All charges dropped against women protesting BGE work in Federal Hill

BALTIMORE -- On Friday night, the scars in the fight over BGE's new outside gas regulators remain on the streets of Federal Hill, and they are still a hot-button topic in the community. 

"It does seem a little unsafe to be having them out on the streets to start out with, so I can totally understand why the community is protesting it," said Federal Hill resident Enakshi Roy as she walked toward Warren Avenue where part of the sidewalk had been torn up for construction. 

Warren Avenue is also where three women were arrested protesting the high-pressure gas regulators in June.

That part of the battle is now settled: All charges are being dropped against Sandy Seward, Claudia Towles and Maggie Fitzsimmons. They were charged in June with trespassing and interfering with a public utility. 

Baltimore City State's Attorney Ivan Bates made the decision. 

In a statement, he said in part, "Having spent approximately 19 hours in Central Booking, following their arrests for interfering with BGE's work and creating a disturbance in a public place, these individuals have sustained consequences we believe are sufficient and allow us to move forward with dismissal."

The three women declined to comment on Friday. Towles told WJZ Investigator Mike Hellgren they wanted to digest Bates' decision and would comment at a later date. 

There is still a class-action lawsuit against the utility over the gas regulators. 

BGE says placing them outside is safer and allows faster response in case of an emergency. 

BGE had been shutting off gas service to some customers who refused the new gas lines, but a Baltimore judge stopped them. 

"These community advocates should never have been arrested and charges should have been dropped the next day," Thiru Vignarajah, the attorney fighting the utility on the issue, told WJZ Friday. "We are grateful no further resources are being wasted to aid and abet BGE's unlawful campaign of bullying and bulldozing city neighborhoods." 

Some Baltimore city council members are in favor of legislation that would ban external gas regulators in single-family homes.

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• Residents suing BGE urge historic preservation to forbid gas regulator installations on 100-year-old homes
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• Customers arrested protesting BGE gas equipment sue utility as work continues in Federal Hill
• Judge denies BGE's request to cancel preliminary hearing in class action lawsuit
• Baltimore residents argue in lawsuit BGE can't force 'dangerous' exterior gas regulator on customers
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