4BETTER OR WORSE- The week in review
Biggest Albemarle police scandal: Four officers are disciplined for unspecified misconduct. One leaves the force, two are demoted, and one is suspended.
Biggest ABC scandal: Virginia Alcohol Beverage Control officer Eric A. Jones is charged with driving under the influence March 4 when he rear-ends a truck at U.S. 29 and Airport Road. Jones, 50, a Waynesboro resident, was on duty and driving a lights-flashing 2007 Chevy Impala. According to a release, he told a state trooper he was responding to a call.
Latest thwarting of gay rights in Virginia: Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli warns state universities March 4 that policies prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation aren't allowed unless okayed by the General Assembly, a body that steadfastly has refused to do so. In 2006, voters approved an amendment to the state constitution banning gay marriage and civil unions.
Most ironic in the "Virginia is not for gay lovers" saga: The same week AG Cuccinelli weighs in, the District of Columbia issues licenses for same-sex marriages, and the Maryland attorney general announces that state will recognize gay marriages performed in other states.
Worst fire: An early morning blaze March 7 at 4726 Eyeland Drive off Secretary's Road in the Scottsville area leaves a woman believed to be Louise Brown dead. Neighbors reported the blaze around 6am, and fire officials say the fire accidentally started in the kitchen. A County spokesperson says relatives don't think she owned a smoke detector.
Worst aviation incident: A Cessna crashes into a Louisa front yard minutes after takeoff from Freeman Field airport March 4, kills the pilot, and engulfs the house in flames.
Luckiest: The unnamed resident was in the basement at the time of the crash and was able to escape unharmed.
Greenest way to rumble: The estimated 100 teens who overrun Fashion Square Mall Friday night, March 5, reportedly used public transportation to reach the brawl that closed the mall for an hour.
Best Congressional appearance: Albemarle Sheriff Chip Harding is asked to speak at a March 4 briefing in support of arrestee DNA collection as a result of his work on Virginia's DNA database.
Latest Virginia Fire Chiefs prez: Charlottesville Chief Charles Werner is named head of the state association.
Latest iPod victim: Plan 9 closes its Williamsburg store, reports the Daily Press, leaving retail outlets only in Charlottesville and Richmond.
Biggest public outcry: Citizens let Albemarle supes know at a March 3 meeting that they don't like cuts to education.
Best stunt: Conservative Keith Drake, a member of Albemarle Truth in Taxation, announces on the Rob Schilling Show creation of a political action committee for citizens who want to pay more in taxes to support education. The PAC is called IMPACT– I'm Paying Additional City/County/Commonwealth Taxes– and Drake promises to send donations to the government body of contributors' choice. Supervisor Dennis Rooker tells Daily Progress reporter Brandon Shulleeta that citizens can make tax-deductible contributions directly to the County.
Most surprising terrorism threat: Republican 5th District candidate Laurence Verga says at a February 27 debate in Lynchburg that the biggest terrorism threat is the people who voted for Barack Obama, and that Obama's foreign policy is "political correctness run awry," according to the Progress.
Most like Florida: Staunton police making a drug bust find a three-foot alligator in a basement with a makeshift pond, the News Virginian reports. Carlin R. Adams, 30, is charged with possession of an exotic animal and animal cruelty. The gator is now residing at the Wildlife Center of Virginia.
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