Tom Howell Jr.
Articles by Tom Howell Jr.
Davis’ portrait not endorsement of her views, D.C. court says
The D.C. Superior Court says a courthouse display on influential black women included Angela Davis for her "contributions to the political debate" and should not be viewed as an endorsement of her views or as a statement on accusations she was involved in a California kidnapping 40 years ago. Published March 12, 2012
D.C. Council concerned by lingering troubles at DYRS
The District's juvenile justice agency needs to provide more substance-abuse treatment options for its troubled wards and drastically improve its communication with parents of young people housed as far as Utah, a D.C. Council committee says. Published March 11, 2012
D.C. activists to congressman: ‘Don’t be a wiener’
Dozens of protesters are set to descend on Capitol Hill and an Arizona congressman's office out West with a simple message — "Don't be a wiener." Published March 8, 2012
Gray: Let campaign donor probe play out
Mayor Vincent C. Gray distanced himself on Wednesday from an active D.C. political donor whose home and offices were raided on Friday as part of a federal investigation into campaign finance activities. Published March 7, 2012
Ellerbe gets vote of confidence
Mayor Vincent C. Gray on Wednesday offered a vote of confidence to D.C. Fire Chief Kenneth Ellerbe after a report detailing sexual harassment and intimidation complaints against Chief Ellerbe at his prior job in Florida. Published March 7, 2012
D.C. legislation would ban corporate donations
Two D.C. Council members proposed legislation Tuesday that bans corporate donations to city candidates and officials, an aggressive proposal that comes four days after federal agents obtained records from one of the city's most prolific political contributors. Published March 6, 2012
Medical marijuana site issue weighed
D.C. Council members hope a medical marijuana site proposed in Ward 7 will not harm long-term development in the area. But they will not bar the proposed facility from opening if it jeopardizes the integrity of the city's tightly regulated — yet unfinished — program to aid the sick and dying. Published March 6, 2012
Raid on political donor shakes D.C. government
The full intent of a federal raid late Friday on an influential D.C. political donor's home and offices remains unclear, but by Monday the potential fallout of the incident reverberated through city hall, the campaign trail and a long-shot effort to recall the city's top elected officials. Published March 5, 2012
Ward 7 proposed for marijuana cultivation center
Seven weeks after the D.C. Council banned the excessive clustering of medical-marijuana facilities to assuage residents of Ward 5, a city lawmaker is hoping to relocate the only eligible cultivation center to a site east of the Anacostia River. Published March 5, 2012
D.C. set to relax gun laws, hesitantly
A bill that cuts training sessions and other impediments to registering a gun in the District is expected to pass, perhaps unanimously, when it goes before the entire D.C. Council in coming weeks. Published March 1, 2012
Bill would drop classroom, firing range rule to register a gun
A D.C. Council committee greenlighted a bill on Wednesday that eliminates classroom training and firing range instruction as a prerequisite for registering a gun. Published February 29, 2012
ACLU seeks limits on D.C. police tracking technology
The American Civil Liberties Union sounded the alarm on Wednesday over police officers' ability to use cellphone signals and license-plate-reading technology to track people inside the District. Published February 29, 2012
No shortage of candidates to replace Thomas
Sixteen candidates are competing to replace former D.C. Council member Harry Thomas Jr., who pleaded guilty in January to stealing more than $350,000 from the District and left Ward 5 without direct representation in city hall. Published February 28, 2012
Graham wants to know how Thomas used trust to steal from city
Employees at a nonprofit organization that former council member Harry Thomas Jr. used as a conduit to steal from the city raised concerns about fast-tracked grants and the risk of becoming a "check-on-demand kind of place," according to testimony at a D.C. Council oversight hearing on Monday. Published February 27, 2012
‘Substantial questions’ await Thomas trust
A public-private nonprofit that played a pivotal role in former D.C. Council member Harry Thomas Jr.'s theft of more than $350,000 from the city is expected to face tough questions from the council Monday. Published February 26, 2012
D.C. truancy report’s absence raises ire
A D.C. Council member says the city's public school system violated the law by failing to submit an annual report on truancy, an urgent problem among city youth that has led to stricter monitoring and awareness campaigns across the District. Published February 23, 2012
D.C. still years, millions away from fixing quake damage
Six months after a magnitude 5.8 earthquake stunned the nation's capital, the Washington Monument is still closed and awaiting $15 million in repairs, the D.C. government is looking for a federal reimbursement for its hodgepodge of damage and the Washington National Cathedral needs $18 million for major restoration efforts that could take up to five years. Published February 22, 2012
McDonnell backs D.C. budget autonomy
Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell has thrown his support behind a proposal to allow the District to spend its local funds without tying the process to congressional budget bills, citing the risk of disruptions to services in the nation's capital in the event of a federal government shutdown. Published February 22, 2012
D.C. Council committee passes bill to increase monitoring troubled youths
A D.C. Council committee approved legislation Tuesday to increase the monitoring of troubled youths, fast-tracking the measure on the same day that five young men went on trial for a mass shooting in Southeast that prompted the bill. Published February 21, 2012
D.C. Council tightens behavior rules after Marion Barry dustup
The D.C. Council passed a measure Tuesday that expands its self-imposed ban on profane or abusive language to any public meeting attended by members, a swift response to a blowup between two members at the council's retreat on Valentine's Day. Published February 21, 2012
