Tag Archives: Virginia

The Guardian reports: The Republican governor of Virginia, Glenn Youngkin, appears to have thwarted an attempt to stop law enforcement obtaining menstrual histories of women in the state. A bill passed in the Democratic-led state senate, and supported by half the chamber’s Republicans, would have banned search warrants for menstrual data stored in tracking apps on mobile phones or other …

The Associated Press reports: Virginia Senate Democrats defeated several bills Thursday that would have restricted abortion access in the state, including a proposed 15-week ban with exceptions that was a priority for Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin. The Senate Committee on Education and Health voted the measures down on a party-line basis without debate after a subcommittee had previously recommended that …

NBC News reports: The Newport News School Board on Wednesday voted to replace its embattled superintendent amid the continuing fallout from a 6-year-old boy shooting his first-grade teacher this month. The board voted 5-1 to remove George Parker III as the head of the district of about 26,500 students. His separation is effective Feb. 1, School Board Chair Lisa Surles-Law …

Richmond’s ABC affiliate reports: A bill adding language in the state code legalizing same-sex marriage passed in the Virginia Senate with a bipartisan vote. The bill introduced by state Sens. Adam Ebbin (D-Alexandria) and Jennifer Boysko (D-Loudoun) would give religious organizations and clergy members the right to refuse to perform any marriage. The 40-member chamber voted 25-12 to pass the …

The Associated Press reports: A Virginia teacher who was shot by a 6-year-old student during class will sue the school district, the teacher’s attorney announced Wednesday. Diane Toscano, a lawyer for Abigail Zwerner, said Wednesday that on the day of the shooting, concerned teachers and employees warned administrators three times that the boy had a gun on him and was …

Richmond’s ABC affiliate reports: A former pastor from Hopewell living in Richmond was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison Tuesday on charges of distributing child pornography while he was still on the sex offender registry for a previous offense. Deric Wallace Peacock, 39, served as youth pastor of a church in Hopewell until 2014, when he was convicted of …

The Washington Post reports: The Virginia teacher who was shot by a 6-year-old student repeatedly asked administrators for help with the boy but officials downplayed educators’ warnings about his behavior, including dismissing his threat to light a teacher on fire and watch her die, according to messages from teachers obtained by The Washington Post. The previously unreported incidents raise fresh …

The Hill reports: Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) said on Friday that he will run for reelection in 2024, delivering some much-needed relief to Democrats seeking to defend their majority next year. “I am happy to announce that I will seek reelection in 2024 to keep delivering results for Virginia,” Kaine told reporters. Kaine’s decision not only likely prevents a crowded …

Richmond’s NBC affiliate reports: During a brief press conference on Thursday morning, Chesterfield’s Commonwealth’s Attorney Stacey Davenport said a case involving a Virginia pastor and a child sex crimes sting might move forward after charges were dismissed. John Blanchard was the lead pastor at Rock Church in Virginia Beach. In October 2021, he was one of 17 people arrested in …

The Richmond Times-Dispatch reports: Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s decision to halt plans for a $3.5 billion Ford Motor Co. battery plant over his concerns about Chinese influence cost one of the poorest areas of Virginia a reported 2,500 jobs with potential for more. If Ford finalized the project, the plant would have gone in the Southern Virginia Mega Site at Berry …

Hampton Roads’ NBC affiliate reports: During a virtual Town Hall with Richneck parents on Thursday, officials said that at least one administrator knew that the six-year-old student may have had a weapon on him hours before the shooting happened. Superintendent Dr. George Parker (photo) revealed that there was a report that the boy might have had a weapon on him …

Media Matters reports: Republicans have nominated right-wing commentator Leon Benjamin for Virginia’s special U.S. House election next month. Benjamin is an election denier who has frequently pushed fringe conspiracy theories, including claiming that the pandemic was actually a “cover-up” by elites to usher in a “new world order”; COVID-19 vaccines contain a “tracking system” and herald the “mark of the …

NBC News reports: HB 1894, which a Republican legislator pre-filed in the General Assembly on Tuesday, “provides that a pregnant woman shall be considered two people for the purposes of determining occupancy” in high occupancy vehicle and high occupancy toll lanes on expressways in the state. The legislation would require pregnant people to show “proof” of pregnancy, obtainable by having …

CBS News reports: The teacher, identified as 25-year-old Abigail Zwerner, was teaching a lesson when the child drew the weapon, Police Chief Steve Drew said a a news conference. The teacher “took a defensive position” and held up her hand, Drew said; the bullet passed through her hand and entered her chest. He said there had been no physical fight …

The Washington Post reports: The first-grade class at Richneck Elementary School in Newport News was in a small reading group about to go to art when one of their classmates pulled a handgun from his backpack and pointed it at his teacher, according to Brittaney Gregory, whose son was in the class. “She was going to confiscate it, and that’s …

The New York Times reports: The 6-year-old, a first grader at Richneck Elementary in Newport News, Va., shot a teacher with a handgun on Friday afternoon, the Newport News Police Department said, in an incident that the police said was “not an accidental shooting.” The boy and the teacher had been involved in an altercation in a classroom before the …

CBS News reports: A 6-year-old student shot a teacher during an altercation at a Virginia elementary school on Friday, police said. No students were injured in the incident at Richneck Elementary School, Newport News police said in a statement. “This was not an accidental shooting,” Police Chief Steve Drew told reporters during an evening press conference. The boy was taken …

Norfolk’s ABC affiliate reports: A Norfolk man who served as a youth group leader was convicted of sexual abuse Monday, the Department of Justice (DOJ) said. Charles Willoughby III, 39, served as a youth group leader at New Life Worship Center. According to the DOJ, between 2006 and 2012, he groomed teenage girls in the church’s youth program to try …

The Roanoke Times reports: A familiar Republican Party mascot pictured on the Patrick County GOP website hid Ku Klux Klan imagery in its negative space, before it was removed Friday. In the triangular white spaces between the legs of the Republican Party’s elephant mascot, black dots create the image of eyeholes. The image, since removed, bore an undeniable resemblance to …

The Washington Post reports: A restaurant in Richmond last week canceled a reservation for a private event being held by a conservative Christian organization, citing the group’s opposition to same-sex marriage and abortion rights. “We have always refused service to anyone for making our staff uncomfortable or unsafe and this was the driving force behind our decision,” read an Instagram …