & severally liable for their joint effort to derail an integrated real estate development project on adjoining parcels of land where they breached identical covenants in two related ground leases & the jury found that each lessee breached covenants running with the land to implement a uniform plan of development for each lessee’s benefit?
06-07-12 No. 121 Dexter Ingram v. State of Maryland
Issue - Criminal Law - Did the lower court err by relying on law governing closing argument to hold that the trial court did not abuse its discretion by refusing to allow Petitioner’s trial counsel to compare the reasonable doubt standard with other legal standards that were not generated by the evidence or in any way relevant to the issues before the jury?
06-06-12 Bar Admissions  
06-06-12 Misc. 27 In the Matter of the Application of Henry Roland Barnes for Admission to the Bar of Maryland
06-06-12 AG 71 Attorney Grievance Commission of Maryland v. Harry Tun
06-06-12 No. 124

Matthew C. Baker, et al. v. Montgomery County Maryland, et al.
Issues - Transportation Law -- (1) Did CSA err in ruling that any challenge by recipients of speed camera citations must be raised during the District Court trial? (2) Did CSA err in ruling that recipient of a speed camera citation waives all challenges to that citation by paying the fine? (3) Did CSA err in ruling that the amendment, while this case was in litigation, of all government contracts with prime contractor to state that contractor “does not operate” the speed monitoring renders the term “operator” inapplicable to contractor?

06-06-12 No. 126 George J. Carroll v. State of Maryland
Issues - Criminal Law - (1) Is a defendant entitled, upon request, to an instruction expressly informing the jury that the State has the burden of proving each element of every charged offense beyond a reasonable doubt? (2) When neither the required evidence test nor the rule of lenity apply, should convictions for the crimes of conspiracy to commit armed robbery and attempted armed robbery be merged as a matter of fundamental fairness?
06-06-12 No. 129 USA Cartage Leasing, LLC v. Todd Baer, et al.
Issues - Real Property Law - (1) Under the law of express easements, whether the trial court erred by improperly applying “way by necessity” concepts to locate the purported right-of-way easement on the ground when such easement was not described in the granting deed, was never agreed upon, and had never physically existed on the ground? (2) Whether under the law of express easements, lack of description or actual location render a purported right-of-way easement “wholly inoperative” because it is impossible to locate?
May 2012 Schedule
05-08-12 No. 107 Maryland State Comptroller of the Treasury v. Bryan Wynne, et ux.
Issue - Statutory Law - Whether the trial court correctly struck down Sec. 10-703(a) because it imposes “multiple taxation” Goldberg v. Sweet, 488 U.S. 252, 261 (1989) in violation of the dormant Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution?
05-08-12 No. 122

S&S Oil, Inc v. Elaine W. Jackson
Issue - Tort Law - Whether a trial court may instruct a jury on the separate & distinct affirmative defenses of contributory negligence & assumption of the risk, yet only include a specific question on the verdict sheet as to contributory negligence, thus taking assumption of the risk away from the province of the jury & finding as a matter of law that assumption of the risk is included in the contributory negligence defense?
05-08-12 No. 123

Angel Ochoa v. Department of Corrections and Public Safety
Issue - Criminal Law - Is appellant subject to lifetime registration as a Tier III sex offender pursuant to Sec. 11-701 et. seq, Criminal Proc. Art. when the offenses for which appellant is compelled to register are not listed in the statute?
05-07-12 AG 47 Attorney Grievance Commission of Maryland v. Denese Dominguez
05-07-12 No. 108 State of Maryland v. Isaac Neger
Issue - Criminal Law - Did the lower court incorrectly reverse Respondent’s conviction for counterfeiting based on its conclusion that the evidence was insufficient to show an intent to defraud another notwithstanding its agreement that Respondent recorded a deed he had altered as to the owners of the property in question to conform to his belief as to ownership?
05-07-12 No. 120 Millicent Sumpter v. Sean Sumpter
Issue - Constitutional Law - Did the lower court err in refusing to vacate & remand the case to the trial court when the parties & the best interest attorney were not provided a copy of the custody investigation report in violation of constitutional due process?
05-03-12 No. 111 O'Brien Atkinson, IV, et al. v. Anne Arundel County, Maryland
Issues - Constitutional Law - (1) Was it unlawful to amend the A. A. Co. Charter through charter revision to provide for binding arbitration of labor disputes? (2) Is A.A. Co. Bill No. 4-11 unlawful as its terms failed to comply with Secs. 812(a) & 812(b) of the County Charter by deleting from Sec. 6-4-111 of the County Code the provisions that provide for binding arbitration of labor disputes? (3) Is Sec. 6-4-111 of the County Code as enacted by A.A. Co. Council Bill No. 1-03 repeated in its entirety as a matter of law as provided in Sec. 3 of A.A. Council Bill No. 4-11 because the charter provision requiring binding arbitration for certain employees, Sec. 812, violates Art. XI-A, Sec. 3 of the MD Constitution? (4) Did Chapter 651 of the 2010 Laws of MD retroactively “authorize” Sec. 812 of the A.A. Co. Charter & therefore render Sec. 812 constitutional?
05-03-12 No. 116 Pro-Football, Inc., t/a Washington Redskins, et al. v. Darnerien McCants
Issue - Labor & Employment - Workers’ Compensation - Whether MD Workers’ Compensation Comm. has jurisdiction over injuries sustained by a professional football player when playing a game outside of the State of Maryland?
05-03-12 Misc. 14 Angelia M. Anderson v. United States of America
Certified question of law: Whether Md. Ann. Code, Cts. & Jud. Proc. Sec. 5-109(a)(1) is a statute of limitations or a statute of repose?
05-02-12 Bar Admissions  
05-02-12 AG 19 Attorney Grievance Commission of Maryland v. David Arthur Ross
05-02-12 No. 93 Anthony M. Frazier v. Castle Ford, Ltd., f/k/a Crystal Ford Isuzu, Ltd.
Issues - Statutory - (1) Are punitive damages no longer available to a plaintiff after suit has been filed for deceptive practices if the compensatory damage sought by the plaintiff in the suit have been offered or paid by the defendant? (2) Does the tender of payment to a class representative plaintiff before the filing of a motion for class action certification require dismissal of the entire suit because there is no remaining controversy to adjudicate & therefore the claim is moot?
05-02-12 No. 117 Norman Iglehart and the Board of Education of Prince George's County v. Stephanie Lynn Marks-Sloan
Issues - Statutory Law - (1) Can an employee of a county board of education who receives workers’ compensation benefits for injuries sustained in the course & scope of her employment circumvent the exclusivity rule & sue her co-worker in a negligence action? (2) Does CJ Sec. 5-518 grant employees of county boards of education immunity from suit & judgment absent malice & gross negligence? (3) Did the lower court improperly rely upon the MD Tort Claims Act & the Local Government Tort Claims Act to determine that an employee of a county Board of Education may be sued in his individual capacity in a negligence action?
April 2012 Schedule
Date Docket # Title
04-10-12 AG 12 Attorney Grievance Commission of Maryland v. Perry Allen London
04-10-12 Misc. 22 In the Matter of the Application of Latosha Lavette Coleman for Admission to the Bar of Maryland
04-10-12 No. 95 Grayson Darnell Taylor v. State of Maryland
Issue - Criminal Law - Did Petitioner receive ineffective assistance of counsel where his lawyer sued him for the fee during his representation prior to the actual trial?
04-10-12 No. 110 Camille L. Shepherd v. John S. Burson, et al., Substitute Trustee
Issues - Constitutional Law - Did the lower court err in allowing appellants to proceed to foreclosure sale based upon a bogus & deceptive Notice of Intent to Foreclose? (2) Did the lower court violate the MD Constitution by improperly relying upon a court rule to supersede the mandatory requirement established by the MD Legislature?
04-10-12 No. 103 Gregory Marshall v. State of Maryland
Issue - Criminal Law - Did the lower court err in holding that because “meaningful trial proceedings had begun,” Rule 4-215 did not apply to the Petitioner's request to discharge counsel even though the Petitioner had announced as the venire entered the courtroom “Your Honor, I’d like to represent myself,” & the trial judge deferred consideration of the Petitioner’s request until completion of the roll call of jurors?
04-09-12 No. 97 Jerome Pinkney v. State of Maryland
Issue - Criminal Law - When an accused moves to discharge counsel under Md. Rule 4-215(e) & the trial judge finds that the accused has not presented meritorious reasons for the discharge, may the judge require the accused to proceed to trial with his assigned counsel without first informing him that he may discharge counsel himself & proceed pro se if he chooses?
04-09-12 No. 105 Montgomery County, Maryland v. Fraternal Order of Police, Montgomery County Lodge 35, Inc.
Issue - Public Safety - Does the express preemption provision of the Law Enforcement Officers’ Bill of Rights (LEOBR) preclude arbitration of FOP’s grievance regarding number of representatives it may have present during disciplinary interrogation of a police officer?
04-09-12 No. 94 Daniel A. McNeal. v. State of Maryland
Issue - Criminal Law - Should this Court’s decision in Prince v. State apply to verdicts which are factually inconsistent as well as those which are legally inconsistent?
04-09-12 No. 106 Darnella Thomas, et vir. v. Jeffrey Nadel, et al.
Issues - (1) Did the lower court err by denying appellants’ exceptions to foreclosure because of serious questions of title to the note raised below & the consequent lack of standing of appellees? (2) What is the legal effect of the fact that following the alleged foreclosure sale & after this appeal was noted, appellants received letters indicating they were to continue to pay mortgage payments even after ratification of the foreclosure sale?
04-06-12 No. 109 Barbara Hastings, et al. v. PNC Bank, NA
Issues - Estates & Trusts - (1) What kind of a release can a MD trustee lawfully demand or request from its beneficiaries upon distribution? (2) Whether Sec. 7-203(j) of the Tax-General Art. should have been applied to trust assets being distributed to remaindermen so as to exempt income & gains they received from any inheritance tax?
04-06-12 No. 69 Jessica Port v. Virginia Anne Cowan
Issue - Constitutional Law - Must the trial court grant a divorce to two people of the same sex who were validly married in another jurisdiction and who otherwise meet the criteria for divorce under Maryland law?
04-06-12 No. 113 David Reid v. State of Maryland
Issues - Criminal Law - (1) Should the trial court have suppressed evidence seized where use of a “Taser” to effectuate a Terry stop violated the Fourth Amendment? (2) Did the trial court err in denying appellant’s motion to suppress his statement made following arrest & prior to Miranda warnings?
04-05-12

