Tom Howell Jr.
Articles by Tom Howell Jr.
DYRS official fired after questionable hire of Baynes
The District's juvenile-justice agency fired its human resources manager last week in the wake of unresolved questions around the hiring of a superintendent to oversee the city's youth-detention facility, D.C. human resources officials said. Published August 8, 2011
West resigns as chairman of D.C. elections board
The chairman of the D.C. Board of Elections and Ethics plans to resign, just two weeks after the board's executive director also stepped down, D.C. officials said Monday. Published August 8, 2011
Rules set for D.C. permit to cultivate marijuana
Candidates to grow medical marijuana in the District risk wasting their time, energy and a non-refundable $2,500 if they're not prepared to meet the strict demands of the application process about to get under way. Published August 7, 2011
Business rips Gray’s veto of bonds-tax measure
Three D.C. business groups are "shocked and dismayed" by Mayor Vincent C. Gray's decision to pocket-veto a measure that would have delayed collection of a tax on out-of-state bonds. Published August 4, 2011
D.C. Lottery schedules public meetings on online gambling
The D.C. Lottery has rolled out a schedule of meetings in each of the city's eight wards to discuss its controversial online gambling program. Published August 4, 2011
OCF clears Alexander on most charges
The D.C. Office of Campaign Finance cleared council member Yvette M. Alexander on Wednesday of allegations she used her constituent services fund for her personal benefit, yet fined her $4,000 for two smaller infractions. Published August 3, 2011
Cheh blasts Gray’s veto of D.C. Council bonds-tax compromise
D.C. Council member Mary M. Cheh is livid about Mayor Vincent C. Gray's use of a pocket veto to make a tax on out-of-state bonds retroactive, even though the D.C. Council fought to delay its implementation until 2012. Published August 3, 2011
Council members disclose campaign finance totals
Eight months ahead of primary elections, D.C. Council member Muriel Bowser has raised $85,000 as part of early efforts to retain her seat in Ward 4. Published August 2, 2011
D.C. officials felt impasse on Capitol Hill keenly
For the second time this year, D.C. officials drew up memos, planned inter-agency briefings and put vacation plans on ice while power brokers on Capitol Hill worked through a stalemate with major implications for the District. Published August 1, 2011
D.C. medical marijuana applicants must pass scrutiny
District officials are being painstakingly careful in proceeding with the city's medical-marijuana program, even rejecting applicants for such seemingly simple mistakes as failing to sign and date letters of intent to grow or dispense the drug. Published July 31, 2011
D.C. culls applicant list for medical marijuana
The fiance of rapper M.I.A. did not make it past the first cut in the District's long-awaited program to deliver medical marijuana to qualified patients. Published July 28, 2011
Gray appoints D.C. Taxicab Commission chairman
D.C. Mayor Vincent C. Gray on Wednesday appointed an urban planner with decades of experience in the capital region to take over the embattled D.C. Taxicab Commission. Published July 28, 2011
Ticket amnesty may put D.C. scofflaws in gear
Motorists who flouted D.C. traffic laws, then left their tickets in the glove box will get a reprieve in coming months. Published July 27, 2011
D.C. medical marijuana backers still waiting
Two D.C. patients' rights groups are decrying the absence of seeds in the ground to grow medical marijuana and a clear timetable for when patients can obtain the drug, though a full year has passed since Congress approved the program. Published July 26, 2011
D.C. Council’s Wells latest to call for Thomas resignation
D.C. Council member Tommy Wells has joined the chorus of legislators calling for colleague Harry Thomas Jr. to resign, amid allegations he spent public funds intended for youth baseball programs. Published July 26, 2011
Calls for D.C. Council’s Thomas to quit rise after payback pact
D.C. Council Chairman Kwame R. Brown declined Monday to join in calls for council member Harry Thomas Jr. to resign amid corruption investigations, instead urging Mr. Thomas to do "what is best for his family and his constituents." Published July 25, 2011
D.C.’s Mayor Gray in Hollywood, trying to bring it to the Potomac
Many people are familiar with the notorious horse head scene in "The Godfather," in which a stubborn Hollywood mogul is strong-armed by out-of-towners with a disturbing surprise. Published July 21, 2011
D.C. police department sets up gun dealer in its headquarters
The District of Columbia has cleared the way for its lone licensed gun dealer to set up shop in police headquarters, an unusual short-term fix to a problem that has left the city with a de facto ban on handguns and vulnerable to lawsuits by gun rights groups. Published July 20, 2011
Gray cites haste in assembling campaign
D.C. Mayor Vincent C. Gray on Tuesday responded to charges that his 2010 campaign team accepted cash donations over the $25 legal limit by converting them to money orders, attributing the possible slip-ups to aides during his "truncated" campaign. Published July 19, 2011
Lottery postpones online ‘demo’ games
The D.C. Lottery is tapping the brakes on every aspect of its unprecedented Internet gambling plans, even though city residents wouldn't have lost a dime by playing demo games initially slated to roll out this week. Published July 18, 2011
