BALTIMORE (AP) A memorabilia collector and self-styled expert on presidential history pleaded guilty Tuesday to conspiring to steal thousands of documents signed by leaders throughout U.S. history.

BALTIMORE (AP) The view off the mid-Atlantic shore in the next decade could include giant wind turbines generating electricity for homes in several states if federal efforts to speed approval for the projects shave years off the process as officials intend.

EASTON Not one state across the nation received "straight 'A's'" in the American Lung Association's recently released State of Tobacco Control 2012 report, which consists of four categories smokefree air, tobacco prevention, cigarette tax and cessation.

FREDERICK (AP) A Frederick man is starting a 30-year prison term for sexually abusing a 1-year-old boy so badly the child needed surgical repair.

ANNAPOLIS (AP) A measure to legalize same-sex marriage in Maryland puts more emphasis on protecting religious freedom than a bill that failed last year, Gov. Martin O'Malley said Tuesday after hosting a breakfast with supporters at the governor's residence.

WASHINGTON, D.C. Rock Creek Park officials are waiting for National Park Service approval of a plan that allows them to employ sharpshooters to reduce the deer population in the Washington section of the park, as is done in Montgomery County.

BALTIMORE (AP) - Former Maryland Gov. Robert Ehrlich Jr. plans to write a weekly op-ed column for The Baltimore Sun, a newspaper with which he clashed while in office.

DEAL ISLAND (AP) The location of certain "treasure beaches" on Deal Island long has been a closely guarded secret by native islanders.

BALTIMORE (AP) Edgar Allan Poe fans waited long past a midnight dreary, but it appears annual visits to the writer's grave in Baltimore by a mysterious figure called the "Poe Toaster" shall occur nevermore.

BALTIMORE (AP) Is the "Poe Toaster" nevermore?

WASHINGTON Maryland schools were named first in the nation for the fourth consecutive year in a national survey, a feat Gov. Martin O'Malley credited to the state's investment in education.

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ANNAPOLIS (AP) Why did the dog swallow the spoon?

GREENBELT (AP) A man awaiting trial in the killings of a nurse and her 20-year-old daughter was sentenced to 100 years in prison Tuesday for a violent crime spree involving dozens of armed home invasions and burglaries in Maryland.

GREENBELT (AP) A Maryland man who converted to Islam shortly before leaving the U.S. Army and who found living an Islamic way of life in the United States oppressive has been charged with attempting to join a foreign terrorist organization in Somalia, authorities said Monday.

FORT WASHINGTON (AP) Four men have been charged with illegal hunting after an incident in which one of their friends was accidentally shot.

BALTIMORE Buyers of new homes will save hundreds of dollars each year on energy bills as a result of newly updated state building energy standards that went into effect Sunday, according to a press release from Environment Maryland.

BALTIMORE (AP) Baltimore police say a 62-year-old man found shot in the driver's seat of a vehicle is the city's first homicide victim of the new year.

ANNAPOLIS (AP) In what promises to be a challenging session, Maryland lawmakers will focus on continuing budget problems and the return of divisive legislation that stalled last year, including same-sex marriage, expanded gambling, offshore wind development and limits on septic systems.

FUNKSTOWN (AP) There's a golden retriever, an English springer spaniel, a Doberman and a handful of mixed breeds.

BALTIMORE U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Shaun Donovan last week announced $45.3 million in funding for 220 homeless programs in Maryland.

BALTIMORE (AP) Police say they are investigating a suspicious package left at Baltimore City Hall, though authorities determined there was no threat to the public or elected officials.

ANNAPOLIS (AP) A member of an advisory committee on legislative redistricting in Maryland has pleaded guilty to failing to pay employment taxes in connection with his ownership of a Maryland company, prompting the executive director of the Maryland Republican Party on Thursday to question the integrity of the state's redistricting process.

ADELPHI University System of Maryland officials let state legislators know that professors are spending more time teaching an increasing number of students. In the process, they are getting better results. More students are graduating while taking less time to do so.

ANNAPOLIS Maryland lawmakers are preparing to resume debate on one of Gov. Martin O'Malley's major green initiatives, an offshore wind energy bill that stalled during the last legislative session amid concerns about the cost to utility companies and their customers.