After a thorough investigation, it has been determined that the skeletal human remains found in the wooded area off Independence Street in Cumberland on March 4, 2025, belong to Ray Lawrence Aleshire. Mr. Aleshire was reported missing by his son on March 9, 2023, after several weeks without contact. His son explained that Larry was homeless and stayed in the local area, but it was unusual for him to be out of touch for so long. Since his disappearance, officers from the Cumberland Police Department, detectives from the Allegany County Combined Criminal Investigation Unit, and allied agencies worked diligently to…

On Monday, March 24, 2025, the Cumberland Police Department served an arrest warrant on Ben Metheny.  The warrant was issued as the result of an incident that occurred on March 24, 2025 at approximately 3:00 AM when police responded to a residence in the 900 block of Bedford Street for an assault.  Officers contacted the alleged victim who reported that she had been assaulted by Metheny who was no longer on scene.  The victim explained that Metheny also took her vehicle without her permission.  After further investigation, police filed for charges against Metheny at the District Court of Allegany County. …

Former Social Security Administration head Martin O’Malley says that he feels for the workers being let go by DOGE as well as those that receive benefits. Plans to cut upwards of 7,000 jobs and close offices will have catastrophic effects, according to O’Malley, a former Maryland governor.  He points to longer wait times by phone, delayed benefit determinations, and other backlogs…     “Ultimately, all of these things are going to cascade, and going to result in an interruption of benefits. How soon that will happen, I don’t exactly know, but I believe it will be in the next 90…

The new tax plans released last week by the Moore Administration now show a 20% increase in the standard deduction for Maryland residents – a change from the first-proposed doubling of the current deduction. New plans also call for tax increases on services, amounts that House Minority Leader Jason Buckle says will eat up any resident’s tax savings…     “The estimated tax cut for almost everyone is $50. That’s the estimated state tax cut just from the income taxes. Well. If you have to pay an additional 3% on these IT and data services, if you have to pay…

Several particulars of the Maryland Blueprint for Education continue to be fluid in the state’s budget. Governor Moore’s plan rolled back parts of the Blueprint, slowing down costs but House committees have for the most part reinstated the spending. The Senate Budget and Taxation committee approved a pause in funding teacher collaborative time of four years instead of the House version, which would start in 2026.  Other parts of the plan will be reviewed this week.

Maryland Senator Chris Van Hollen is speaking out for veterans who have lost their jobs in federal layoffs. Over 6,000 vets across the country have been displaced so far. The senator says it is only because of court intervention that some of these federal employees are being reinstated and returning to work while others are currently on paid administrative leave.  Van Hollen says such cuts are not efficient…   “It just shows that this whole claim that this is about government efficiency is a farce, because what is more inefficient that paying people and then telling them not to come…

Governor Patrick Morrisey is asking the West Virginia legislature to pass the Power Generation and Consumption Act to encourage data center development in the state. The bill will allow companies to develop independent energy grids using natural resources, including coal and natural gas. Governor Morrisey says this will position West Virginia as a prime location for data centers, A-I processing and cloud computing…     “They’re going to need four to six to sometimes eight times the power needs we’ve had for traditional industrial sites in the past. We know that West Virginia has strategic locations for data security. We…

Maryland’s Democratic Senate President believes the new financial framework introduced last week can put the state back on the right track.  With a revamped tax program that adds a surcharge on capital gains and a 3% tax on information and data services, President Bill Ferguson says the plan does what it can in face of federal government uncertainty…     “We wish we were not in this position. We wish we had certainty from the federal level. But we know if we are going to fund our roads and bridges, if we’re going to fund our schools, our police officers,…

Strife between parents and faculty at Calvary Christian Academy and the administration of Calvary Baptist Church in Cresaptown are continuing, with a recent survey showing a majority of faculty and staff will not return for the next school year.  A parent advocacy board has determined that without a reinstated school board with the authority to govern all aspects of the school, members and parents are looking to establish a new school or homeschool co-op.  WCBC has reached out to Calvary Baptist Pastor Mike Lashbaugh for comment on the situation.

Three new firefighters were welcomed to the Cumberland Fire Department during a recent Mayor and City Council meeting. Christopher Shue, Dawson Ternent, and Scott Matthews were recognized for their completion of Firefighter Recruit Training. Department Fire Chief Shannon Adams says the three have previous fire experience…     “These three individuals came with experience and training so it made it very easy and quick to get them trained to do what we needed for our department and get them out on the streets to handle emergency calls. First part of October, they completed their firefighter training, HAZMAT training, and their…