Maryland Crab Population Rebounding But Still Under Watch; DC Job Fair Draws Record Numbers: Morning Links

Morning links are back, Washingtonian readers. Looks like today brings slightly drier air, though Capital Weather Gang says temperatures will still be in the 90s today. “Humidity levels may still feel a little sticky in the morning but should feel much better by evening.”

Maryland Crab Population Under Watch: A new report by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration found recent limits on crab catches have resulted in a rebounded blue crab population in the Chesapeake Bay, the Baltimore Sun reports. Now, the study urges regulators to focus on protecting female blue crabs to keep the population healthy, asking conservationists to maintain a population of 215 million female crabs.

DC’s Job Fair Draws Record Numbers: DC Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton’s 14th annual job fair at the Washington Convention Center drew more than 4,000 job-seekers yesterday. Attendance was up by more than a thousand over last year in the wake of some bad economic news, including plunging stock market numbers, an S&P downgrade of the US credit rating, and the possibility of federal job losses. (Though reports say that Fairfax and Prince George’s counties are keeping their AAA credit ratings.) “It’s breaking records, and it’s breaking my heart,” Norton told the Washington Post.



Lanier Demotes Police Commander: DC Police Chief Cathy Lanier demoted former commander Hilton Burton, a police officer she’d previously clashed with publicly over police escorts for celebrities and other high-profile figures, Andrea Noble at the Washington Times reports. Burton was demoted to the rank of captain on Monday after returning from vacation, which Lanier said was due to a review of command decisions. Burton supervised police operations over the July 4 holiday, and says the issues cited for demotion weren’t “spoken of until yesterday.”



DC Police Charge Man in LGBT Attack: The Washington Blade reports that DC police charged a 19-year-old DC resident with assault for an incident on July 30 in which five lesbians reported getting attacked and beaten by two men near the Columbia Heights Metro. The incident raised controversy after two officers who responded on the night of the incident refused to take a report. The police are investigating whether more people are involved in the incident.



Circulator Routes Shift: Kytja Weir at the Washington Examiner reports that the DC Department of Transportation will end the Convention Center-Waterfront Circulator line in October and shift to providing service East of the Anacostia River. The city says it’s pulling the plug on the North-South bus line due to low ridership. 



HIV/AIDS Program Criticized: An audit of DC’s HIV/AIDS program for residential services has shown abuse in the program. The DC Department of Health was shown to be reimbursing an employee who doesn’t exist. Much of the alleged wrongful conduct occurred under the watch of former director Debra Rowe, Freeman Klopott at the Examiner reports. 



Briefly Noted: Local food writer Mary Beth Albright landed a spot on season seven of Food Network Star. . . . The College of William and Mary may have uncovered remains of Colonial-era slave quarters. . . . Columbia Heights residents are debating bikes on sidewalks.

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Kay Steiger