Adam May has the latest.

Huguely could have received up to 60 years in prison. Now he could be locked up until he’s 50 years old.

Wednesday night, the prosecutor said there are no winners in this case, just losers.

George Huguely, convicted of second degree murder and grand larceny, dodged the worst possible punishment but he could still serve up to 26 years in prison.

After nine hours, jurors ruled the Chevy Chase native, who played lacrosse at the University of Virginia, beat his girlfriend, Cockeysville native Yeardley Love to death in her off-campus apartment in May, 2010. He was upset after learning she slept with another lacrosse player and drunk after a day of golfing with teammates and his father.

“There are no winners in this case. There’s nothing but loss everywhere. Our hearts go out to the Love family. They’ve suffered enormously,” said the prosecutor.

In court, Huguely showed no emotions during the verdict but he started to weep after jurors left the courthouse to begin the sentencing phase.

Love’s mother and sister offered heartbreaking testimony about lonely holidays. Her mother, Sharon, told the jury, “Every year that goes by, I fear that I’m forgetting little pieces about Yeardley. That worries me.” In a statement, they thanked the prosecutors and asked for privacy.

No one spoke on behalf of Huguely. In fact, his father didn’t show up in court for their verdict. Instead, Huguely’s lawyers pleaded to the jury to spare their client a long prison sentence, arguing Huguely was immature and remorseful.

“He displayed amazing resilience and courage,” said the defense attorney. “We look forward to some corrections in what happened here tonight.”

The defense attorney didn’t use the word “appeal.”

The jury’s sentence is just a recommendation. The judge can reduce the sentence but he can’t increase it. Formal sentencing is scheduled for April 16.

In a statement, Notre Dame Prep School (where Love went to high school) said, “Throughout this ordeal, the notre Dame Prepatory School community has prayed for all of those touched by this tragedy. While the trial has concluded, our prayers will continue.

“Yeardley has been in our hearts and minds since her passing in 2010. She will be remembered and celebrated in many ways at NDP—through a scholarship that bears her name, with a three-sport turf field and through the empathy our community holds for her and her family. Yeardley will always be one of `our girls’ and though we will never fill the void left by her death, we pray that those whose lives have been immeasurably altered may find peace.”

Two Baltimore firms are involved in the lawsuit, which claims Facebook is keeping tabs on its users 24/7.

You log on to Facebook to follow friends, but after you log out, Facebook may still be following you!

“You would hope that all they would track is stuff that was on the site,” said one user.

But a new class action lawsuit says that isn’t the case.

“We’re sick and tired of big companies abusing the privacy of consumers,” said lawyer Billy Murphy.

Murphy claims Facebook is violating its own policy by monitoring the internet sites you visit after you log off.

“Your information about your personal, private behavior should not be available to prying eyes who want it so that they can make money off of you,” said Murphy.

Facebook’s policy says it receives data from the computer, mobile phone or other device you use to access Facebook. This may include your IP address, location, type of browser you use or the pages you visit.

According to the suit, when you sign up for Facebook, the site installs digital trackers called “cookies.” Those cookies can monitor what websites you’re looking at.

“Cookies are basically a GPS system,” said web expert Gary Buclous.

Buclous says having your web history tracked can be dangerous.

“Very, very nervous. Because, let’s face it, some information we want to disclose and some information we do not want disclosed,” Buclous said.

Facebook claims to fight the case in court, claiming it has no merit.

The suit filed by the Baltimore attorneys is one of a dozen lawsuits filed against Facebook in 11 states.

Thirty-nine-year-old Albert G. Antonelli of Queenstown was arrested Tuesday when he showed up for a court hearing. The Annapolis Capital reports that he was ordered held without bond on a September charge of possessing heroin and drug paraphernalia while on supervised probation.

Antonelli served three years in prison after killing 29-year-old Officer Duke Aaron III when his pickup truck, traveling more than 70 mph, hit the back of Aaron’s unmarked cruiser on Route 50 west of the Bay Bridge.

(Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

Troopers say the fatal accidents happened on Saturday in Prince George’s County and Monday in Harford and Caroline counties. One pedestrian was killed by a hit-and-run driver; all three incidents occurred after dark.

State Police Superintendent Col. Marcus Brown says more than 100 pedestrians are killed each year in Maryland. He urged pedestrians to make sure they are visible after dark by wearing retro-reflective material and to cross only in marked intersections and crosswalks.

(Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

Weijia Jiang has the final pleas from both sides in this case.

