Nation IN BRIEF : MARYLAND : ‘Robin HUD’ Plans to Enter Guilty Plea

A woman dubbed “Robin HUD” after admitting she stole millions of dollars from federal housing sales and claiming she gave the money to the poor said she intends to plead guilty to spare taxpayers the cost of a trial. Marilyn Louise Harrell, a former real estate agent, is scheduled to stand trial in federal court in Baltimore on Monday, but said her lawyer hopes to have a plea arrangement worked out by then. Harrell originally pleaded innocent to bilking the Department of Housing and Urban Development out of $5.6 million, but now says she wants to save taxpayer money and avoid troubling the poor she claims to have helped.