2015's Top 10 Most Read Stories

Our WJZ news team wanted to share some statistics on what our viewers were reading and watching throughout the year. Here are the 10 most read articles of 2015.

Maryland Heroin Addicts May Not Be What You Pictured

This article was posted in February, and the story focused on 19-year-old Hannah McLaughlin, a minister's daughter from Harford County.

"She was creative. She was fun, very active, and she quickly got involved in sports," Hannah's mother said. But her family noticed dramatic changes in her personality when she reached middle school.

Her father said someone gave her a pill and she got instantly addicted.

Her story of drug addiction, which abruptly ended her life, came as a shock to her community because many of her close ones said she didn't "look the part" of a drug addict.

Sam Bierman, executive director of the Maryland Addiction Recovery Center in Towson, also a recovering addict, says he's been counseling people for years.

"Addiction doesn't care who you are or where you're from or your race or your religion or your creed," he said. "Once you've got it, you've got it."

The Journal of American Medicine describes the typical addict as a young person from the suburbs who starts out with painkillers but quickly discovers that heroin is cheaper and easier to get.

Hannah's family has been telling her story to anyone who's willing to listen, and Governor Hogan was one of many listeners who took action in 2015.

Baltimore Bloodshed Continues; 29 Shot, 9 Dead Over Holiday Weekend

This article was posted in May, which was also the deadliest month Baltimore has had in nearly 15 years.

More than two dozen shootings over the Memorial Day weekend had police officers working around the clock, and city leaders pleaded with community members to come forward and help.

Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake also held an emergency meeting with the police commissioner to address the uptick in violence, and police officials formed mini task forces to hit hot spots throughout the city.

Discovery Made In Ongoing Search for Relisha Rudd

This article was posted in June, and it was on the story of Relisha Rudd, the missing 8-year-old homeless girl who was last seen alive in 2014.

Relisha, who had been living with her mother in a Washington, D.C. homeless center, was one of many inner city school children whose only haven of stability was in the classroom.

It all started when school officials noticed Relisha had been absent for nearly three weeks without a doctor's note.

Social workers and teachers, namely Payne Elementary School Principal Vielka Scott-Marcus, have always made an effort to get involved in the lives of their students. And when school leaders realized Relisha was missing and potentially in danger, many of them used their own time to find her.

Suspicions of her being kidnapped reached the police after a social worker -- who was told that she was sick and under the care of a physician -- found out the "medical doctor" was actually a janitor.

Kahil Tatum, the 51-year-old janitor who posed as a doctor over the phone, worked at the shelter where Relisha and her mother lived.

After more than a year of searching, she still has not been found. The only lead officials have is the recently discovered body of her suspected killer, Tatum the janitor, who recently committed suicide.

City State's Attorney Says Freddie Gray Arrest Was Illegal

This article, which was posted in May, was on City State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby, who said Freddie Gray received his critical injuries in Baltimore police custody.

Mosby said the officers were being charged with multiple counts of manslaughter, assault and misconduct.

Other Freddie Gray related stories -- from the testimony of the other man inside of the van with Gray, to the sheriff's response to the 'stand down' orders given to police -- were also widely shared and read throughout the year.

Fight Caught On Tape at Baltimore City School

The recorded brutal beating of a Baltimore high school student also made our most read articles list.

A high school football player, who was later arrested and jailed after being charged with attempted murder, stomped on and repeatedly punched his teammate while in a classroom as other students watched and recorded with their phones.

After 17-year-old Sean Johnson stopped beating the student, the graphic video showed the victim having a seizure while lying in a pool of his own blood.

Frederick High School responded to the incident by canceling all of their after school events for the week, and parents were on edge after students recalled seeing their bloodied, unconscious classmate get carried out on a stretcher.

Dundalk Man Beaten By Group Of Teens

This article, which was posted in May, was also on video recorded violence, but this time, it was a group of teenagers assaulting an elderly man.

The cell phone video showed a group of teenagers surrounding 61-year-old Richard Fletcher, kicking and hitting him until he drops to the ground.

Fletcher said the altercation started when he walked outside to find two girls fighting on top of his car. The girls were surrounded by a group of teenagers, and when he asked them to stop, they started surrounding him.

The bloody altercation ended with the man suffering broken eye sockets, a broken nose, broken ribs and brain bleeding.

Neighbors said the teenagers were students at nearby Baltimore Community High School, and 17-year-old Antoine Lawson, one of the suspects, has recently been charged with attempted murder.

Measles Outbreak From California Expands Across Country

This story was on the nationwide measles outbreak in January that originated on the West Coast.

Measles, which was thought to have been eliminated in the United States 15 years ago, reappeared at Disneyland in California earlier this year.

Doctors say the virus is highly contagious. For instance, if someone has the measles and doesn't cover their mouth when they sneeze, they can pass it on to anyone standing nearby.

There were 75 reported cases spanning six states, and it was severely sickening anyone who hadn't been vaccinated.

Public outrage over the "anti-vaxxer movement" resurfaced, and many parents appealed to local legislators to mandate vaccinations in schools.

Missing Washington College Student Found Dead

This article was posted in November, and it was on the missing Washington College student who was suspected of planning a school shooting.

In the midst of shootings occurring across the nation, Washington College was on high alert after Jacob Marberger, who was recently suspended from school and kicked out of his fraternity, disappeared after allegedly making threats to other students.

The university responded to the increasing concern among the student body by initially encouraging students who felt unsafe on campus to go home a few days early for the upcoming Thanksgiving break without being penalized. But as the search intensified, the university eventually shut down -- canceling nearly a week of classes -- and officials completely evacuated the campus.

After more than a week into 19-year-old Marberger's disappearance, he was spotted near Philadelphia, which is where his family owns property. His parents pleaded for him to return home, and when officers searched the area, they found his dead body in a park.

Businesses Close Early Due To Riots In Baltimore

This story was posted in April, and it was on the riots following Freddie Gray's death.

Fifteen Baltimore City police officers were injured, multiple service vehicles were vandalized and set on fire and several businesses were pillaged as a massive group of rioters rampaged through the city on a Monday evening.

Baltimore Police Commissioner Anthony Batts -- who was later fired and replaced by Kevin Davis -- said many of the rioters were young, high school age students.

"This is not protesting, this is not your First Amendment right, these are just criminal acts doing damage to a community," Batts said, after announcing the citywide curfew.

Businesses were forced to close, local schools went into lockdown and public transportation either shut down completely or had individual drivers and engineers change their routes to avoid servicing violence heavy locations.

Former Commissioner Batts called the chaos a "national embarrassment," and the country watched as the city burned.

Baltimore Residents Fearful Amid Rash Of Homicides

This article was posted in May, and it was on the deaths of a 31-year-old woman and her 7-year-old son, who were Baltimore's 37th and 38th homicide victims of the month.

The double homicide happened amid the increasing murder rates in the city.

The 7-year-old was a student at Baltimore International Academy, and his death sparked fears among local residents who once believed children to be off-limits.

Another shooting victim -- a young child who survived his injuries -- said he was playing basketball outside when it happened. And officials say that homicide rates are going up as police arrests are going down.