DEADLY CRASHES ARE DOWN But work zone fatalities are up, state says A-3
A&E: Rockville Musical Theatre takes on popular show “Next to Normal.” B-5
The Gazette BETHESDA | CHEVY CHASE | KENSINGTON
SPORTS: B-CC senior pitcher focuses on mechanics to give team a chance to compete. B-1
DA I LY U P DAT E S AT G A Z E T T E . N E T
Wednesday, April 8, 2015
25 cents
Pepco deal splits Leggett and council n
Legislators urge state regulators to require more from utilities
BY
KATE S. ALEXANDER STAFF WRITER
PHOTO BY SARAH SUTULA
Seven Locks Elementary School in Bethesda shows its support for kindergartner Michael Mosier by holding Yellow Day on March 31. Behind him are his mother, Jenny Mosier, father, Mark Mosier, and sister, Lila.
Seven Locks goes yellow for kindergartner Bethesda school creates ‘ripples of kindness’ for boy with cancer
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BY
ROBERT RAND STAFF WRITER
One day last week, Seven Locks Elementary School went yellow. Staff and students all wore yellow for Yellow Day on March 31 at the Bethesda
school, to show their support for kindergartner Michael Mosier, whose favorite color is, yes, yellow. Michael was diagnosed on Sept. 4 with diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma, a rare and debilitating type of brain tumor found in the brainstem that accounts for about 15 percent of all brain tumors in children. It’s a particularly difficult form of pediatric cancer to treat successfully. The disease and its treatments have
taken their toll on Michael, who needs to use a wheelchair and needs help with daily tasks. When the school notified Michael’s family that it planned the Yellow Day, “we thought it was a great idea,” said his mother, Jenny Mosier. “But we didn’t imagine how moving and incredible an experience it would be
See YELLOW, Page A-12
What’s the good word?
BY GAZETTE STAFF
Aficionados of cars, trucks, motorcycles, clowns, food and music can soak them all in at the second annual Kensington Car Show on Sunday. The turnout was so big at last year’s
INDEX A&E Automotive Business Calendar Classified Opinion Sports
B-5 B-13 A-13 A-2 B-9 A-14 B-1
Montgomery County did not act illegally by spending money to campaign for votes on a 2012 ballot question, the Maryland Court of Special Appeals has ruled. At issue in the case was $122,315 of public money, plus paid staff time, that the county spent. The money paid for everything from bus ads and bumper stickers to poll workers and consultants, urging a “yes” vote on Question B in the 2012 general election.
inaugural show that this year the town will close a stretch of Howard Avenue to accommodate it, organizers said. The show, presented by Lake Liberty, Kensington Service Center and Bruno’s Classic Muscle, will run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at 3794 Howard Ave.; the rain date is April 19. The show is also a fundraiser for the Noyes Children’s Library Foundation in Kensington.
Besides classic vehicles, it will feature food from The Broken Fork and Corned Beef King; live music by The Nighthawks and King Soul; and children’s activities such as balloons and face painting. Of course, a monster truck is also scheduled to be on hand. A raffle of automotive prizes is planned, too. The show’s sponsors are all owned
Question B asked voters whether to uphold a 2011 county law that repealed a longstanding bargaining right for the police union. The law removed the right of the union, Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 35, to bargain the effects of management decisions — such as how and when the video captured by police car cameras is reviewed or how clothing allowances for plainclothes officers are paid. Voters upheld the law. The union sued in November 2012, asking the circuit court to declare the county’s actions illegal. It called for County Executive Isiah Leggett and spokesman Patrick Lacefield to repay
See COURT, Page A-12
Ford Bruggen, 12, of Kensington polishes a 1966 Ford Mustang at the Kensington Car Show in November. 2014 FILE PHOTO
See AUTO, Page A-12
NEWS
ON TRACK Transportation official says transit center on schedule for spring release.
A-4
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KATE S. ALEXANDER STAFF WRITER
Auto buffs to descend on Kensington Fundraising car show features music, food, prizes
Ruling is latest in battle over 2012 referendum BY
PHOTO BY KEVIN TROWER
See PEPCO, Page A-12
Court: County obeyed law on police union vote n
(From left) Mary E. Moore and John Moore, both of Bethesda, and Lara Campbell and Rob Campbell, both of Kensington, ply their lexicographic skills during the fundraising Scrabble Scramble on March 29 at the Montgomery County Conference Center in North Bethesda. The tournament raised $45,000, up 68 percent from last year, for the Literacy Council of Montgomery County, according to the council’s Shelley Block. The winning team comprised Don Higgins and Kitty Higgins, both of Rockville, and Jennifer Backus and Ellen Shurman, both of Washington, D.C.
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Montgomery County’s settlement with Pepco and Exelon in a proposed utility takeover does not do enough for the public, the County Council said last week. The council unanimously approved a resolution asking state regulators for more from the deal, arguing that County Executive Isiah Leggett’s agreement with the companies fell short. “Not that the deal the county executive struck is a bad
deal, but it was the wrong deal,” Councilman Roger Berliner said Monday. “For this settlement, this deal, to be in the public interest, we will need to see, oh, so much more than we have seen yet from Exelon and Pepco.” Exelon Corp. of Chicago, parent of Baltimore Gas and Electric, plans to acquire Pepco Holdings for $6.83 billion in cash. The sale would bring together Exelon’s three electric and gas utilities — BGE, ComEd and PECO — with Pepco Holdings’ three utilities, Atlantic City Electric, Delmarva Power and Pepco, cementing Exelon’s hold on the mid-Atlantic market. The Maryland Public Service Commission is considering whether to approve the pro-
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