Bar Admissions

  
04-05-12 Misc. 23 In the Matter of the Application of J.H.K. for Admission to the Bar of Maryland
04-05-12 No. 114 Cordish Power Plant Limited Partnership, et al. v. Supervisor of Assessments for Baltimore City
Issue - Tax Law - Did the MD Tax Court err in its decision to discount testimony offered by appellant because of that Court’s reliance on an erroneous understanding of law that Md. Code. Ann., Tax-Prop. Sec. 8-113 prohibited the analysis of a ground lease & its effect on a commercial valuation of a property?
04-05-12 AG 17 Attorney Grievance Commission of Maryland v. Garland Howe Stillwell
March 2012 Schedule
Date Docket # Title
03-06-12 AG 82 (2007 T.) Petition of Ira C. Cooke for Reinstatement to the Bar of Maryland
03-06-12 AG 14 Attorney Grievance Commission of Maryland v. Anthony I. Butler, Jr.
03-06-12 No. 96

Judy Curtis v. US Bank National Association, etc.
Issues - Real Property - (1) Did the trial court err in concluding that Petitioner’s bona fide lease was terminated immediately upon provision of a notice to vacate by the foreclosure sale purchaser rather than at the end of the term following the require notice period? (2) Did the trial court err in concluding that Respondent provided a valid notice to vacate under the Protecting Tenants at Foreclosure Act (PTFA) & Maryland law? (3) Did the trial court err in granting Respondent’s motion for possession when Respondent prematurely filed its motion, falsely averring that it had the present right to possession in the already summary process provided in Md. Rule 14-102

03-06-12 No. 98

Erie Insurance Exchange v. Estate of Jeanne Reeside
Issue - Estates & Trusts - Did the trial court err by failing to enter an order enforcing the parties’ settlement agreement and/or permitting the case to proceed to trial after a substituted agreement had been reached?

03-05-12 AG 15 Attorney Grievance Commission of Maryland v. Constance Anne Camus
03-05-12 No. 100 Kelly Swartzbaugh, et al. v. Encompass Insurance Company of America
Issues - Insurance Law - (1) In a matter of first impression for purposes of Insurance Art. Sec. 19-510 what is the definition of the term “first named insured”? (2) Because the “Uninsured Motorist Waiver” is on the form required by the Maryland Insurance Administration & not part of the private insurance contract, may a private party “self-define” a statutory term?
03-05-12 No. 86 Vincent T. Greco, Jr. v. State of Maryland
Issues - Criminal Law - (1) May the lower court exercise jurisdiction over an appeal taken from a superseded trial court order? (2) Did the lower court err when it concluded that this court did not set forth a new constitutionally-mandated rule when it overruled Johnson v. State and thereby permitted criminal defendants to present evidence of mental impairments in defense of specific intent crimes? (3) Did the lower court err when it declined to apply this court’s mandatory retroactivity standard to a rule that corrected an unconstitutional infringement on the fact-finding process of criminal trials? (4) May a fifty-year term of years be imposed as punishment for first-degree murder or first degree rape? (5) Even if petitioner had successfully demonstrated that this court had established a new procedural standard that was constitutionally mandated in its holding in Hoey v. State and Simmons v. State, did petitioner fail to establish that the standard was intended to be applied retrospectively thereby disqualifying him from post-conviction relief under Sec. 7-106(c) of the Crim. Proc. Art.? (6) Was petitioner’s unrelated challenge to his resentencing not properly before the intermediate appellate court or this Court?
03-05-12 No. 104 Sheriff Darren M. Popkin v. Deputy Erick Gindlesperger
Issue - Public Safety - Did the trial court commit reversible error when it ordered the pre-LEOBR hearing production of unrelated internal affairs case files pursuant to Sec. 3-107(d)(l) of the Public Safety Art. which only authorizes subpoenas for the production of records at LEOBR hearings?
03-02-12 No. 79 Maryland State Board of Elections, et al. v. Libertarian Party of Maryland, et al.
Issues - Election Law - (1) Does MD State Board Of Elections (MSBE) current standards for reviewing & validating petition signatures appropriately implement the requirements of Sec. 6-203 of the Election Law Art. of the Ann. Code of MD as interpreted in the Fire-Rescue decision of this court? (2) Does the signature validation standard articulated in Fire-Rescue apply uniformly to validation of petition signatures both in the referendum context and in other contexts including new party petitions? (3) Does the MSBE appropriately refuse to validate duplicate or multiple signatures of persons who have already signed a petition?
03-02-12 No. 99 Ellis C. Burruss, et al. v. Board of County Commissioners of Frederick County, et al.
Issue - Constitutional Law - Does the “sufficient cumulative information standard” forbid the invalidation of petition entries (a) merely because the signer omits an unused first name or middle name when writing his or her full name or signature, and (b) for name-related defects if the entry contains address or birth date information from which the signer’s identity can be corroborated?
03-02-12 No. 101 Michael T. McCloud v. Department of State Police, Handgun Permit Review Board
Issue - Constitutional Law - Public Safety - Whether the lower court erred in following the Attorney General’s opinion in 91 Op. Att’y 68 as to what constitutes a disqualifying crime?
03-01-12 Bar Admissions  
03-01-12 No. 93 (2007 T.)
Part 1
Part 2		 MRA Property Management, Inc., et al. v. Susan Armstrong, et al.
Issue - Maryland Consumer Protection Act (Act) - Does the Act apply to representations made to potential purchasers of condominium units in the sale of units?
03-01-12 No. 92 Nancy S. Forster v. State of Maryland, Office of the Public Defender
Issues - Statutory - (1) Did the lower court err in granting the motion to dismiss appellant’s wrongful discharge cause of action where she clearly alleged that her employment was terminated because she refused to implement ultra vires orders from the Board of Trustees? (2) Did the lower court err in granting the motion to dismiss appellant’s wrongful discharge cause of action where she plainly alleged that her employment was terminated because she refused to engage in unlawful activity as ordered by the Board of Trustees, she refused to violate clear public policy & because she exercised her statutorily prescribed duties as the Maryland Public Defender?
03-01-12 AG 6 (2010 T.) Attorney Grievance Commission of Maryland v. Henry Donald McGlade, Jr.
03-01-12 No. 84 Jarmal Johnson v. State of Maryland
Issues - Criminal Law - (1) Did the lower court correctly dismiss petitioner’s appeal from the denial of petitioner’s motion to correct an illegal sentence as untimely? (2) Should the concept of “constructive amendment” of an indictment be recognized in MD & did the lower court properly apply it in this case? (3) Did the lower court improperly fail to dismiss petitioner’s appeal where petitioner did not provide a record sufficient for review of his appellate contention? (4) Did the lower court err in failing to dismiss petitioner’s appeal on grounds of laches?
February 2012 Schedule
Date Docket # Title
02-07-12 No. 67

