The Streisand effect :)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Streisand_effect

Good for you Adam! Keep up the fight against this crooked politician and the rest of them that you are blogging about. Someone has to do something to make these politicians follow the laws and ethics that go with their office. They certainly have proven that they won't police themselves!

Also known as the "Dan Snyder" effect.

http://gawker.com/5795741/dan-snyder-will-never-shut-up

What I don't understand is why the Sun only seems to be covering the portion of this story as it pertains to this libel suit.

If Councilwoman Conaway's tax documents are true, she needs to resign from office or be forced from office. If they are not true, then she is guitly of repeated tax fraud. Either one of these should be grounds for her removal from the city council. I find it difficult to believe that this was simply an error on the part of Ms. Conaway. Either way she is guilty of something and should be removed from office. This is not a matter of inappropriate conduct but of actual criminal malfeasance. Have our standards dropped so precipitously as to allow our elected officials to commit crimes and remain in office? I fear they have.

Where is the City Inspector General in all of this? Are they investigating her residency status OR her tax fraud? Will the Sun please ask these questions?

Sadly Ms. Conaway should realize by suing him she is giving him and his ghost-town like blog much more attention than it ever would have gotten in the 1st place. (I thought Adam's 5 seconds of fame ended with the Zack Sowers story)

It reminds me of the Redskins owner suing the DC city paper about an article listing the mistakes make by his ownership. Now instead of MAYBE 100,000 local readers the thing in on ESPN being read (and laughed at) by the entire nation.

Conaway should learn to choose her battles. I'm not fan of Adam Meister but I have to side with him on this.

Agree, why is the Sun, or for that matter the IG not investigating this?

@bryanintowson There was an article in the Sun recently that discussed the legal implications of this. Apparently the laws pertaining to where city representatives need to live (which are state laws, for some reason) aren't entirely clear. Apparently the term used is that the rep must be "domiciled" in his or her district, which some lawyers believe doesn't mean the same thing as "primary residence for tax purposes." Basically, if you can show that you have an address that you have an association with and where you stay sometimes (as Conaway does with her family's home), you can argue that you're domiciled there., even if your primary residence for tax purposes is elsewhere. I'm sure that Conaway is registered to vote at her father's address, which is probably the main thing under consideration here.

I totally agree that it seems sleazy, and the laws need to be clarified. I also think Conaway's reaction has been completely insane.

@jfruh

Agree with your statement about the state laws, etc. I still just do not understand how you can claim a place as your primary residence for taxes and the not live there. Like I said - that to me would seem like tax fraud.

I just wish she had gone on Channel 2 and spazzed out like Jack Young did when they accused him of not living in the City. I mean I know I'd love to have a "vacation home" in Edgewood.

In any event it appears that a number of coucil members are highly ethically challenged and there seems to be no abatement to this disease.

@jfruh - By Conaway refusing to admit that she lives in Baltimore County, she has opened herself up to perjury and tax fraud. She's trying to have it both ways and claiming that the perjury didn't happen - that it was an honest oversight. I find that very hard to believe.
The Conaways are a bunch of liars and crooks. It's time for them to go.

I agree 100% with Billick. Conaway did herself no favors by suing Adam Meister. Adam thrives on attention- from the time that he got the Baltimore City Paper to cover his crass "Diaper Day" taunting of Cleveland Browns fans at M&T Bank Stadium to exploiting the Zach Sowers tragedy for his own political gain. Now, when Adam emerges victorious in this case (as he should), Adam will try to make himself out to be the second coming of Peter Zenger. Thanks Belinda.

jfruh - That about sums it up. The Conaways are such awful people. Hopefully the $21M suit will SLAPP Belinda in the face. She has now brought all of this attention to herself and Adam. Anyone with half a brain is siding with Adam. She is exposted for what she is,,,,,,

I can't read Meister, because his prose has the unfortunate effect of making him sound unbearably smug, but that doesn't mean he should be silenced by some bullying misuse of the courts.

And he certainly seems to have the right end of things on this Conaway business. Public office in Baltimore was not instituted to provide a living for the Conaway family (or the Currans, or the…well, you get the idea). The sooner we realize this as a city, the better.

@Cheap Jim - oh god I couldn't agree more with you, his stuff on Charm City Current in barely comprehensible. It's often just a collection of links and incomplete sentences with no traffic or discussion to speak of.

The truth is not very popular Belinda!

Maronick: "We don't believe our suit is frivolous."
A $21 million lawsuit because a blogger used a poltician's own sworn statements to claim that the politician lives in another jurisdiction? Is this guy for real? Just how stupid does Maronick think we are?

@fhr - he obviously thinks everyone in Baltimore City is pretty stupid.

And I might as well given who gets elected time after time.

The *simplest* solution to this problem is to not vote for her come election time. A lawsuit / investigation will merely create a long, stupid, yawn inducing crapfest unworthy of coverage or commentary.

STOP VOTING FOR THESE PEOPLE.