This sentencing hearing is very much like a trial of its own. And right before jurors got the case, prosecutors pushed for the ultimate punishment. And the defense begged for mercy.

A jury is deciding whether Lee Stephens should live or die. Earlier this month, the 32-year-old was convicted of first-degree murder for the fatal stabbing of Cpl. David McGuinn, an officer who worked at the now-closed Maryland House of Correction in Jessup.

The 2006 slaying happened inside the prison, leaving blood splattered on Stephens’ clothing, shoes and cell bars.

That very evidence makes him eligible to receive the death penalty.

In 2009, the state legislature enforced more stringent requirements to seek capital punishment– biological or DNA evidence, a video recording of the crime or a videotaped confession is necessary.

This case is the first test ever of its DNA link

In closing arguments during sentencing, prosecutor Sandra Howell told jurors: “Stephens brutally murdered, stabbing, ending the life of David McGuinn. This is the ultimate crime. For that crime, the law provides the ultimate penalty.”

But the jury will also consider mitigating factors. Stephens attorney pointed to a troubled childhood, filled with violence drugs and sexual abuse. Defense Attorney Michael Lawler said: “He was taught insanity, hate and cruelty from the moment he was old enough to learn.”

He then asked: “Have you ever heard of a tortured existence?”

This jury took about a week to return with a guilty verdict. Now that they’re facing a matter of life or death, it’s anyone’s guess when they’ll decide on a sentence.

If Stephens is sentenced to death, it will automatically go to the Maryland Court of Special Appeals.

The future takes on the fossils and sets out to inherit the wind. Wind energy is an O’Malley administration priority for the second year in a row but this time the lawmakers have had more time to study it and in a Senate committee hearing last week, the governor pitched it again.

“There’s no hope that we’ll ever get it if we don’t continue to move forward,” said O’Malley.

It uses the wind off the coast of Ocean City to generate electricity.

“God has put it off of our shore. What we have to make the choice to do is to harness it,” said O’Malley.

And customers have to be prepared to pay for it, an additional $2 a month, which gives some lawmakers pause.

“A lot of that depends on what we think the price of fossil fuels is going to be,” said O’Malley.

But wind advocates believe despite the cost, the juice is worth the squeeze.

Governor O’Malley testifies on wind energy in a House committee Thursday.

According to the administration, it would be five years before consumers would see the cost of building the wind farm added to their bills.

Right across the street from Baltimore’s central booking was a rally to block a controversial jail-based deportment program.

“We are going backwards instead of forwards in our country if this is the way it’s going to be,” said Lisa O’Reilly.

The US Immigration and Customs Enforcement, also called ICE, launched its Secure Communities program this week. It requires local police officers and prison guards to share all fingerprints of arrestees with the FBI. The FBI then gives that information over to ICE, which uses the prints to track and later deport undocumented immigrants. Baltimore’s central booking is where the process starts because everyone who’s arrested stops there first.

“It opens the door for racial profiling and civil rights abuses. People are charged with very minor crimes,” said Elizabeth Alex, Casa de Maryland.

Members of Casa de Maryland, a civil rights group for Hispanics, says it makes their community anything but secure because the fear of deportation will overshadow the need to build strong relationships with police.

“This is Baltimore City. The people, they’re going to be afraid, `I will get arrested,’” said Esteban Guevara, a legal immigrant.

Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake joined the ranks of city leaders nationwide who are speaking out against Secure Communities. In a written statement, she said, “We recognize that the city of Baltimore plays no role in the implementation of the program and that I have no control over ICE’s actions. However, I am extremely disheartened by this recent decision to implement the program in Baltimore and the manner in which it is being carried out.”

The “Secure Communities” program is in 1,500 cities and counties nationwide.

Republican leaders asked that discussion of the bill be postponed until Thursday. The measure is expected to pass and would make Maryland the eighth state to legalize gay marriage.

Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller said the Senate could meet into Thursday night to consider the bill, which barely passed the House of Delegates last week. Debate could continue Friday before a final vote is taken, the Democrat said.

Last year the Senate passed a similar measure by 25 to 21.

Opponents have offered an amendment to change the bill’s effective date. They also say they have asked Attorney General Doug Gansler for feedback on the constitutionality of amendments added to the House version.

Letters regarding the amendments, which would delay the bill’s effective date from October to January 2013 and keep the law from going into effect until any litigation related to a potential voters’ referendum on the measure is processed, were issued from the attorney general’s office to House members last week.

