SHERIFF’s IMPEACHMENT ON TABLE: Leaders in Howard County are taking steps to remove embattled Sheriff James Fitzgerald from office after he said Thursday that he won’t resign over allegations he used foul and racist language to belittle and threaten employees, Pamela Wood of the Sun reports. Howard County Executive Allan H. Kittleman asked the county’s representatives in Annapolis to investigate whether the General Assembly can impeach Fitzgerald.
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Bryan Sears of the Daily Record reports that should the legislature decided to act on Kittleman’s request, Fitzgerald would become the first Maryland official impeached since 1851 when the authority to do so first appeared in the Maryland Constitution.
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WMAR-TV reports that the recent report from the Howard County Office of Human Rights alleged Fitzgerald used racial slurs and belittled staff. Elected leaders and protestors called for his resignation as early as last week, but Thursday morning, Fitzgerald said he would remain on the job.