Annapolis (June 9, 2005) - The Anne Arundel County Department of Inspections and Permits released today developments in three cases involving critical area and building code infractions. In the first case, the Maryland Attorney General’s office has announced that Cyril Richard Edgar Benson of Dundalk, Maryland was convicted in the Circuit Court of Anne Arundel County for conducting unauthorized work in a tidal wetland within the 100 foot Chesapeake Bay Critical Area buffer. The unauthorized work took place at 3267 Arundel on the Bay Road in Annapolis. Mr. Benson was ordered by the Honorable Paul A. Hackner to pay a fine in the amount of $7,500, placed on eighteen months of probation, and must complete 100 hours of community service work. Charges against Mr. Benson were filed by the Maryland Attorney General’s Office in March, 2004, following an investigation initiated by the Department of Inspections and Permits and in cooperation with the Environmental Crimes Unit of the Office of the Attorney General, the Maryland State Police Department and the Maryland Department of the Environment. This action follows a recent announcement by the Maryland Attorney General’s office in which William Costello of the 1400 block of Sharps Point Road in Annapolis was convicted of wetlands and sediment control violations. In that case, the Department of Inspections and Permits’ investigation revealed that Mr. Costello had directed the construction of a revetment in the Chesapeake Bay Critical Area buffer. The work that Mr. Costello authorized measured 10,000 square feet in excess of the Isabel Replacement In-kind Permit he had obtained. The Honorable Joseph P. Manck of the Circuit Court of Anne Arundel County sentenced Mr. Costello to 30 days in jail, with all 30 days suspended; one year of supervised probation; and imposed a $10,000 fine. This conviction again, was the result of a cooperative effort between the State and County. In a second action this week, the Anne Arundel County State’s Attorney’s Office has filed criminal charges against Gregory Paul Mahon of 305 Woodfarm Court in Severna Park, alleging that Mahon constructed a house located at 7352 Green Acres Road in Glen Burnie without a County building permit. Mahon, a licensed plumber and registered homebuilder, sold the completed house in September, 2004, to Jeannette T. Mahoney. The case came to the attention of the Anne Arundel County Department of Inspections in Permits and the Department of Health in March, 2005, when Mrs. Mahoney reported a problem with a failing septic system. Subsequent investigation by those County departments revealed that Mahon had not applied for building permits for the house, and that the septic system had not received Health Department approval. The trial date is set for September 6, 2005, in the Annapolis District Court. The charge against Mr. Mahon carries with it a maximum penalty of 6 months in jail, and a fine of up to $1,000. Finally, in District Court this week, Jeffrey McElory of 758 201st Street in Pasadena was ordered to pay a fine in the amount of $500 for working over a Stop Work Order (SWO). Mr. McElory built a home addition without the necessary permits and continued to perform work even after inspectors issued the SWO. The Court Order, issued by the Honorable Robert C.Wilcox, also requires that Mr. McElory bring the property into compliance within 60 days by obtaining demolition permits and removing the addition. These cases represent the continuing efforts of the Anne Arundel County Department of Inspections and Permits and Office of Law in assuring full compliance with applicable land use laws and to seek appropriate penalties and court ordered abatement on violations constituting egregious infractions. | 
