The Washington Post - 24.02.2020

Bright, 48, chose freedom.

“I just want to get on with my life,” Bright said

after federal prosecutors agreed to his release from

jail earlier this month. “everyone is trying to tell me

what I should have done. I should have done this or I

should have done that. But they weren’t the ones

sitting in that cage all those years.”

Bright earned college credits from classes at the

D.C. jail and hopes to one day become a private

investigator. But as he prepares for his future, Dwan

Peay, the brother of one of the murder victims, is

angry and full of questions.

see choice on B

BY KEITH L. ALEXANDER

Calvin Bright had spent more than two decades

imprisoned for a double murder he maintains h e did

not commit when new evidence surfaced in the case.

He learned authorities had withheld a tip that

another man was the killer.

Bright was presented with a choice.

He could continue his fight for a new trial in the

hope he might someday be acquitted. or, if he

agreed he would not sue the District for false arrest,

he could be released immediately but remain a

convicted murderer.

KLMNO

METRO

monday, february 24 , 2020. washingtonpost.com/regional ez su B

JOHN KELLY’S WASHINGTON

the wild exploits of human

boat Paul boyton, the

showman in the rubber

suit. B

EDUCATION

some guidance to high

school counselors: brush

up on your college

advising. B

MARYLAND

state residents are deeply

divided over sports

betting, according to a

40 ° 53 ° 54 ° 50 ° goucher college poll. B

8 a.m. Noon 4 p.m. 8 p.m.

High today at

approx. 2 p.m.

57

°

Precip: 10%

Wind: SSW

4-8 mph

BY GREGORY S. SCHNEIDER

AND ROBERT BARNES

NEAR WINTERGREEN, VA. — The

Appalachian Trail is barely a foot-

path at s ome points o n this m oun-

tain ridge, marked mainly by

white patches on trees. But the

humble walkway has become a

major barrier to an $8 billion

natural gas pipeline. on Monday,

the U.s. supreme Court will con-

sider which one should prevail.

The Atlantic Coast Pipeline be-

gins in West Virginia and is

planned to cross some of the most

mountainous scenery in central

Virginia before completing its

600 -mile path in north Carolina.

Work in Virginia has been halt-

ed for more than a year as the

builders contend with a host of

setbacks handed down by federal

courts. none is more crucial than

the question of whether the U.s.

Forest service has authority to

grant the pipeline right of way

under the Appalachian Trail in

the George Washington national

Forest.

Judges from the U.s. Court of

Appeals for the 4th Circuit threw

out a Forest service permit in

December 2 018, saying federal

law prohibits any agency from

allowing a pipeline on “lands in

the national Park system.” That

includes the trail, the judges said.

The pipeline’s builders, led by

Dominion energy, a ppealed to the

high court, saying the ruling

could create an impenetrable wall

along the trail’s c ourse from Geor-

gia to Maine.

“simply put, there is no basis in

any federal statute to conclude

that Congress intended to convert

the Appalachian Trail into a

see pipeline on B

High court

may decide

pipeline’s

fate in Va.

case centers on

trail crossing

Construction has stalled

amid right-of-way dispute

BY LAURA VOZZELLA

RICHMOND — Gov. Ralph

northam’s assault weapons bill

was in trouble — not from Repub-

licans in the newly blue legisla-

ture, but from a handful of fellow

Democrats in the senate.

The day before the General

Assembly gaveled into session

last month, in a closed-door cau-

cus meeting, sen. Chap Petersen

(D-Fairfax City) and a few rural

lawmakers said they wouldn’t

support all eight pieces of

northam’s gun-control agenda.

specific details of some mea-

sures worried the senators. For

Petersen at least, the main con-

cern was the sheer number of

bills. His limit, he said that day,

was four.

“It’s just piling on,” he said in

an interview last week, after he

and three other Democrats joined

with Republicans to kill the ban

on future sales of assault weap-

ons in committee. “You can’t dis-

count people that were raised and

grew up in this state and h ave

their own traditions. You can’t

just suddenly kick them to the

curb.”