Maryland Board of Public Works, et al. v. K. Hovnanian’s Four Seasons at Kent Island, LLC
Issues - Environmental - (1) Did the Board of Public Works act constitutionally & within its legal boundaries when it denied a license for appellee to place structures over, on, in and under state-owned tidal wetlands? (2) Is the Board of Public Works vested with discretionary authority over the issuance of licenses for dredging or filling State wetlands?

02-07-12 AG 70 (2010 T.)

Attorney Grievance Commission of Maryland v. Louis Peter Tanko, Jr.
02-07-12 No. 71

Building Materials Corporation of America d/b/a GAF Materials Corporation v. Board of Education of Baltimore County
Issue - Education - Is the "goods" and "commodities" exception to public bidding requirements set forth in Md. Code Ann., Educ. Sec. 5-112 applicable to the procurement of roofing replacement construction projects where the cost is more than $25,000?
02-07-12 No. 90

Vanessa Fisher v. Eastern Correctional Institution
Issue - Personnel & Pensions - Whether the lower court correctly dismissed petitioner’s appeal on the grounds that, by allowing the secretary of her agency additional time to meet his statutory responsibly to decide her appeal, she inadvertently rendered her appeal untimely?

02-06-12 AG 1 Attorney Grievance Commission of Maryland v. Barry S. Brown
02-06-12 AG 90 (2009 T.) Attorney Grievance Commission of Maryland v. Harvey Malcolm Nusbaum
02-06-12 No. 88 McKenzie A. Nicolas v. State of Maryland
Issues - Criminal Law - (1) Does a jury note with no date or time stamp found in the appellate record establish that the trial court received the jury communication at issue in order to trigger the requirements of Md. Rule 4-326(d)? (2) Did the lower court err in holding that petitioner’s convictions for second degree assault do not merge into his conviction for resisting arrest for sentencing purposes where the record is ambiguous as to whether the jury convicted petitioner of second degree assault based on acts different than those underlying his conviction for resisting arrest?
02-03-12 No. 82 Washington Home Remodelers, Inc. v. State of Maryland, Office of the Attorney General, Consumer Protection Division
Issues - Commercial Law - (1) Does the Consumer Protection Division have investigative & enforcement authority over the access & use of consumer credit reports in Md. Code Ann. State gov. Sec. 14-1201, et. seq. when that authority is specifically vested with the Commissioner of Financial Regulation of the Depart. of Labor, Licensing & Regulation? (2) Does the Consumer Protection Division have investigative & enforcement authority over the MD home improvement law, Md. Code Ann., Bus. Reg. Sec. 8-101, et. seq. when that authority is specifically vested with the MD Home Improvement Commission?
02-03-12 AG 9 Attorney Grievance Commission of Maryland v. Adrian Van Nelson, II
02-03-12 No. 85 HNS Development, LLC v. People’s Counsel for Baltimore County, et al.
Issues - (1) Did the County Board of Appeals impermissibly create a new requirement of master plan compliance in addition to that contained in the stated development regulations? (2) Did the County Board of Appeals impermissibly create upon a finding of master plan conflict a means of taking without compensation? (3) Is the statement on a development plan that a County agency would oppose further development of a parcel & lot the same as an exaction or condition of development as discussed in City of Annapolis v. Waterman?
02-03-12 No. 83 Peter Paul Toland, Jr. v. Akiko Futagi
Issues - Constitutional Law - (1) Whether the trial court erred & violated petitioner’s due process rights & fundamental liberty interest in the care, custody & control of his daughter in violation of the U.S. Constitution & the MD Declaration of Rights? (2) Whether the trial court erred & misapplied the MD’s Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction & Enforcement Act when it granted the appellee’s motion to dismiss?
02-02-12 Bar Admissions  
02-02-12 Misc. 8  In the Matter of the Application of R.C.S. For Admission to the Bar of Maryland
02-02-12 AG 10    Attorney Grievance Commission of Maryland v. Darlene H. Smith
02-02-12 No. 41   Michael S. Barclay, et ux. v. Lena Briscoe, et al., Lena Briscoe, Personal Representative of the Estate of Christopher Eugene Richardson v. Ports America Baltimore, Inc., et al. v. Ports of America Baltimore, Inc., et al.
Issues - (1) Whether employers have a duty to the public when the employee's extended work schedule caused sleep deprivation, resulting in the employee falling asleep at the wheel of his/her vehicle during his/her commute home, & causing a foreseeable injury to members of the general public? (2) Whether the special circumstances exception to the Coming & Going Rule in Tort should apply so as to establish liability against an employer in favor of a third party when the employer is aware or should be aware of the potential for sleep deprivation caused by the employee's extended work schedule & that sleep deprivation continues to affect the employee during his commute home, following the completion of the extended work schedule? (3) Whether the trial court erred in granting the motion for summary judgment because disputes of material fact exist? (4) Did the lower court err in dicta in its opinion suggesting that it was appropriate for a state court to expand vicarious liability of an employer for injuries caused by & during the commute home by its fatigued employee in cases where the employer scheduled the employee to work longer hours than usual? (5) Given petitioners' argument that Ports America allegedly allowed its employees to work in excess of a reasonable number of hours pursuant to the terms of a National Collection Bargaining Agreement (CBA) covering those employees to the extent that petitioners' claims are intrinsically bound up in the terms of the CBA, are they exclusively matters for federal jurisdiction such that the application of state law is preempted in this case by federal labor laws?
02-02-12 No. 89   Chaz Kinichi Bazzle v. State of Maryland
Issues - Criminal Law - (1) Did the trial court properly decline petitioner’s request to instruct the jury on the theory of voluntary intoxication? (2) In a prosecution in which the identity of the perpetrator is at issue is it appropriate to admit into evidence the level of certainty of the complaining witness?
02-02-12 No. 87   Robert S. Cochran, Jr., et al. v. Griffith Energy Services, Inc., et al.
Issue - Are injured individuals who are not owners & do not have the power to test the property barred by a prior judgment based upon the ownership interest such that a party who commits fraud during litigation continues to escape liability even when that fraud inflicted actual harm on the victims independent of the litigation?
January 2012 Schedule
Date Docket # Title
01-10-12   In the Matter of the Application of R. for Admission to the Bar of Maryland
01-10-12 No. 75 Bagada Dionas v. State of Maryland
Issue - Criminal Law - did the lower court err in finding that the improper limitation of cross-examination of a witness’ expectation of leniency was harmless error where the jury deliberated for five days after three and a half days of testimony and sent out four notes indicating that they were unable to reach a unanimous verdict or were otherwise having difficulty with deliberations?
01-10-12 No. 77 District of Columbia v. Wayne Singleton, et al.
Issue - when a motor vehicle leaves the road & passengers sue for damages & the only evidence at trial is by a passenger who was asleep at the time the vehicle left the road & awoke only as the vehicle was airborne & who did not know how or why the vehicle left the road, did the trial court properly dismiss the case at the close of plaintiffs’ case and did the lower court err by reversing that decision?
01-10-12 No. 76 Tyrone L. Smith v. State of Maryland
Issue - Criminal Law - did the lower court correctly conclude that the exceptions to the licensing requirement set forth in subsections (2) & (3) of Transportation Article, Sec. 16-101(a) are not essential elements of the offense of driving without a license, but are instead affirmative defenses that must be raised by the defendant?
01-09-12 No. 53a
No. 53b		 Dorothy M. Tracey v. Anthony K. Solesky and Irene Solesky, as the Parents, Guardians and Next Friends of Dominic Solesky, a Minor
Issues - (1) is the harboring of american staffordshire terriers (pit bulls) by tenants an inherently dangerous activity for which landlords may be held strictly liable? (2) does MD jurisprudence permit an inference of knowledge of prior vicious propensities of a domestic animal by a landlord (a) whose tenant harbors the animal in leased premises based upon subjective conclusions as to the animal’s temperament of neighbors who have made limited observations of the animal’s behavior which were never conveyed to the landlord? and (b) based upon the existence of an exculpatory clause in a residential lease concerning bodily injury caused by the tenant’s pets? (3) may a landlord be held liable for injuries caused by a tenant’s domestic animal due to the failure to require reasonable confinement of a domestic animal in the leased premises when the animal escapes the premises by a means which the landlord had no reasonable basis to foresee? (4) after Shields and Matthews was the inherently dangerous/vicious nature of pit bulls known to Maryland landlords? (5) did Matthews impose a duty upon landlords who rent to tenants with pit bulls in a residential neighborhood to act with reasonable care in requiring appropriate housing or storage of the two pit bulls when outside the house?
01-09-12 No. 68 Alonzo Jay King, Jr. v. State of Maryland
Issues - Criminal Law - (1) did the trial court err by denying appellant’s motion to suppress dna evidence obtained through a warrantless search conducted without any individualized suspicion of wrongdoing? (2) did the court below improperly shift the burden of proof to the defense to demonstrate that a search or seizure made without individualized suspicion is unreasonable?
01-09-12 No. 74 Johnette Cosby v. Department of Human Resources, Allegany County Department of Social Services
Issue - Family Law - did the Maryland Legislature when removing from Fam. Law. Art., Sec. 5-706.1 the requirement that a finding of neglect in a CINA case preclude a petitioner from challenging a registry entry, intend to still allow a petitioner to be blocked by collateral estoppel?
01-09-12 No. 78 In Re: Adoption/Guardianship of Cross H.
Issue - Family Law - may the circuit court proceed with a termination of parental rights hearing when the parents’ appeal of the CINA Order changing the permanency plan from reunification to non-relative adoption is still pending in the CSA?
01-06-12 Bar Admissions  
01-06-12 No. 70 Environmental Integrity Project, et al. v. Mirant Ash Management, LLC, et al.
Issues - (1) did the lower court err when it reversed more than two decades of this court’s precedent & added a new standing requirement for intervention as of right? (2) did the lower court err when it held that the MD Department of the Environment adequately represents the citizen-petitioners’ interests in an enforcement action despite the department’s repeated admissions to the contrary?
01-06-12 No. 73 Ocie L. Black, Jr. v. State of Maryland
Issue - Criminal Law - does a jury note with no date or time stamp found in the appellate record establish that the trial court received the jury communication at issue in order to trigger the requirements of MD. Rule 4-326(d)?
01-06-12 No. 81 120 West Fayette Street, LLLP v. Mayor and City Council of Baltimore, et al.
Issues - (1) whether an incidental third party beneficiary’s challenge to enforce a contract presents a justiciable controversy? (2) whether plaintiff below has any basis to assert a private cause of action challenging the trust’s review & approval of the proposed superblock development under the Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) between the trust & the city?
01-06-12 No. 72 Alicia Gomez v. Jackson Hewitt, Inc.
Issues - Commercial Law - (1) was the lower court wrong to conclude that the MD Credit Services Business Act (act) requires a direct payment from the consumer to the loan arranger and therefore petitioner did not state a claim? (2) was the lower court in error in finding that the general assembly did not intend the usury amendment or the act in general to apply to a refund anticipation loan arranger like respondent because it does not perform credit repair? (3) did lower court err when it stated or implied that the act applies only to credit repair companies & to businesses that arrange loans for consumers using third-party lenders with higher interest rates than permitted under MD law? (4) did the lower court err in suggesting that the act only applies to credit services business arrangements in which businesses receive money or other valuable consideration directly from the consumer?
01-05-12 Bar Admissions  
01-05-12 AG 8 Attorney Grievance Commission of Maryland v. Michelle Lynn Payer
01-05-12 AG 6 Attorney Grievance Commission of Maryland v. Jude Ambe
01-05-12 No. 46 Muhammad H. Abdul-Maleek v. State of Maryland
Issues - Criminal Law - (1) whether the lower court violated Sec. 12-702(c) of the MD. Courts & Jud. Proceed. Art. when it increased the defendant’s sentence based on the fact that he exercised his right to appeal & receive a de novo jury trial? (2) whether the lower court violated the defendant’s due process rights as guaranteed by the Fourteenth Amendment of the U. S. Const. & Art. 24 of the MD. Declaration of Rights as set forth in North Carolina v. Pearce, 395 U.S. 711 (1969) & Colten v. Kennedy, 407 U.S. 104, 112 (1953)?
01-05-12 No. 57 Carlton M. Green, Personal Representative of the Estate of Walter L. Green, et al. v. Helen Nassif
Issues - Estates and Trusts - (1) as a matter of first impression, what are “enforceable claims” in Et Sec. 1-101(n) (renumbered 1-101(p)) and what enforceable claims are to be properly deducted in calculating the net estate for the elective share in this case? (2) did the lower court err in holding that the elective share is entitled to income? (3) does the Principal & Income Act apply to the elective share? (4) did the trial court err by allowing millions of dollars in claims to be deducted twice when calculating the “net estate” for purposes of determining the widowed spouse’s statutory share?
01-05-12 No. 58

