West Virginia University President Gordon Gee will be stepping down from his post in June of 2025 following a contract extension by the college’s board of governors last week.  Gee has said his plans are to retire from the presidency and return to the classroom to teach law.  Gee has been President of WVU two separate times, also serving as president at the University of Colorado, Ohio State, Brown and Vanderbilt.  WVU is currently working through a program review and academic restructuring which may result discontinuation of some programs or classes.

The Maryland Department of Health is rolling out a pilot program to support pregnant and parenting women recovering from substance and opioid use disorders.  The Strengthening Families in Recovery program is financed by a three-year grant from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.  The $2.7 million pilot will fund recovery support coordinators, pregnant parenting navigators and family support coaches to help women navigate administrative barriers. The pilot program will be offered in Anne Arundel County, Baltimore City, PG County, Washington County and Worcester County.

Cumberland needs a tree – is it yours? If you have a tree that would be suitable for Downtown Cumberland's Christmas celebrations, please contact the city arborist, Blaine Bender at blaine.bender@cumberlandmd.gov and include the address and a photo of the tree.

Maryland State Police Aviation Command took flight Tuesday evening and rescued a young woman after her car plunged off a cliff in West Virginia.   The injured 19-year-old was trapped inside her vehicle after it traveled off the road and rolled down a 70-foot embankment above the Cacapon River, located near the Maryland, West Virginia border. Crews responded shortly after 7:35 p.m. to Power House Road in Morgan County, West Virginia. She was extricated and treated for injuries before being placed in an inflatable raft and floated down river to an accessible hoisting point. The woman needed aerial rescue because…

On 08/03/2023 at approximately 1:30 PM the Cumberland City Police were dispatched to the single digit block of King Street for an assault. Upon arrival officers spoke to the victim and learned they were strangled and then thrown to the ground by Dolphin Smith. Officers were able to observe injuries on the victim consistent with their statements. Officers were unable to locate Smith at that time. An application for charges was submitted to the District Court Commissioner and an Arrest Warrant was issued. On 08/09/2023 the Cumberland City Police served the Arrest Warrant on Smith. Smith was seen before a…

On 08/09/2023 the Cumberland City Police Department served an Arrest Warrant on Mary Perry. The Warrant was issued as a result of Perry failing to appear in District Court on a previous disorderly conduct charge. Perry was seen by a District Court Commissioner and released on her personal recognizance. Arrested – Mary Kathleen Perry (47) Cumberland, MD Charge – Failure to Appear Warrant Served On 08/09/2023 the Cumberland City Police Department served an Arrest Warrant on Erik Baker. The Warrant was issued as a result of Baker violating the conditions of probation from a previous theft charge. Baker was seen…

Pennsylvania State Police in Carlisle are kicking off a body-camera pilot program for their state troopers. The pilot has been delayed since 2020 because of the state’s size and number of troopers. $40 million dollars has been allocated to the program to purchase 2,500 body cameras and 1,700 new dashboard cameras.  State Police Commissioner Colonel Christopher Paris says the cameras bring more accountability to the state police… The pilot program will run for 60-90 days in Carlisle before rolling out across Pennsylvania to other State Police locations.

The West Virginia legislature finished up the special session called by Governor Jim Justice on Tuesday, passing 35 of 44 bills introduced.  Justice had called the session in order to get legislation passed for items including pay for correctional officers, child support, state aid to schools, and fixing the glitch in the car tax rebate program.  The session gave firefighters a one-time payment of $12 million to support fire response but EMS organizations received no further funding beyond a $10 million salary enhancement fund that came from the Governor last year.  As the session ended, House Speaker Roger Hanshaw offered…

The State of Allegany County is moving at a good pace, according to Jason Bennett, County Administrator, and Dave Caporale, Commission President.  The Allegany County Chamber of Commerce hosted a State of the County event on Wednesday at Allegany College where Bennett and Caporale presented an update on the fiscal year budget as well as economic developments.  The county representatives touted economic wins including the planned expansion of Sierra Hygiene, new businesses GeoCycle and Organic Remedies and the location of Berkeley Springs Instruments to the area but said one of their biggest challenges continues to be housing. Dave Caporale went…

The Maryland Public Service Commission has scheduled two public comment hearings for the rate increase filed by Columbia Gas of Maryland.  Columbia Gas serves 34,000 customers in Allegany, Garrett, and Washington Counties.  The company is requesting an $8.8 million rate increase which it says is necessary to recover the costs of the company’s increased investment in the replacement of pipelines and increased operation and maintenance expenses. The proposed rates would result in an increase of approximately $14.73 on the monthly bill or close to 14%.  Hearings are scheduled on August 22 in Hagerstown and on August 23 at 7pm at…