Rowan Charge to Be Dropped

Authorities announced today they will drop a weapons-possession charge against syndicated columnist Carl T. Rowan, whose trial last week resulted in a hung jury.

“While I continue to believe that Mr. Rowan, in fact and in law, committed the offenses for which he was prosecuted . . . the district’s ability to obtain a fair hearing in this matter has been undermined,” said Frederick D. Cooke, the District of Columbia corporation counsel. The columnist, who has written and spoken in favor of gun control, had been charged with using an unregistered handgun and ammunition to wound a teen-ager who had taken an unauthorized dip in his back yard pool in June.