The letters confirmed that delaying the effective date would only ensure that a referendum on the bill could be adequately executed and that the other amendment is constitutionally sound.

Sen. C. Anthony Muse, D-Prince George’s, who voted against the bill last year, said he will also offer an amendment during debate.

“This is such a sensitive issue,” Muse said. “It’s an issue that I think deserves the kind of time and debate that we’ll need in order to deal with this in an adequate fashion.”

Sen. Jamie Raskin, who will shepherd the bill on the floor, said those who want to see the bill pass should resist amendments because it would send the measure back to the House where gathering enough support for altered legislation would be difficult.

“I think that we all know that any effort to amend the bill at this point is essentially to kill the bill,” the Montgomery County Democrat said. “It may look like a placebo, but it is a poison pill.”

Advocates say they are confident they have not lost any votes.

“I don’t anticipate a single vote has changed, but if it has, fine,” said Miller, who opposes the legislation. “That’s up to the body.”

Opponents vow to petition the bill to referendum if it passes the Senate, which would put the measure to voters in November.

They will need to collect at least 55,726 valid signatures of Maryland voters to put it on the ballot and can begin collecting names as soon as the bill passes both chambers.

(Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

Meghan McCorkell has the latest.

One man is now under arrest, charged in this frightening case of road rage. Now we’re hearing from those who witnessed the attack.

Drivers watched in horror as road rage spiraled out of control.

Dispatcher: “OK. What’s going on?”

Caller: “There’s been a stabbing and big a car accident.”

Witnesses say the 44-year old driver of a SUV– who’d just gotten married–got into a confrontation with 23-year-old Ross Sudbrook, a passenger in a PT Cruiser.

It all started right on Route 3 and Riedel Road. The victim and his new bride were joking around and switching between the driver and passenger side at the red light.

Police say Sudbrook had words with the couple, pulled out a knife and stabbed the husband.

Caller: “At the last intersection, some guy was trying to get another guy with a knife from his car.”

When the PT Cruiser took off, the SUV followed.

Caller: “You know we were going down the road. All of a sudden the green car comes up on the shoulder of the road flying, cuts in front of all kinds of cars and rams the PT Cruiser.”

The two cars wound up in a ditch.

“Suddenly everybody was running from cars. And cars were scattered all over the shop here,” said Jim Paugels, witness.

Another fight broke out.  This time, the victim eventually knocked out Sudbrook.

Now Sudbrook faces several charges, including first- and second-degree assault.

WJZ  did speak with the new wife of the stabbing victim. She says her husband is doing OK.  They’re still trying to get over the shock of what happened.

Police say more charges could be pending in this case.

Captain Mike Perry reports.

It happened just before 2:30 p.m. Tuesday near the intersection of  McDonough Road and Star Circle.

Preliminary investigation revealed that a Chrysler Cirrus driven by Melvin Bettis III, 22, of Pikesville, was traveling on McDonough Road.  For reasons unknown, the Cirrus crossed over the center turn lane into oncoming traffic.

The vehicle collided head-on with a Mercury Grand Marquis driven by Andre Murphy, 60, also of Pikesville.  The Cirrus rotated around,  and then struck a Nissan Pathfinder operated by a 33-year-old Owings Mills woman.

Both Bettis and Murphy were both pronounced dead at the scene.

The driver of the third vehicle was not injured.

Stay with WJZ for more on this developing story.

Derek Valcourt has more on their message to friends of Michael Truluck.

Truluck was an eighth-grader at Parkville Middle School and an incredibly popular student. Classmates and teachers are taking his tragic death especially hard.

Truluck is being remembered by his friends for how he lived.

“He was the nicest kid. He was best friends with everybody,” said student Kellie O’Donnell.

But it’s how he died that has stunned his family and those who knew him through school.

Saturday he and some friends were hanging out in Parkville’s Double Rock Park drinking Four Loko–a fruit-flavored beverage loaded with alcohol.

The drink made him so sick that he called for a ride home.  He opened the door while the car was moving, so he could vomit. That’s when he fell out into Harford Road and was run over.

The news of his death is heartbreaking to the teens who knew him and their parents.

“At 13 this isn’t something they should have to go through,” said Paula Waldhutter, parent.

“And they don’t know how to deal with it because they’ve never had to deal with it before,” said Jenni Frank, parent.

