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By Criminal Defense Attorney Peter G. Billings, founding partner of Billings & Barrett, LLC.

Many states around the country took steps towards tougher gun laws following the February shooting at a Florida high school.

It did not take long for states, including Florida to respond to the shooting that took the lives of 17 students and staff members at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland.

One of the first states to take action was Rhode Island, where Governor Gina Raimondo signed legislation that created a new policy for at-risk people. The policy would take the guns from people who pose a risk to themselves or to others. Since signing the legislation, many other states have followed with similar bills, including Connecticut, Oregon and California.

Rhode Island also joined a brand-new coalition that is aiming to create a database that will track guns that have been used in crimes or have been transported across state lines in an effort to intercept them. The coalition also includes New Jersey, New York, Massachusetts and Connecticut.

Governor Rick Scott of Florida recently signed legislation with various sheriff’s deputies by his side. The legislation will provide $450 million in aid to school districts throughout the state for security and an additional $50 million in funding for mental health. He also noted that a police officer should be present in every school in the state.

The state of Oregon passed new measures the day after the Parkland shooting. These measures prevent those convicted of domestic violence and people who have restraining orders against them from possessing weapons.

“More and more states are toughening their gun laws and other laws that regulate weapons and ammunition in the wake of the Parkland shooting,” Peter G. Billings, of Billings & Barrett, LLC, said. “Connecticut, New York, and New Jersey will not be too far behind either.”

On the other side of the spectrum, South Dakota decided to loosen its gun laws. The state’s House of Representatives passed a new measure that is being viewed as self-defense measures. It would allow people to carry guns on church and school grounds.

The Senate is also exploring a bill that would repeal the requirement to have a concealed carry permit if the person abides by the laws.

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The Hamlin is a brand-new 18-unit apartment building located in DC’s neighborhood of Brookland near Catholic University at 1715 Hamlin Street, NE.

The building includes a total of 18 units comprised of one bedroom, one bedroom plus den, two bedroom and two bedroom plus den apartments with rents ranging from $1,500 to $3,000.

The residences are conveniently located near a number of local restaurants, coffee shops and bars such as Fox Loves Tacos, Busboys and Poets, Primrose, Zeke’s Coffee, Menomale and many more. The Rhode Island Avenue and Brookland Metro Stations are within a short distance.

Each apartment features large floor-to-ceiling windows, stainless-steel appliances, central air conditioning, quartz countertops and spacious closets. The building includes an entry system, bike storage, on-site car share service and on-site laundry (in-unit laundry is available in select units). Green features include a green roof, solar panels, NEST thermostats and energy efficient appliances and fixtures.

Be one of the first to live in this brand new building! Open house this Saturday, August 4th, from 1-3PM. Please RSVP by visiting here. To schedule a tour and view floorplans and pricing information, visit here or contact the leasing team at (202) 237-8488. Developed by Lock7 Development.

On behalf of Owney the Dog, our famed four-legged friend, the Smithsonian’s National Postal Museum cordially invites you to the Dog Days of Summer Family Festival!

The program activities will take place throughout the museum on Saturday, July 28 and Sunday, July 29, from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. both days.

Owney was a scruffy mutt taken in by the clerks at the Albany, New York post office in the late 1800s. Fond of sleeping and sitting atop mail bags, Owney began to accompany the mail carriers on their routes — by foot, on wagons and carriages and eventually on trains all across North America.

Lovable Owney became a national celebrity, delighting the public with stories of his adventures, and — if they were lucky — a visit by Owney himself!

In 1895, Owney even made a four-month, around-the-world trip aboard a mail steamship. The United States Postal Service commemorated Owney with his own postage stamp in 2011, celebrating this most fascinating postal pup in a most postal way.

Inspired by Owney’s remarkable life, the Dog Days of Summer Family Festival highlights his travels, as well as explores the unique role that animals have played in the postal system over time.

For the second year, we’ve teamed up with Amtrak Police for demonstrations throughout the day showcasing the work of the intelligent and hardworking K-9 units.

We’re also proud to host local animal welfare organizations such as Homeward Trails Animal Rescue for an Adoption Fair on Saturday.

Join us for a fun weekend of educational and hands-on activities at your neighborhood museum! The program is free, open to all ages and includes the following activities; (more…)

This column is written by D.C. Realtor and resident Sean Forschler.  Licensed in DC, MD & VA, he has been in the business since 2001 and currently works at RLAH Real Estate. He may be contacted at [email protected].

Before answering this question, you need to first understand what “title” is in reference to property.

In the simplest terms, it means ownership. When you take title to something, you take ownership, like when you get the title to a car. When a property is being purchased, the title company (a.k.a. settlement company) researches the public records to verify that the ownership of the subject property has been legally transferred from party to party.

Over the years, mistakes in these records happen. Such a search can also turn up unreleased mortgages and other liens on the property, like a tax lien or mechanics lien.

Title searches revealing such defects are common enough and generally, quite fixable. However, even the most careful and thorough title searches can miss important information and hazards, despite the knowledge and experience of professional title examiners.

Title problems may exist that cannot be disclosed in a search. For example, if 16-year old signed documents transferring the property to another owner, this would be a problem since that person was a minor. Or, say a couple divorces and one of them sells the property as a sole owner and pockets the proceeds. Not legal! (more…)

By Fairfax Employment Lawyer Tom Spiggle, founder of The Spiggle Law Firm.

Legislators in Virginia will have to begin adhering to yearly sexual harassment training if a bill passed by the House in February also passes the Senate.

The bill was contentiously debated in the House for a week before being passed in a vote of 88 – 10. Prior to the new bill, sponsored by Republican Delegate Roxann Robinson, Democrat Delegate Vivian Watts had pushed for her own sexual harassment bill only to have it voted down.

That bill included a reporting and investigative process as well as protection for sexual orientation and gender identity. She was one of the ten Democrats that voted against Robinson’s bill.

Watts also wanted to make changes to the Republican bill, stating that it was still not enough to protect women. She stated that the requirements of the bill were simply “window dressing” in the wake of the #MeToo movement. The changes Watts called for were voted down in a 50-49 vote.

Republicans in the House were surprised that the vote had taken a partisan turn. The argument was that both Robinson and Watts had the same agenda and were trying to accomplish the same thing.

The bill as it stands will require all General Assembly members and their staff to complete an online sexual harassment training course every year. This is vastly different from the current rule that legislators only have to complete a training course one time after they are first elected.

“The bill is an important one as we can all agree that people, both men and women, need this kind of protection. It is clear that Virginia is serious about the matter, particularly when comparing this bill with Virginia’s current requirement, and with other states,” says Virginia sexual harassment attorney Tom Spiggle of The Spiggle Law Firm. “Maryland only requires legislators to complete the training once every four years. And even in D.C., the training is only required once every two years.”

The bill has not been made into law yet, however. Now that is has passed in the House it will go before the state Senate. If it passes the Senate it, then it must be signed by Governor Ralph Northam. Once the bill officially becomes law, the clerks of the House and the Senate will be responsible for creating the courses. The training would have to begin by July of 2019.