Justin Smith, head of school at Middletown’s St. Anne’s Episcopal School, has been arrested and charged with 25 felony counts of Dealing in Child Pornography. “I write on behalf of the St. Anne’s Episcopal School board of trustees with shocking and deeply troubling news,” said Harry Baetjer, president, on behalf of the school’s Executive Committee of the Board of Trustees …
Delaware DOJ joins $17M settlement with Edward Jones
The Investor Protection Unit (IPU) of the Delaware Department of Justice has joined a $17 million settlement with Edward D. Jones & Co., L.P. (“Edward Jones”) resulting from a multistate investigation into the broker-dealer’s supervisory failures. Customers paid front-loaded commissions for certain mutual fund shares despite later moving brokerage assets into fee-based investment advisory accounts. “We expect investment firms operating …
Cabela’s must answer subpoena in ammo lawsuit
A Delaware judge says Cabela’s Inc. must answer a state subpoena related to the massive theft of ammunition at the Christiana Mall store. Attorney General Kathy Jennings issued the subpoena as part of a case arguing that Cabela’s itself contributed to the thefts through its hands-off approach to the shoplifting. Among other things, the suit said the store left ammo …
Maryland woman tries to pose as nurse in Delaware
A Maryland woman has been arrested and charged with stealing the identity of a registered nurse and then trying to use that to fraudulently obtain employment in Delaware nursing homes. “The licensing system for healthcare professionals is crucial to patient safety,” said Attorney General Kathy Jennings in a press release. Nicole L. Vanhorn, aka Nicole Van Horn, was arrested Aug. …
Matt Meyer calls for federal investigation of Hall-Long finances
This story has been updated to reflect that Meyer said an investigation is needed to see if any federal finance laws have been broken, not federal campaign laws. New Castle County Executive Matt Meyer on Monday called for a federal investigation of the finances of fellow gubernatorial candidate Lt. Gov. Bethany Hall-Long. He’s the latest to react to an independent …
Judge: Cabela’s can’t hide behind fed issues in stolen ammo case
A U.S. District Court judge has told Cabela’s it has no grounds to have a stolen ammunition lawsuit tried in federal court and sent it back to state courts. The suit began with Cabel’s refusal to answer a subpeona and provide information to the Delaware Department of Justice, which is investigating the theft of ammunition said to have ended up …
Businesses: ACLU loitering lawsuit could affect our sales
Sometimes you don’t know what you don’t know. Take the lawsuit filed July 7, 2023, by ACLU Delaware against Attorney General Kathy Jennings and the city of Wilmington over the state’s solicitation and loitering statutes and Wilmington’s loitering ordinance. The ACLU claims the lack of specificity in the current statutes opens the door to selective enforcement. At the same time, …
Ohio chemicals settlement gives $25 million to Delaware
The First State is getting $25 million from a newly settled lawsuit in Ohio that triggered a contingency payment to Delaware. Chemours, DuPont and Corteva reached a $110 million settlement in Ohio over “forever chemicals,” which refer to the release of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances from the facilities of those companies. The substances, known as PFAS, have negative environmental impacts. …
4-year gang prosecution ends with 100% conviction rate
Twenty people have been convicted on charges of murder, shooting and other felonies following a four-year prosecution of a Wilmington gang that resulted in a 100% conviction rate. The push helped reduce the number of shootings in Delaware 30% since 2020, according to a statement from the Delaware Department of Justice. In essence, the press release said, the Wilmington Police …
Delaware among states going after Meta for targeting kids
Delaware has joined a bipartisan coalition of attorneys general suing Meta in federal and state courts, alleging that the company knowingly designed and deployed harmful features that purposefully addict children and teens on Instagram and its other social media platforms. As it did, Meta falsely assured the public that these features are safe and suitable for young users, said Attorney …