Charles Robert Phillips v. State of Maryland
Issues - Criminal Law - (1) did the lower court correctly determine that Lt. McDermott’s statements to petitioner were not the functional equivalent of interrogation where after petitioner invoked his right to counsel, McDermott immediately ceased any questioning & informed petitioner that the police could not talk to him further but that petitioner could change his mind, that petitioner would like to hear his side of the story and that if petitioner did change his mind he would have to reaffirm that he did not want counsel? (2) was any error in the denial of petitioner’s suppression motion harmless beyond a reasonable doubt where petitioner’s statement to police provided the only evidentiary basis for petitioner’s claim of self-defense/accident & where overwhelming evidence apart from the statement established that petitioner brutally murdered the elderly victim? (3) did petitioner fail to preserve his current claim that Lt. McDermott’s statements telling him that he could reinitiate conversation with the police were the functional equivalent of interrogation where the terms “functional equivalent of interrogation” were not mentioned at the suppression hearing & where defense counsel did not dispute the prosecutor’s assertion that petitioner reinitiated the conversation?
December 2011 Schedule
Date Docket # Title
12-06-11 No. 59 Tyrone Davis v. State of Maryland
Issue - Criminal Law - did the trial court properly deny petitioner’s motion to suppress evidence seized as a result of a wiretap?
12-06-11 No. 56 Potomac Abatement, Inc., et al. v. Edy Sanchez
Issue - Labor & Employment - did the lower court err when, in a case of first impression, it held contrary to the plain language & legislative history of MD. Code Ann., Lab. & Empl. Sec. 9-742 that the Workers’ Compensation Commission may retain jurisdiction while a prior order is pending on appeal pursuant to the provisions of MD. Code Ann., Lab & Empl. Sec. 9-736?
12-06-11 No. 62 State of Maryland v. Reginald Stringfellow
Issues - Criminal Law - (1) did respondent waive his appellate complaint that a voir dire question irreparably biased the entire jury against him by accepting the jury as empaneled? (2) did the trial court properly exercise its discretion to ask the challenged voir dire questions which intended to identify any prospective juror biased in favor or forensic evidence to the exclusion of all other evidence? (3) if the trial court erred, is the error harmless beyond a reasonable doubt in light of other contemporaneous voir dire, the presentation of evidence, the final instructions of the trial court & the arguments of counsel?
12-06-11 No. 61 Frances V. Hamilton v. Baltimore Police Department
Issues - Public Safety - (1) who holds the ultimate responsibility for transmittal of the record under MD Rule 7-206? (2) did a law enforcement officer substantially comply with MD. Rule 7-206 when the delay in transmittal was at least in part due to the law enforcement agency’s actions or inactions which resulted in one day beyond the time limits as prescribed by MD. Rule 7-206(c)?
(3) did the respondent deny a police officer’s right under the Law Enforcement Officers’ Bill of Rights (LEOBR) when it refused to place the police officer on active duty or suspended with pay status before it scheduled a trial board hearing?
12-05-11 No. 47 Shailendra Kumar, P.A. v. Anand M. Dhanda
Issues - Statutory - (1) where a contract specifically requires that the parties submit to non-binding arbitration & states that the parties may “go to court if not satisfied by the decision of the MD Uniform Arbitration Act,” does the cause of action accrue at the time of the breach or at the time of the non-binding arbitration? (2) when the parties agree not to “go to court” until after a non-binding arbitration does the statute of limitations begin to run at the time of the breach or at the time a party can “go to court?”
12-05-11 No. 54 Leon Dulyx a/k/a Leon Duylx v. State of Maryland
Issues - Criminal Law - (1) did the lower court err when it held that petitioner’s motive to examine the sole eyewitness against him at the suppression hearing concerning police conduct during a photographic array identification was substantially similar to petitioner’s motive to do so at trial? (2) did the lower court err when it held that petitioner was given a “full and fair opportunity” to cross-examine the witness despite the substantial limitations placed on petitioner’s ability to question him?
12-05-11 No. 55 Bonnie L. Maddox v. Edward C. Cohn, et al.
Issues - Foreclosure - (1) may a substitute trustee under a deed of trust filed for foreclosure require that in order to bid on the property at the sale, the successful bidder agree to pay to the substitute trustee’s attorney a stipulated fee ostensibly for review of the settlement documents? (2) can a foreclosure sale be “properly made” if the substitute trustee imposes an improper condition on the successful bidder? (3) is the burden of proof on the defendant/mortgagor to prove that prospective bidders were discouraged from attending the sale in order to establish that the sale was not “fairly & properly” made? (4) is the burden of proof different when a substitute trustee fails to comply with the rules of procedure governing foreclosure sales as opposed to when someone imposes requirements or conditions which are not authorized by the rules & which are improper?
12-02-11 No. 48 Tonto Corbin v. State of Maryland
Issues - Criminal Law - (1) does a DWI Probationer who had previously declined police requests to seize & test his DNA, voluntarily surrender his breath for DNA testing where state officers seize his DNA on the false pretense of seizing & testing only his blood alcohol? (2) was the evidence of petitioner’s criminal agency legally insufficient because the state failed to establish that it was any stronger than evidence implicating two or three other suspects?
12-02-11 No. 50 Markino Little v. State of Maryland
Issue - Criminal Law - in a prosecution for possession of burglar’s tools, does the law require that the alleged burglar’s tool facilitate the actual breaking & entering of a motor vehicle and therefore gloves & flashlight are within the scope of the statute?
12-02-11 No. 44 Motor Vehicle Administration v. Dana Eric Carpenter
Issue - Transportation - is a police officer’s testimony that a subject had been driving a vehicle involved in a collision based on the officer’s post-crash investigation that included witness statements that the detained suspect had been “traveling at a high rate of speed” & “had struck the car,” sufficient to establish reasonable grounds to request an alcohol content test under Sec. 16-205.1(b)(2) of the Transportation Article?
12-02-11 No. 45 Ricky Shamar Washington v. State of Maryland
Issue - Criminal Law - was it an abuse of discretion & error to refuse to ask whether any prospective juror would be more likely to believe a witness solely by virtue of the witness having served in the military or being employed by the military?
12-01-11 Bar Admissions  
12-01-11 No. 60 People’s Insurance Counsel Division v. Allstate Insurance Company, et al.
Issues - Insurance - (1) did the lower court err in concluding that Ins. Sec. 27-501(a)(2) has no applicability to an insurer’s decision not to provide homeowner’s insurance to a particular geographical area in the state? (2) did the lower courts correctly conclude based on established principles of administrative law & judicial review that substantial evidence supported the commissioner’s final order?
12-01-11 No. 42 University of Maryland Medical System Corporation v. Giuseppina Muti, Personal Representative of the Estate of Elliott Muti, et al.
Issue - Tort Law - whether the failure to name all wrongful death beneficiaries as either plaintiffs or use plaintiffs within three years of the date of the decedent’s death require dismissal of the wrongful death claim without leave to amend?
12-01-11 No. 117 (2010 Term) Anthony Grandison v. State of Maryland
12-01-11 No. 43 Amy Mulligan v. William Corbett
Issue - should the paternity of a child conceived during a marriage but born after divorce be determined under the Estates & Trusts Art. or the Family Law Art.?
November 2011 Schedule
Date Docket # Title
11-08-11 AG 44 (2010 T.) Attorney Grievance Commission of Maryland v. Anthony Maurice Harmon
11-08-11 No. 29 Pro-Football, Inc. t/a Washington Redskins, et al. v. Thomas J. Tupa, Jr.
Issues - Workers’ Compensation - (1) whether MD public policy invalidates an otherwise valid forum-selection provision in an employment contract that specifies the VA Workers’ Compensation Commission as the appropriate entity to resolve disputes related to workers’ compensation benefits? (2) whether a professional football player who only plays approximately 10 games each year in MD for a team based in VA can properly be considered a “covered employee” under the Act? (3) whether an injury that arises from participation in a professional sporting event constitutes an “accidental injury” under the Act?
11-08-11 No. 36 Montgomery Preservation, Inc., et al. v. Montgomery County Planning Board of the Maryland-
National Capital Park and Planning Commission, et al.
Issues - Zoning - (1) did the lower court err in affirming the trial court’s refusal to undertake judicial review of the Planning Board’s decision to determine if the Board’s action was arbitrary, capricious or otherwise deficient as a matter of law? (2) did the lower court err in ruling that Planning Board action in this case was a “recommendation” rather than an appealable final administrative agency’s decision? (3) did the lower court err in its determination that the petitioners proper recourse in this case was to appeal a decision of the district council?
11-08-11 No. 34

