Assault at Montgomery Mall in Bethesda leaves female victim with minor injuries

Montgomery County police were called to Westfield Montgomery Mall in Bethesda on Thursday, December 22, 2022, after a 2nd-degree assault was reported there. The assault was reported at 6:00 PM. @MoCoPGNews reported on Twitter that there was a fight outside of CAVA, which was broken up by Montgomery County police officers who were already at the mall. 

One female victim suffered minor injuries. Officers then searched the mall for the suspect(s) involved. This was the 12th 2nd-degree assault reported at the mall since May 18, and the first since October 18.

Frosty Siberian winds lead to falling trees, power outages across Montgomery County and D.C. area

Darkened apartments along
Georgia Avenue near Wheaton Friday night

It's been a "wild and wooly" day across the Washington, D.C. region and much of the nation, to use the words of the telephone meteorologist of old. Gusty winds that have blown from Siberia and down through Canada joined with a bomb cyclone winter weather event to start Friday with a blast of ice. The winds have stuck around through the evening, leading to many falling limbs and trees, and the resulting power outages.

There are currently 8,459 Pepco customers without power in the D.C. Metro area. Outages are widespread over the entire map of Montgomery County. The most concentrated outages are in the Silver Spring, Wheaton, Calverton, Gaithersburg and Germantown areas. In Rockville, there are significant outages in the King Farm, Twinbrook, West End and College Gardens neighborhoods. Bethesda residents are in the dark in a couple of spots along the Bradley Boulevard corridor, and in Westgate near the D.C. line. Over the border, there are outages in the Palisades and Wesley Heights in Northwest Washington.

The current temperature is 11 degrees. Winds are gusting at 18 MPH, and a wind chill advisory is in effect until 10:00 AM Saturday morning. Be sure to fully cover up if you have to go outside to avoid frostbite. Remember that dark intersections during power outages are to be treated as a four-way stop - but proceed with caution, as many drivers ignore this and will steam through the intersection anyway, or rear-end you if you conscientiously try to stop as the law requires. The best advice is to stay off the roads if you can.

Van Hollen secures funding for NIST, NIH in U.S. Senate omnibus spending package

A massive $1.7 trillion omnibus spending bill for FY-2023 passed by the United States Senate yesterday will include substantial funding for two major federal employers in Montgomery County, the National Institutes of Standards and Technology in Gaithersburg and the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda. Maryland Senator Chris Van Hollen pressed for those and other Maryland priorities in the controversial and complicated negotiations and agreement. The deal found some Republican senators joining with the Democratic majority in an attempt to lock in spending before the GOP gains control of the House of Representatives in January.

The Senate deal includes $48 billion for NIH, and $1.7 billion for NIST. It also includes renovation funds for a failing bridge over the Baltimore-Washington Parkway to Goddard Flight Center. Van Hollen and other Democrats lamented they could not get other priorities filled in the agreement, but considered the end run around potential GOP cuts in next year's session to be a success worth compromising for. "While I was deeply disappointed that Republicans refused to support a number of key priorities, it was vital that we pass a new government funding bill instead of kicking the can down the road," Van Hollen said in a statement late yesterday afternoon. "On balance, this package will meaningfully invest in the critical priorities of our state and nation.”

Senate Republicans who voted for the bill were Roy Blunt (Missouri), John Boozman (Arkansas), Shelley Capito (West Virginia), Susan Collins (Maine), John Cornyn (Texas), Tom Cotton (Arkansas), Lindsey Graham (South Carolina), Jim Inhofe (Oklahoma), Mitch McConnell (Kentucky), Jerry Moran (Kansas), Lisa Murkowski (Alaska), Rob Portman (Ohio), Mitt Romney (Utah), Mike Rounds (South Dakota), Richard Shelby (Alabama), John Thune (South Dakota), Roger Wicker (Mississippi) and Todd Young (Indiana). The majority of them have already publicly distanced themselves from President Donald Trump in varying degrees.

Assault at Richard Montgomery High School in Rockville

Montgomery County police were called to Richard Montgomery High School Wednesday afternoon, December 21, 2022, to investigate a 2nd-degree assault reported on the campus. The assault was reported at 2:35 PM on Wednesday.

Car stolen from dealership in Rockville

Rockville City police responded to a report of a stolen vehicle at an auto dealership yesterday afternoon, December 21, 2022. The vehicle was reported stolen at a dealership in the 1300 block of Rockville Pike at 2:15 PM on Wednesday. There is a new Tesla dealership on that block.

Rockville biotech firm Immunocore wins Prix Galien France award

Immunocore, a biotech firm located at 2273 Research Boulevard in Rockville, has won a prestigious Prix Galien France award. It received the honor for its breakthrough therapeutic, KIMMTRAK, the world's first T cell receptor therapy. Immunocore took home that award in the "Medicine in Innovative Therapeutics" category. KIMMTRAK is the only therapy approved for the treatment of unresectable or metastatic uveal melanoma, and the first bispecific T cell engager to receive regulatory approval to treat a solid tumor.

“We are honored to receive this prestigious award, which is a reflection of the impact of this novel treatment for patients and the innovative technology behind it,” Immunocore CEO Bahija Jallal said in a statement. “This award is also a tribute to the teams at Immunocore who have taken KIMMTRAK from bench to bedside, and those working on our future therapies that could benefit more patients living with cancer, as well as infectious diseases and autoimmune conditions.” KIMMTRAK received FDA approval this past January. Immunocore's press release notes that the Prix Galien France awards are considered the equivalent of the Nobel Prize in the biopharmaceutical research field.

Photo courtesy Immunocore

Water main break in Rockville

There is a water main break in the area of 500 N. Washington Street in Rockville. A City of Rockville Public Works crew is now on-site making repairs. The right southbound lane of N. Washington Street is currently closed. 401 and 500 N. Washington Street are currently without water service until the repair is completed.