Over the last few days, hundreds of kids have stopped by, adding their own tributes to a make-shift memorial near the accident scene along Harford Road.  Many parents choose to use this tragedy as a teachable moment for their kids.

“I was telling my sons and their friends this is very sad, but maybe this is a sign that he’s telling each and every boy and girl not to touch alcohol,” said Laurie Reese, mother.

Reese says her sons were close with Truluck.

“Right now my kids are going through a hard time with this,” she said.

She’s warning her kids about the dangers of alcohol–a lesson Truluck’s mother says all parents need to teach.

“It’s sad. It’s just really sad, and I don’t want to have to see another family go through this,” said Kris Keys, victim’s mother.

Truluck family will be taking visitors at Evans Chapel Funeral home on Wednesday from 2 to 4 p.m. A prayer service will be held Thursday at 11 a.m. at Saint Ursula’s Church.

Alex DeMetrick reports the Air Force is eliminating the local guard’s cargo planes and possibly jobs as well.

Whether it’s delivering a paratrooper or a pallet of supplies, Maryland’s Air National Guard is flying a smaller twin engine cargo plane.

This spring, those planes and crews start deploying to Afghanistan.  When they return, the Air Force is planning to eliminate the planes, and the heart of Maryland’s airlift capability.

“That’s a concern for us,” said Col. Scott Kelly, Maryland Air National Guard.

That’s because these planes aren’t just used in war. They also bring supplies to disaster zones. Removing them will save the Air Force money, but maybe not jobs.

“You’ve got the fliers, the pilots.  You’ve got the loadmasters, maintenance, so 250 to 300, somewhere in that range of individuals, who keep this thing up and running,” said Kelly.

“The sentiment is everybody loves this mission. They love flying,” said Col. Thomas Hans, Maryland Air National Guard. “But we understand we’re here to serve the country, and if they take that mission away from us and give us another mission, we’ll make that succeed as well.”

That new mission will likely focus on cyber security and intelligence gathering.

The guard views that as a plus, but “what the impact’s going to be, we don’t know yet,” Kelly said.

While the impact of losing these planes is still down the road, what’s most in focus now is the deployment to Afghanistan.

“Let’s worry about what we need to do today for the job,” Kelly said, “as we try to figure out what’s to come personnel wise”–when the planes leave Maryland for good.

Eliminating the cargo planes must still be approved by Congress.

The planes will remain with the Maryland Air National Guard through at least September when they return from Afghanistan.

On Feb. 4, a Maryland State Trooper responded to the parking lot of Thompson Creek Mall, where he found a running and locked car with two young children inside– one of which was in a car seat.

A witness says she was standing with the car for 10 minutes prior to the trooper’s arrival.

A few minutes later, Daniel Nathan Lilly came out of the Food Lion and approached the vehicle with a cart full of groceries.  Lilly advised that the children’s ages were 5 and less than 1 year old.

Investigation revealed that Lilly was shopping in the Food Lion with both children being left unattended for approximately 27 minutes.

Other witnesses stated that the 5-year-old was in the front seat playing with the steering wheel while the vehicle was running and unattended.

Lilly has been charged with two counts of both neglect of a minor and confined unattended child.

Sen. Ben Cardin is attending the kickoff Monday of the program at the Walnut Street Community Health Center.

The 39-foot vehicle will serve children at the county’s public schools and Head Start sites.

Cardin says he has worked to expand children’s access to oral health care. He sponsored a provision in the 2009 Children’s Health Insurance Program that guaranteed dental care.

(Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

Meghan McCorkell was in Annapolis for the key moment.

Supporters got 72 votes. They needed 71 votes to pass the bill. But they weren’t sure what was going to happen until the very last moment.

An historic moment in the House of Delegates. By a narrow margin, the bill to legalize same-sex marriage passes.

“This is the right thing to do and I’m convinced in my heart that we’re doing the right thing,” Del. Michael Busch, Speaker of the House, said.

It is a big win for Gov. Martin O’Malley who sponsored the bill and tirelessly fought for its passage.

“Our leaders we elect are moving us forward with care for one another, with love for one another, with understanding and respect for one another. That’s what one Maryland is,” he said.

Emotions were overflowing for some openly gay delegates.

“It’s been an emotional, amazing experience, and I look forward to the bill passing the Senate now,” Del. Luke Clippinger, D-Baltimore City, said.

“The gay and lesbian communities can look at this vote and say, ‘Finally, finally!’” Del. Maggie McIntosh, D-Baltimore City, said.