No. 34 (in MP4 format)		 Paul B. DeWolfe, in his official capacity as the Public Defender for the State of Maryland, et al.
v. Quinton Richmond, et al.
Issues -Criminal Law - (1) do indigent defendants have a right to counsel at initial bail hearings: (a) before District Court Commissioners under MD's Public Defender Act? (b) under the Sixth Amendment & Art. 21 of the Declaration of Rights? (c) under MD or federal guarantees of due process? (d) when commissioners impose bail ”preset” by the District Court in absentia? (2) did the trial court abuse its discretion by granting the class declaratory relief in accord with its findings that defendants are violating the class’s statutory & constitutional rights? (3) did the trial court err in issuing the declaration without in any way addressing remedy & how this undisputed funding shortfall might be practicably addressed?
11-07-11 No. 33 Sam Nichols, Personal Representative of the Estate of Jesse W. Suiters v. Virginia Lee Suiters
Issues - Estates & Trusts - (1) did lower court err in its interpretation & application of Sec. 4-105 of the Estates & Trusts Art. when it refused to apply the statute to revoke benefits to the divorced spouse under the will which was executed prior to the divorce? (2) did the lower court err when it found that an exception to Sec. 4-105 applied where the trial court after hearing the evidence at trial concluded that the exception did not apply? (3) did the lower court err in finding that the decedent intended to benefit respondent when there was no evidence of the decedent’s intent at the time of the divorce & where the separation agreement did not address whether respondent would benefit under the Will if there was a subsequent divorce? (4) did the lower court err in making factual findings that were not made by the trial court & relying upon evidence not admitted before the trial court at the de novo hearing?
11-07-11 No. 39 Communications Workers of America, AFL-CIO v. Public Service Commission of Maryland, Verizon Maryland, Inc.
Issues - Statutory - (1) is the Commission’s Order 83137 supported by substantial evidence in the record? (2) is the Order affected by an error of law in that it orders Verizon to implement a new alternative form of regular (AFOR) that does not protect consumers by ensuring the quality, availability & reliability of telecommunications services through the State of Maryland? (3) is the order affected by an error of law in that in ordering Verizon to implement a new AFOR the commission made no finding that the new AFOR protects consumers by producing affordable & reasonably priced basic local exchange service? (4) is the order affected by an error of law in that it orders Verizon to implement a new AFOR that is not in the public interest? (5) is the order affected by an error of law in that it establishes a new balancing of the interest test by its approval of the AFOR?
11-07-11 No. 37 Kimberly Jones v. State of Maryland, et al.
Issues - Torts - (1) is evidence that police officers committed intentional torts & constitutional violations coupled with testimony by the officers that their actions were in accordance with their training & evidence that the officers entered a citizen’s home without constitutionally sufficient justification sufficient to prove a claim of negligent training? (2) is expert testimony necessary for a plaintiff to meet her burden of proof on a claim of negligent training or supervision of police officers? (3) does the Public Duty Doctrine shield the state from a claim of negligence when its police officers commit intentional torts and/or constitutional violations?
11-07-11 No. 132 (2010 T.) Nicole Pace, as Mother and Next Friend of Liana Pace v. State of Maryland
Issue - Constitutional Law - whether the trial court erred in granting state’s motion to dismiss finding that the state had no duty of care to petitioner rather than special or statutory duty to ensure her “individual” “special” dietary needs were met & to protect her from discrimination on the basis of either race or disability in the administration of the school lunch program?
11-04-11 No. 24
The Court combined docket nos. 24, 25, 26 & 38 		Michael T. Polek, et ux. v. J.P. Morgan Chase Bank, N.A., et al.
Issues - Common Law - (1) does Sec. 12-405 of the MD Secondary Mortgage Loan Law (SMLL) limit lender compensation to only a single loan origination fee or may a lender collect any number of separately labeled closing fees, costs & charges as long as the total amount of such fees, costs & charges, loan origination & finder’s fees are less than 10% of the net proceeds of the loan? (2) is the SMLL violated when a lender fails to provide a borrower the disclosure required by MD. Code Ann., Com. Law Sec. 12-407.1? (3) is an assignee of a second mortgage subject to the SMLL claims that could be raised by the borrower against the originating lender by operation of MD. Code Ann., Com. Law Sec. 3-306 which provides that a person taking an instrument, other than a person having the rights of a holder-in–due-course is subject to a claim of a possessory or property right in the instrument or its proceeds? (4) is an assignee of a second mortgage subject to the SMLL claims that could be raised by the borrower against the originating lender by operation of MD Common Law? (5) does the 12-year statute of limitations apply to SMLL claims brought against assignees of second mortgages?
11-04-11 No. 25 Richard S. Dinnis, et ux. v. J.P. Morgan Chase Bank, N.A.
Issues - Common Law - (1) is an assignee of a second mortgage subject to the SMLL claims that could be raised by the borrower against the originating lender by operation of MD. Code Ann., Com. Law Sec. 3-306? (2) is an assignee of a second mortgage subject to the SMLL claims that could be raised by the borrower against the originating lender by operation of MD Common Law? (3) does the 12-year statute of limitations apply to SMLL claims brought against assignees of second mortgage? (4) does an assignee’s refusal to provide a borrower with copy of the second mortgage loan file give rise to a cause of action under MD law? (5) is the SMLL violated when a lender fails to provide a borrower the disclosure required by MD. Code Ann., Com. Law Sec. 12-407.1?
11-04-11 No. 26 John W. Kinsey, Jr., et ux. v. J.P. Morgan Chase Bank, N.A.
Issues - Common Law - (1) does Sec. 12-405 of the SMLL limit lender compensation to only a single loan origination fee or may a lender collect any number of separately labeled closing fees, costs & charges as long as the total amount of fees, costs & charges, loan origination & finder’s fees are less than 10% of the net proceeds of the loan? (2) is the SMLL violated when a lender fails to provide a borrower the disclosure required by MD Code Ann., Com. Law Sec. 12-407.1? (3) is an assignee of a second mortgage subject to the SMLL claims that could be raised by the borrower against the originating lender by operation of MD. Code Ann. Com. Law Sec. 3-306? (4) is an assignee of a second mortgage subject to the SMLL claims that could be raised by the borrower against the originating lender by operation of MD Common Law? (5) does the 12-year statute of limitations apply to smll claims brought against assignees of second mortgages?
11-04-11 No. 38 Frank J. Schultz, Jr. v. Citimortgage, Inc.
Issues - Common Law - (1) is the SMLL violated when a lender fails to provide a borrower the disclosure required by MD. Code Ann., Com. Law Sec. 12-407.1? (2) is an assignee of a second mortgage subject to the SMLL claims that could be raised by the borrower against the originating lender by operation of MD. Code Ann., Com. Law Sec. 3-306 which provides that a person taking an instrument, other than a person having the rights of a holder-in-due-course, is subject to a claim of a possessory or property right in the instrument or its proceeds? (3) is an assignee of a second mortgage subject to the SMLL claims that could be raised by the borrower against the originating lender by operation of MD Common Law? (4) does an assignee’s refusal to provide a borrower with copy of the second mortgage loan file give rise to a cause of action under MD law?
11-03-11 Bar Admissions  
11-03-11 No. 30 Joanna Davis v. Michael A. Petito, Jr.