Virginia’s Capitol is in the

see virginia on B

Blue wave

has limits

in Va. gun

debate

Senate Democrats block

assault weapon ban, say

legislation is ‘piling on’

BY RACHEL CHASON

Dead foxes were piled high in

the pickup truck after the hunt-

ing contest in Frederick County in

January. Men lifted the bloodied

animals out of the truck by their

legs, dropping them on the

ground to be counted.

The winner of the contest

killed 38 foxes and won about

$400, said the undercover inves-

tigator for the Humane society of

the United states whose graphic

video footage of the event was

made public last week.

such hunting contests are legal

in Maryland and 44 other states.

The Humane society is aiming to

change that, pushing legislation

in statehouses across the country

that would bar the killing of

“fur-bearing mammals” — such

as foxes, coyotes and raccoons —

in competitions that offer cash

prizes.

“When it’s d eer or turkey, hunt-

ers will donate or eat it, but this is

different,” s aid state Del. Dana M.

stein (D-Baltimore County), who

is sponsoring a bill to prohibit

such contests in Maryland. “It

just seems like a cruel and inhu-

mane practice.”

Arizona, new Mexico, Ver-

mont, California and Massachu-

setts have outlawed wildlife-kill-

ing contests in recent years fol-

lowing pressure from animal

rights advocates and profession-

als in wildlife management, who

argue the events are celebrations

of slaughter with no scientific

basis. Bans have also been pro-

posed in new Jersey, new York,

new Hampshire and Colorado.

stein’s bill will have a hearing

Wednesday in the H ouse envi-

ronment and Transportation

Committee.

He said the legislation has re-

ceived support from constituents

in Baltimore County. But he is

expecting some opposition from

communities where hunting is

common. Deer are exempted

from the bill, in part because of

see wildlife on B

Md. bill would outlaw

wildlife-killing contests

Competitions pay cash

prizes for the most foxes,

other predatory animals

BY LAUREN LUMPKIN

Hundreds of people gathered

to celebrate the founding 44

years ago of the only public

university in the District. A stu-

dent choir sang the black nation-

al anthem — “Lift ev’ry Voice a nd

sing” — and graduates paid hom-

age to the school they say helped

lift them.

But in a city crowded with

higher education offerings, the

University of the District of Co-

lumbia has struggled to stand

out. That is why campus officials

are embarking on a campaign to

heighten awareness of the uni-

versity — an initiative the

school’s president, Ronald Ma-

son Jr., said last week he hopes

will deliver the financial might o f

a traditional state university.

“We are affordable and high

quality,” Mason said. “You can get

an engineering degree here for a

total of about $60,000 with a job

at the end of the process. That’s

less than one year’s worth of

tuition at many of the schools in

the District.”

Part of the school’s recently

announced campaign involves

raising m oney. Mason h as not s et

a fundraising target, but he out-

lined ambitious plans: train stu-

dents who can meet the city’s

employment demands, upgrade

campus facilities, increase facul-

ty wages and expand academic

programs. Mason estimates he

needs about $565 million to

accomplish his goals.

UDC has forgone some of the

facilities commonplace at

wealthier universities. There are

not enough staff to meet enroll-

ment demands. Much-needed

technology upgrades have been

delayed.

other challenges loom, too:

see udc on B

UDC launches initiative to lift profile

President’s pitch to city:

‘We are affordable

and high quality’

Michael Robinson chavez/the washington Post

a reception Thursday at the Student center was part of f ounders’

day, marking 44 years of the university of the district of columbia.

‘I just want to get on with my life’

Behind bars for decades, he chose freedom over continuing the fight to clear his name

Jahi chikwendiu/the washington Post

c alvin Bright, 48, was convicted in 1995 of a d.c. double murder he has maintained he did not commit.

after new evidence surfaced, he was released in exchange for agreeing to not sue the city.