4BETTER OR WORSE- The week in review
Worst news for Albemarle property owners: The Board of Supervisors approves advertisement of a 3-cent bump in the current tax rate of 68 cents per $100 assessed value, the first step in raising the rate.
Best news for alleged wife-beater: Albemarle police officer Jeffrey Turner is found not guilty of assault and battery March 17 after his wife "indicated it was her fault, that she started hitting him," the Daily Progress quotes prosecutor Jon Zug as saying. Turner has been suspended with pay since his February 10 arrest, and his fate with the police department likely will be decided this week.
Latest Cavalier Daily cartoon flap: Two cartoons involving Jesus, God, and the Virgin Mary by Eric Kilanski and Kellen Eilerts in their TCB strip are pulled from the paper's website March 15 after complaints that they're offensive to Christians. The requisite apology ensues, and the public learns of the paper's perhaps ill-named "censorship criteria," a rarity in newspapers. The CD most recently caved to cartoon criticism last September, when protesters filled the paper's office after Grant Woolard's "Ethiopian Food Fight" cartoon appeared. CD editors showed a bit more spine back in September 2006, when Bill O'Reilly chimed in about cartoons– once again involving a crucified Jesus and the Virgin Mary's sexuality.
Latest historic landmarks: The Fifeville/Castle Hill district off West Main Street, and Kenridge, the former Kappa Sig fraternity house on Ivy Road now owned by L.F. and Susan Payne, are likely additions to the Virginia Landmarks Register when its advisory boards meet March 20, according to a release.
Most reminiscent of Eliot Spitzer: Former Greene County Sheriff's Office lieutenant Terry Tsouroutis, 38, is sentenced to 27 months in jail March 17 for violating the Mann Act and lying to FBI agents about transporting a prostitute from Maryland February 21, 2002, and telling her she had to have sex with him in exchange for her freedom.
Inevitable Spitzer/Charlottesville connection: Emperor Club scheduler Temeka Rachelle Lewis, who has been indicted for running a prostitution and money-laundering ring, is a UVA grad whose mother lives in Harrisonburg, according to the New York Daily News.
Most unusual General Assembly action: A temporary tax– $1 of every car registration for commemoration of Jamestown's 400th anniversary– is allowed to expire.
Most retro: While some government bodies are moving to hybrids and more fuel-efficient vehicles, Charlottesville police are easing into classic black and white over the next few years with three Ford Crown Victorias, NBC29 reports.
Most evacuations: Approximately 40 students complain of feeling light headed around 1am March 17 in Clemons Library and are evacuated for about an hour. Authorities believe mulch may have gotten into the heating system and made library users feel sick when the heat was on, WCAV reports. Henry's Restaurant on the Downtown Mall is cleared out the morning of March 14 because of increased carbon monoxide levels, and a jewelry store in Fashion Square Mall closes early that evening when a mysterious white powder is discovered.
Best news for torturers: Waterboarding remains legal! Congress fails to overturn President George Bush's veto of a bill that bans the CIA from using torture, and Representative Virgil Goode supports the Prez.
Worst diss to Blenheim wines: A travel writer comes to Albemarle to do the Dave Matthews tour, and finds his vineyard's Viognier, Star Chardonnay, and Farm Chardonnay respectively "too sweet for my taste," "too lemony" and with "an unpleasant aftertaste," according to the Courier Mail in Brisbane, Australia. However, the $43 Cabernet France 2005 and Petit Verdot 2005 are deemed "exquisite."
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