Issue - Family Law - in determining an award of costs & attorney’s fees in a custody case, Fam. Law. Art. Sec. 12-103(b)(2) of the MD Code requiring the courts to consider inter alia the financial status & needs of each party, was it appropriate for the lower court to consider the fact that the mother was represented pro bono & to disregard her day-to-day financial needs particularly as they relate to caring for the child?
11-03-11 No. 22 Michael D. Washington a/k/a Michael D. Washington-Bey v. State of Maryland
11-03-11 No. 32 Wanda T. King v. Comptroller of the Treasury
Issue - Tax Law - did the MD General Assembly in enacting TG 13-1104(c)(2)(i) intend for the statute of limitations to begin to run on MD refund claims on the date a taxpayer’s federal income tax liability is no longer subject to administrative appeal rather than the date that the IRS issues a report proposing adjustments to the taxpayer’s liability?
11-03-11 No. 28 Calvin Montgomery Waker v. State of Maryland
Issues - Criminal Law - (1) where the general assembly reduces the penalty for an offense after a defendant committed the offense but before he is tried & sentenced & where the act is silent as to its application in such a situation, is the defendant subject to the harsher penalty in effect at the time of the offense or the reduced penalty in effect at the time of the trial & sentencing? (2) did petitioner fail to preserve his appellate claim regarding his conviction & sentence for felony theft where petitioner did not state a claim of sentence illegality?
11-03-11 No. 35 John Burson, et al. v. David Simiard
Issues - Statutory Law - (1) was the lower court correct in holding that MD Rule 14-305(g) contemplates that when a foreclosure purchaser defaults the defaulting purchaser’s “risk & expense” attaches only to the one resale resulting from his or her default? (2) was the lower court correct in holding that a defaulting purchaser is only liable for the loss resulting from the original foreclosure sale & the first resale because he did not cause the second defaulting purchase to breach?
October 2011 Schedule
Date Docket # Title
10-12-11 No. 10 Gary James Smith v. State of Maryland
Issues - Criminal Law - (1) is it reversible error for the state to hijack the defense theory of the case by requesting a voluntary intoxication jury instruction over the objection of the defendant that injects an inconsistent defense theory & thereby confuses the jury & deprives the defendant of a fair trial? (2) in a case where homicide versus suicide is the cornerstone issue, is it error for the court to admit prosecution evidence of the decedent’s “normal” state of mind but refuse to admit equally relevant defense evidence of the decedent’s “depressed” state of mind? (3) did the lower court improperly conflate its analysis of the merits of a discovery violation with harmless error in finding non reversible the introduction of expert rebuttal evidence?
10-12-11 No. 16 Deane J. Allen, et al. v. Sharon J. Ritter, Successor Personal Representative of the Estate of Roy Harry Allen
Issues - Estates & Trusts - (1) does Estates & Trusts Sec. 9-111 entitle a personal representative to demand & receive a sweeping release from the petitioners before she pays over to them the sums of money the court had determined they were entitled to when it approved the first & final administration account? (2) did the orphans’ court have the authority to order the petitioners to sign a sweeping release of liability to the successor personal representative before they could secure payment of their respective shares of their father’s estate that had been directed by the orphans’ court when it approved the successor personal representative’s first & final administration account?
10-12-11 No. 27 Joseph Mobuary v. State of Maryland
Issue - Criminal Law - did the lower court commit reversible error in denying petitioner’s motion to reinstate his de novo appeals from district court convictions, where: (a) the court dismissed the appeals based merely on counsel’s assertion that a correctional officer said petitioner refused to be transported to court from the detention center? (b) defense counsel subsequently learned & informed the court that petitioner denied refusing to come to court & wanted to proceed with his appeals? (c) the court applied the wrong legal standard in ruling on petitioner’s motion to reinstate his appeals?
10-12-11 No. 23 Donald Spangler, et al. v. Peggy McQuitty and Gary McQuitty, as Personal Representatives of the Estate of Dylan McQuitty
Issues - Statutory Law - (1) whether a litigant is denied due process of law where a trial court denies a motion for new trial following this court’s substantive change of the common law of informed consent? (2) whether a trial court abuses its discretion by entering judgment in favor of the estate of a deceased plaintiff where an award for future medical care is included as one of the elements of damages in the judgment entry? (3) whether a settling defendant may increase the liability of a non-settling defendant by designating himself a non-joint tortfeasor? (4) whether a litigant can alter or change md’s law by contractual agreement & preclude a settling tortfeasor from being classified as a “joint tortfeasor” under the uniform contribution among joint tort-feasors act to the detriment of a non-settling tortfeasor who was nota party to the agreement? (5) whether post judgment interest should run from the last date final judgment is entered, where the original judgment was vacated due to the trial court’s grant of the defendant’s judgment notwithstanding the verdict?
10-11-11 AG 21 (2010 T.) Attorney Grievance Commission v. Alexander Nnanna Agiliga
10-11-11 No. 15 Anthony A. Dzikowski v. State of Maryland
Issues - Criminal Law - (1) did trial court abuse its discretion in overruling petitioner’s exceptions to the State’s Bill of Particulars response? (2) did the trial court abuse its discretion by denying a new trial when the state refused to provide a proper response to petitioner’s bill of particulars & the trial court’s decision to permit the state to change its theory of reckless endangerment unfairly surprised petitioner & effectively foreclosed him from putting on a case? (3) did the trial court err in denying petitioner’s motion to dismiss when the trial court’s decision to permit the state to change its theory of reckless endangerment rendered the indictment duplicitous?
10-11-11 No. 17 Gregory Robinson v. Baltimore Police Department
Issue - Public Safety - under the Law Enforcement Officers’ Bill of Rights, does the same one-year statute of limitations date which began when the initial incident came to the agency’s attention also apply to allegations of a false statement made during a subsequent internal investigation division interview?
10-11-11 No. 20 Elroy Matthews, Jr. v. State of Maryland
Issue - Criminal Law -whether a plea agreement conditioned on an agreed upon “capped” term of years results in an illegal sentence when trial court sentences the defendant to life but suspends a portion of the life sentence to make the non-suspended portion not exceed the agreed upon “cap”?
10-11-11 No. 7 Maryland Insurance Commissioner v. Central Acceptance Corporation, et al.
Issues - Statutory - (1) did agency correctly determine that Sec. 23-304 of Insurance Art. prohibits (a) practice of front-loading the imposition of finance charges such that borrowers whose loan agreements terminate prior to end of the loan term pay finance charges in excess of 1.15% for each 30 days, and (b) practice of imposing finance charges even where the insurance policy never takes effect? (2) did the lower court err in expanding its “command influence” rule that if adopted as the law of MD, it could be read to prohibit an administrative agency from adjudicating a matter after it has issued a pre-hearing ex parte order in the matter? (3) did the lower court err in applying its “command influence” rule to a regulatory proceeding where all material facts were undisputed where the agency was deciding a pure question of law & where the agency’s legal ruling was subject to judicial review? (4) is the MIA Order contrary to law because it implements a change in generally applicable policy that may be implemented only through the adoption of regulations? (5) is the MIA Order contrary to law because the cease & desist order was issued without complying with the procedural requirements of Secs. 2-209 & 23-207 of the Ins. Art., the sections cited in the cease & desist order as the authority under which that order was issued? (6) is the MIA Order contrary to law because the MIA lacks the statutory authority to issue cease & desist orders against premium finance companies?
