Md. State House Trust Votes To Remove Taney Statue In Annapolis
BALTIMORE (WJZ)-- A key panel voted to remove a statue of Supreme Court Chief Justice Roger Brooke Taney from the grounds of the State House in Annapolis Wednesday.
The Baltimore Sun says the vote was done by e-mail and that three of the four-member State House Trust voted in favor of removing the statue of Taney, who was the author of the infamous Dred Scott decision that upheld slavery said black Americans could not become citizens.
Lt. Gov. Boyd Rutherford, House of Delegates Speaker Michael E. Busch and Charles L. Edson, who represents the Maryland Historical Trust, voted in favor of removing the statue.
It's not clear how the fourth member, Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller, voted. Miller said he does not support removing the statue, but he also would not try to block its removal.
The State House Trust oversees the State House and the grounds around it.
It's not clear when the Taney statue would be moved from the front lawn of the State House, or what would happen to the statue.
The state's Department of Legislative Services estimated last year that it would cost $77,000 to remove the statue and another $5,000 per year to store it.
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