4BETTER OR WORSE: The week in review
Worst break-up: Corn Pone Lane resident Sheri Staples, 38, is shot three times October 13 by her partner, Kandace Bright, 38, in their Lake Monticello home, NBC29 reports. Bright fatally shot herself in the head after Staples tried to end the relationship. At press time, Staples is in good condition at UVA Medical Center.
Worst stabbing: A 40-year-old man is knifed in the stomach multiple times on Preston Avenue October 14 by two men, and is not cooperating with authorities, according to the Daily Progress.
Most guilty pleas in one family: Keswick residents Kelvin Smith, 22, and his cousin Hampton Smith, 23, plead guilty to federal drug and gun charges October 15. Kelvin's brother, Ricus, 25, pleaded guilty earlier to charges stemming from a November 24, 2006, shooting during a drug deal at their mother's house, according to a release. The Smiths were charged in an 11-count indictment.
Most stunning robberies: A Spencer's Market clerk is shocked with a stun gun October 11 at the Cherry Avenue store when he leaves with the night's deposit. The same M.O. is used at the Barracks and Emmet Exxon five days later.
Least attentive drivers: Virginia State Police attribute two October 15 accidents in an hour within a mile of each other on I-64 to drivers not paying attention in the Route 22 bridge construction zone, the Daily Progress reports. A cell-phone talking motorist didn't see stopped traffic, swerved and totaled two cars around 10am. At 11:20, a driver going 60 mph rear-ended another car stopped in merging traffic.
Most homes for sale: Area housing inventory balloons to nearly 3,500– three times the number available three years ago, the Charlottesville Area Association of Realtors reports.
Latest adventure for former mayor Maurice Cox: The UVA architecture prof is named director of design for the National Endowment for the Arts. During his two-year appointment, Cox will oversee national community design programs.
Biggest brain drain: UVA has six open dean positions– med school, law, nursing, continuing and professional studies, College of Arts and Sciences, and the new Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy, Brian McNeill reports in the Progress.
Newest UVA journalistic offering: The online Virginia Sentinel plans a January launch as a student-run daily, according to McNeill in the DP.
Most radical (yet sensible) proposed overhaul of the U.S. Constitution: Larry Sabato lists 23 ways to revitalize the Constitution in his new book, A More Perfect Constitution, including nonpartisan redistricting, three-year House of Representatives terms, and shortened presidential primary seasons, Bob Gibson reports in the Progress.
Best place to take a hike: Mint Springs Park, where Albemarle County will dedicate a five-mile trail system at 9:30am October 20 that volunteers have improved and expanded through different terrains within the park.
Biggest blowout: Fluvanna succumbs to the Western Albemarle Warriors– and an allegedly bad batch of spaghetti– in a 32-6 gridiron rout October 12 that ends with 16 Flucos, including one coach, taken to local hospitals for medical evaluation. In a scene "straight out of a gross-out comedy," many Flucos were on the sidelines vomiting, the Progress' Ryan Yemen reports, and after Tremayne Waddy scored Fluvanna's only touchdown, he "was down on one knee losing his dinner."
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