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Articles by Meredith Somers

Caleb Newton, who lives in Spotsylvania County, Va., holds the 17 pound, 6 ounce northern snakehead he caught Saturday in Aquia Creek in Virginia. He has filed the paperwork to have the fish registered as a world-record catch. (The Free Lance-Star via Associated Press)

Giant ‘frankenfish’ caught in Virginia may be biggest ever

It was already a special day for Caleb Newton and Phil Wilcox — the two friends enjoying a bass-fishing bachelor party on the Potomac River. But when the men spotted a long shadow swimming among the reeds, they knew things were only going to get more interesting.

June 4, 2013
** FILE ** Visitors walk past the Supreme Court in Washington on Saturday, March 23, 2013. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Washington under construction

Millions of people each year make the trek to the District to see its monuments and museums. But some of the most iconic sites and vistas in the nation's capital currently don't look like they do in photographs and films.

June 3, 2013
**FILE** A sign depicting an assault rifle is held up at a pro-gun rights rally against a proposal by Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley that would ban assault weapons and require residents to obtain a license before purchasing handguns at Lawyers Park in front of the Maryland State House in Annapolis on Feb. 6, 2013. (Andrew Harnik/The Washington Times)

Referendum on new Maryland gun control laws shot down

The last obstacle standing in the way of Maryland's new gun control law was cleared this weekend, leaving gun control advocates relieved but gun rights supporters galvanized for future political action.

June 2, 2013
Arvind Mahankali, 13, of Bayside Hills, N.Y., is congratulated by his mother Bhavani, as confetti falls after he won the National Spelling Bee by spelling the word "knaidel" correctly on Thursday, May 30, 2013, in Oxon Hill, Md. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

N.Y. teen Arvind Mahankali wins the national spelling bee with ‘knaidel’

Maybe it's the fourth time that's the charm, perhaps it's what 13-year-old Arvind Mahankali calls the "German blessing," or it could just be that the eighth-grader just really knows how to spell. But whatever it was, late Thursday night the teen from Bayside Hills, N.Y., was crowned the 2013 Scripps National Spelling Bee champion.

May 30, 2013
Motorcyclists ride across Memorial Bridge into Washington during the Rolling Thunder "Ride for Freedom" parade Sunday. (Associated Press)

Rolling Thunder: Thousands of reasons to ride

Perfect temperatures, a bright sun and blue sky commanded Sunday's forecast, but it was the sound of thunder that stood out for the D.C. area, as more than a half-million motorcycles rumbled through the city for the 26th annual Rolling Thunder.

May 26, 2013
Washington Times Reporter, Meredith Somers, holds her arms out as she is rides down interstate 66, during the annual Ride of the Patriots, in support of Rolling Thunder, in Fairfax, VA., Sunday, May 26, 2013. (Andrew S Geraci/The Washington Times)

Rolling Thunder riders roar through Northern Virginia

Three lanes of Interstate 66 empty of traffic except for two columns of motorcycles is a strange sight. But then you hear the cheers, see the shadowy silhouettes lined along a distant overpass with hands waving and flags flying, and you remember that while closing off 20 miles of major highway might be remarkable, it's also the way Northern Virginia shows respect.

May 26, 2013
Police escort waits for start of 2012 parade in Fairfax.

Patriots ride again in Fairfax, taking community along with them

It started more than a decade ago, a few hundred motorcycle riders looking for an informal group to join for a 20-mile trip through Northern Virginia to the Pentagon, where nearly a half-million fellow bikers idled before the national Rolling Thunder event.

May 23, 2013
Maryland State Senate President Thomas "Mike" Miller Jr., left, and Speaker of the House Michael Busch, right, flank Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley, center, as he signs the Firearm Safety Act of 2013 into law at the Maryland Statehouse, Annapolis, Md., Thursday, May 16, 2013. The bill gives Maryland stricter gun-control laws. (Andrew Harnik/The Washington Times)

O’Malley signs Maryland gun-control measure into law

Gun control advocates in Maryland were bracing for an inevitable challenge to a law giving the state some of the strictest weapons prohibitions in the nation, even as they gathered Thursday to applaud Gov. Martin O'Malley for signing the bill he shepherded through the General Assembly.

May 16, 2013