10-07-11 AG 55 (2010 T.) Attorney Grievance Commission of Maryland v.               Aaron Gregory Seltzer
10-07-11 No. 19 Barry K. Downey, et al. v. Nicholas Sharp
Issues - Statutory Law - (1) do the grounds listed in Sec. 3-224(b) of the Courts & Jud. Proc. Art. of the MD Code provide the exclusive basis upon which a court may vacate an arbitration award? (2) may a MD court vacate an arbitration award for “manifest disregard of the law” or only under the “completely irrational” standard? (3) where an arbitration hearing is not transcribed, may a MD court vacate an arbitration award denying an easement by necessity based upon factual findings absent from the arbitrator’s written opinion & separately made by a reviewing court? (4) did the lower court err when it vacated the arbitrator’s finding that respondent was not entitled to an easement by necessity across petitioner’s property?
10-07-11 No. 14 State of Maryland v. Leon Thomas Coleman, Jr.
Issues - Criminal Law - (1) did the lower court err by suggesting a breach of contract may not give rise to a criminal action for theft; improperly substituting its judgment for that of the jury by failing to consider certain evidence & failing to view other evidence in the light most favorable to the state; and erroneously holding that an intent to commit theft by deception cannot be inferred based upon facts that occurred after the date defendant obtained or exerted unauthorized control over the property of the victim? (2) is a transfer of property from the victim to a party other than defendant a “transfer of interest or possession” within the meaning of the theft statute? (3) did the lower court erroneously hold the deposits on new homes act inapplicable where the land & new residential unit are not conveyed simultaneously?
10-07-11 No. 18 Nicholas A. Piscatelli v. Van Smith, et al.
Issues - Constitutional Law - (1) did the lower court err in deciding that summary judgment was properly granted based upon the fair reporting privilege? (2) did the lower court err in deciding that summary judgment was properly granted based upon the fair comment & opinion privileges?
10-06-11 Bar Admissions  
10-06-11 Misc. 3 In the Matter of the Application of Richard Jerome Thorne, Jr. for Admission to the Bar of Maryland
10-06-11 No. 11  Daniel Genies v. State of Maryland
Issues - Criminal Law - (1) did the trial court err in failing to dismiss the charge of common law indecent exposure, where the statutory, specific intent crime preempted the field, with respect to indecent exposure by an inmate to a correctional officer? (2) was it error or an abuse of discretion to deny the motion for new trial without a hearing?
10-06-11 No. 5 Michelle D’Aoust v. Cindy R. Diamond, Bruce D. Brown, Rosen Hoover, P.A. and Hickory Hills Condominium Association
Issues - (1) does the doctrine of “qualified immunity” shield trustees appointed to make a judicial sale from liability for (a) failing to provide property owner with a mandatory notice of time, place & terms of sale “to the last known address” of the record owner. (b) making a false affidavit that they had completed with the rule? (2) are the trustees entitled to “qualified immunity” where prior to a hearing on exceptions to foreclosure sale, trustees told the petitioner that the trustees were withdrawing objections to her exceptions & would advise the court that no hearing was required because exceptions should be sustained? (3) is the lower court correct in holding that trustees are entitled to assert the defense of qualified immunity for ministerial act of sending out a required notice because such act is a “nested” ministerial act, “necessary to carry out a broader discretionary authority vested by the court?” (4) is the lower court correct in holding “appellees are shielded from liability for constructive fraud as a matter of law” because of the doctrine of “qualified immunity?” (5) does the doctrine of qualified immunity protect foreclosure sale trustees who negligently deprive the property owner of a hearing on exceptions to the sale? (6) whether the lower court should have considered uncontradicted affidavits submitted by the defendants & should have reviewed the trial court’s order as the granting of a motion for summary judgment?
10-06-11 No. 21 State of Maryland v. Tavon Armstrong
Issues - Criminal Law - (1) whether the trial court must notify a defendant of a jury communication on the record? (2) if not, how may an appellant claim & prove that trial court violated the notification provision? (3) whose burden is it to create a record of error and if established, demonstrate its potential harmlessness?
10-06-11 No. 13  David Clickner, et ux. v. Magothy River Association, Inc., et al.
Issues - Real Property - (1) whether trial court erred in declaring the public has a prescriptive easement to use the beach on Dobbins Island for recreational purposes when the finding violates public policy, there was no evidence that use of property was adverse or exclusive, and extent of the use was not established? (2) whether the trial court erred in ordering removal of a portion of the fence on Dobbins Island that was installed above mean high tide to protect the appellants’ private property rights?
September 2011 Schedule
Date Docket # Title
09-08-11 AG 28 (2010 T) Attorney Grievance Commission of Maryland v. Brenda Carol Brisbon
09-08-11 AG 10 (2010 T) Attorney Grievance Commission of Maryland v. Andre Levell Brady
09-08-11 No. 4 Linda Freilich, et al. v. Upper Chesapeake Health Systems, Inc., et al.
Issue - Health Care - in a summary judgment proceeding is the presumption of Health Care Quality Improvement Act (HCQIA) immunity rebutted upon the showing of material facts in dispute regarding the physician’s reporting of substandard medical care & attempts to improve the quality of care in the hospital system?
09-08-11 No. 12 Megan Cathey v. Board of Review, Department of Health and Mental Hygiene
Issue - Statutory - Health - is a developmentally disabled individual eligible for services provided or funded by the DDA during the time she resides with her father in MD in accordance with a court order granting the father joint legal & residential custody, & directing that the individual alternate her time equally with each parent in successive two-week intervals?
09-07-11 AG 69 (2010 T) Attorney Grievance Commission of Maryland v. Spencer Dean Ault
09-07-11 AG 34 (2010 T) Attorney Grievance Commission of Maryland v. Timothy Shawn Gordon
09-07-11 No. 6 Gerald Thomas Titus, Jr. v. State of Maryland
Issue - Criminal Law - was the evidence that petitioner gave a false name to a police officer during a traffic stop sufficient to convict him of obstructing or hindering a police officer in the performance of his duty?
09-01-11 AG 66 (2010 T) Attorney Grievance Commission of Maryland v. Lucille Saundra White
09-01-11 AG 23 (2010 T) Attorney Grievance Commission of Maryland v. Peter Richard Maignan
09-01-11 No. 2 Kenneth Gerald Stabb v. State of Maryland
Issue - Criminal Law - did the trial court err in instructing the jury that there is no legal requirement that the state utilize any specific investigative technique or scientific test to prove its case?
09-01-11 No. 8 Hosea Anderson, et ux. v. John S. Burson, et al.
Issues - Statutory - (1) did the lower court err in determining that the substitute trustees’ principal, Deutsche, was “a nonholder in possession of the note who had the rights of a holder,” where Deutsche filed a lost note affidavit in which Deutsche admitted that it did not possess the note at the time this case was filed? (2) did the lower court err in relying solely on the uniform commercial code to determine that the unendorsed note was properly transferred to Deutsche while disregarding contrary language in the pooling & servicing agreement which created & governs the securitized trust? (3) did the lower court err in determining ineffective an endorsement by the named payee after it had transferred the note?
08-31-11

