News Summary - 4/16

Daily Record, The (Baltimore), Apr 16, 2008

Harford 911 center certified

Harford County's Emergency Operations Center has become the first in the state to be certified by the National Academies of Emergency Dispatch. The recognition comes after a six-month audit of 911 operators. R. Ross Coates, public safety communications manager, said the center has been using standardized lists of questions from the academies on every 911 call to determine the proper level of response. He said it ensures resources are used efficiently. The center handles about 440,000 calls a year and coordinates dispatching services for the Harford County Sheriff's Office. It is one of only 120 agencies worldwide to receive this level of accreditation.

Hanover institute gives award

The Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences, based in Hanover, has presented a Dutch railroad with a prestigious award for its schedule restructuring that improved on- time performance. Netherlands Railways was awarded the 2008 Franz Edelman Award for Achievement in Operations Research and the Management Sciences. The annual prize recognizes operations research- based projects that have transformed companies, industries and people's lives.

EEOC settles sexual harassment suit

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's Baltimore office announced on Tuesday it resolved its sexual harassment lawsuit against a Pasadena medical supply company for $115,000 and injunctive relief. The EEOC said its suit against EMS Innovations Inc. alleged sexual harassment of half a dozen female employees, and that two of the workers were forced to quit and two others were fired. In addition to the monetary payment to the women, the EEOC's settlement with EMS Innovations requires that the company agree to be monitored by the EEOC; implement an anti-harassment policy; and take other steps to maintain an environment free of sexual harassment.

Prosecutors drop murder charges

Baltimore prosecutors have dropped murder charges in a case that could have included recorded testimony taped before a witness was killed. Patrick Byers was to go on trial Tuesday in the 2006 shooting death of Larry Haynes. He still faces federal charges in the slaying of the witness to Haynes' death. Carl Lackl was killed in July in a shooting outside his Rosedale home. A spokesman for the Baltimore state's attorney's office said prosecutors dropped charges against Byers because they believe he's more likely to be convicted in federal court.

New plaintiff in suit against Hilton

The Equal Rights Center, a Washington-based organization that works to advance the principles of fair housing, fair employment and equal access to public accommodations, said the American Association of People with Disabilities has joined a federal lawsuit filed in August 2007 by ERC and Marc Fiedler, a disabled person who uses a wheelchair, against the Hilton Hotels Corp. The suit alleged that the company's owned and managed hotels have numerous physical barriers to people with disabilities. ERC said a survey it conducted of Hilton Hotels in several states and the District of Columbia found the company has systemic barriers facing disabled people throughout its hotel chain.