Opponents put up a fight until the end, nearly dominating the debate before the vote.

“Same-sex marriage is wrong,” Del. Emmett Burns, D-Baltimore County, said.

“I think if people would just vote their conscience, just vote up or down, I think it actually wouldn’t have passed,” Del. Michael Hough, R-Frederick and Washington Counties, said.

The vote was certainly a nail-biter. Supporters say they didn’t know if they had the votes until the very end.

“When the last woman got up to speak today, that’s when the tears started for many of us,” Del. Anne Kaiser, D-Montgomery County, said.

That last speaker– the 72nd vote– was cast by Del. Tiffany Alston who helped kill the same-sex marriage bill last year. Her support was enough for a very different outcome this year.

The same-sex marriage bill will now go to the Senate where a similar bill passed last year.

Opponents of same-sex marriage are vowing to petition the measure to referendum, putting it before the voters in November.

The Smithsonian Institution announced Wednesday that Obama will speak at the Feb. 22 groundbreaking for the National Museum of African American History and Culture. Actress Phylicia Rashad will host the event.

Early construction work has already begun at the museum site near the Washington Monument. Officials have said the museum is on track to open in 2015. Congress has pledged to provide half the cost of the $500 million museum project.

Designers for the project have been planning a layered bronze structure with a stone base.

Bush serves on the museum’s advisory council with Oprah Winfrey, Quincy Jones and others.

(Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press.  All Rights Reserved.)

FREDERICK, Md. (AP) — Gardening isn’t just for women, as the Men’s Garden Club of Frederick County will assure you.

“Yes, there really is a Men’s Garden Club,” said Richard Adams, club secretary. “It’s Frederick’s best-kept secret.”

The club, which has 37 members, meets seven times a year to learn about gardening-related topics from guest speakers.

“We usually meet around 7 o’clock at a member’s house for cocktails and then we have a speaker lecture on different modalities of gardening,” said Vincent DiFabio, club president.

The vice president, currently Tim Gibian, is also the chairman of the program committee and is responsible for selecting the speakers, although anyone can submit suggestions.

Speakers’ topics have included everything from outdoor lighting to stink bugs.

“We had an entomologist from Western Maryland who was the authority on stink bugs,” said club member James Lillard. “She had the first official sighting of stink bugs in the state.”

The entomologist was Tracy Leskey of the Appalachian Fruit Research Station in West Virginia. The club is working with Celebrate Frederick Inc. to recruit gardeners for the 2012 Beyond the Garden Gates garden tour, which the club will host for the second time this spring.

The self-guided tour allows Frederick residents and visitors to explore the gardens hidden behind the gates of private Frederick homes.

“The garden tour is a good way to get ideas for your own garden,” Adams said.

“We receive one-quarter of the fees made. In the past, we used the profits to install hanging baskets around downtown,” Lillard said.

Recently, the Men’s Garden Club has been trying to become more involved in community projects.

“We’re working with city parks to plant a garden in the East Street circle,” said Bob Robey, Men’s Garden Club member and leader of the project. “The circle is the first thing people see coming into Frederick.”

The “circle garden” is north of the I-70 interchange at the entrance to East Street. The club is waiting for the Public Art Commission of Frederick to select a sculpture for the circle before it plants the garden.

“We can’t decide on the flowers until we know what the statue looks like,” Robey said.

But that doesn’t mean club members haven’t done any work at the site.

“We’ve pulled out thousands of weeds from the circle,” Lillard said. The garden portion of the circle is 90 feet in diameter.

So far, club members have visited the circle six times to pull weeds and spread mulch.

“We used 240 bags of mulch to cover the area,” Robey said, “and they were big bags.”

According to Lillard, the Men’s Garden Club was founded in 1993 by Frederick resident Jerry Coates.

“He and his friends decided to get together to share their gardening ideas,” Lillard said.

The club is based on the Men’s Garden Club of America, but it is not affiliated with that organization.

“Gardening is very therapeutic for me,” said Adams. “I enjoy seeing things grow.”

Robey agrees.

“There’s nothing nicer than enjoying a garden,” he said.

(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

Thelma Elaine Steele was found dead Tuesday morning. Prince George’s County police spokesman Cpl. Evan Baxter said Steele had been beaten and stabbed and that police had recovered a murder weapon. Baxter said William Roger Fitts lived in the same block as Steele and that he would be charged as an adult. He said the motive for the murder appears to be robbery.

(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)