Bar Admissions

  
08-31-11 Misc. 1 In the Matter of the Application of Karim Timothy Cheikh for Admission to the Bar of Maryland
08-31-11 AG 11 (2010 T) Attorney Grievance Commission of Maryland v. Joel David Joseph
08-31-11 No. 1 Charles Y. Kim v. Maryland State Board of Physicians
Issues - Administrative Law - (1) should the Board of Physicians (BOP) be permitted to use information obtained through the case resolution conference? (2) is completing a renewal application for a physician’s license acting “in the practice of medicine”? (3) should the BOP be permitted to charge & punish a physician for “willfully” making false representations when the physician did not understand the questions posed?
08-31-11 No. 3 State of Maryland v. Bryan Sivells
Issues - Criminal Law - (1) whether the invited response doctrine permits the prosecutor to respond to a “direct & specific attack on a police officer witness’ veracity”? (2) did the lower court misinterpret the “opened door” doctrine, as this court has applied it to closing arguments by holding it inapplicable to statements found to be improper vouching? (3) did the lower court fail to adequately define the limits of appropriate closing argument by holding that the majority of defense counsel’s closing argument was proper in spite of counsel’s discussion of facts not in evidence & repeated assertions of his personal opinion of the police officers’ integrity & the strength of the state’s case?
08-31-11 No. 9  Joel Pautsch v. Maryland Real Estate Commission
Issue - Administrative - did the MD Real Estate Commission act within its discretion when it revoked the petitioner’s real estate licenses based on his felony convictions for child sexual abuse, in accordance with the commission’s authority under Sec. 17-322(b)(24)(i) and (d) of the Business Occupations & Professions Article?