AP
Former Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell’s fate is in the hands of three federal appeals court judges. A panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals heard arguments in McDonnell’s public corruption case Tuesday. The court usually takes a few weeks to rule. McDonnell and his wife, Maureen, were convicted of taking more than $165,000 in gifts and loans from a wealthy businessman in exchange for promoting his company’s dietary supplements. The former governor was sentenced to two years in prison, his wife to one year and one day. Tuesday’s arguments focused on two major issues — whether McDonnell was convicted based on an overly broad definition of what constitutes an “official act” and whether jurors were properly questioned about whether they were influenced by news reports about the case.
CHRISTIANSBURG, Va. (AP) _ Gov. Terry McAuliffe says Hubbell Lighting plans an expansion of its Christiansburg facility that will create 100 jobs. McAuliffe said Monday that the $6 million project will expand and consolidate the facility’s manufacturing and assembly operations. Montgomery County will receive a $100,000 grant from the Governor’s Opportunity Fund to assist with the project. McAuliffe says in a news release that Hubbell Lighting also plans to expand its partnership with the Port of Virginia. Greenville, South Carolina-based Hubbell manufactures lighting fixtures for the commercial, industrial, and residential markets.
CRAIGSVILLE, Va. (AP) — Corrections records show a former University of Virginia athlete convicted of killing his girlfriend has been moved to another prison. Former U.Va. lacrosse player George W. Huguely V of Chevy Chase, Md., is now an inmate at Augusta Correctional Center in Craigsville. A Department of Corrections spokeswoman says he was transferred Thursday from Red Onion State Prison, a high-security facility in Wise County. Augusta Correctional is a lower security prison with an inmate population topping 1,000. Huguely was convicted in 2012 of second-degree murder in the 2010 slaying of Yeardley Love. The suburban Baltimore woman and Huguely had an on-again, off-again relationship. Huguely is serving a 23-year prison term.
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Virginia’s attorney general says localities have a say in regulating so-called fracking for natural gas. Attorney General Mark Herring issued the non-binding advisory opinion in response to a query from Sen. Richard H. Stuart, whose 28th District is within the Taylorsville Basin south and east of Fredericksburg. A Dallas energy company has designs on an estimated 1 trillion cubic feet of natural gas within the basin. Stuart asked Herring whether a locality can use land-use laws to regulate fracking. In response, Herring said the General Assembly intended to permit localities to prohibit fracking through zoning ordinances and land use regulations. Gregg Buppert is a senior attorney with the Southern Environmental Law Center. He said the opinion is grounded in “a careful analysis of Virginia law.”
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) _ In the eight months since former Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell was convicted of public corruption, a few developments have gone his way. The federal appeals court that will hear arguments Tuesday in McDonnell’s case allowed the ex-governor and his wife, Maureen, to remain free on bond while they challenge their convictions. Legal experts say that decision suggests the court believes at least some of the issues raised on appeal are a close call. A wide range of legal professionals, including dozens of former state attorneys general from both major political parties, filed friend-of-the-court briefs supporting McDonnell’s position that his convictions were based on an overly broad definition of what constitutes an “official act.” Prosecutors have argued that the jury’s verdict at the end of a nearly six-week trial was sound.
LYNCHBURG, Va. (AP) — Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush is condemning the Obama administration’s use of “coercive federal power” to limit religious freedom as he courts Christian conservatives ahead of a likely presidential run. The Republican White House prospect lashed out at the Democratic president’s administration for “demanding obedience in complete disregard of religious conscience” as he delivered a Saturday commencement address at Liberty University, a Christian institution founded by the late conservative culture warrior Rev. Jerry Falwell. More broadly, Bush said “the Christian voice” isn’t heard enough in the world. Bush is preparing to enter a presidential contest that includes Republican competitors considered far more popular with the GOP’s religious right. They all criticize Obama’s health care overhaul which requires some religion-affiliated organizations to provide health insurance for employees that includes birth control.
WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, W.Va. (AP) _ Keith Urban and The Band Perry will perform in concert during this year’s Greenbrier Classic golf tournament. Officials of the PGA Tour event said Thursday the country music acts will perform Wednesday, July 1, at the State Fair of West Virginia’s amphitheater in Fairlea the day before the tournament begins at the White Sulphur Springs resort. Concerts by Miranda Lambert and husband Blake Shelton on July 3 were previously announced. The $129 price for a tournament badge includes admission to the golf course the entire week and a lawn seat to each concert. Other weekly badges for the tournament, golf course hospitality tents and the concerts start at $179. Concert tickets aren’t sold separately.
CHESAPEAKE, Va. (AP) _ A Virginia woman has sued Verizon Wireless for $2.35 million claiming the company caused her to have a heart attack during a customer service call. 53-year-old Angela Hawkins filed a lawsuit in Chesapeake on Wednesday. Hawkins told the newspaper she called Verizon last year to straighten out a billing problem. Representatives accused her of saying she was going to kill everyone and threatened to call police. Hawkins’s attorney says the call was so upsetting she was scared the police were going to arrest her. The day after the call, an EKG revealed she had a heart attack. Hawkins underwent surgery and spent four days in the hospital. The lawsuit claims both negligent and intentional infliction of emotional distress. A spokesman for Verizon Wireless declined to comment.
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) _ Virginia’s legal community raised more than 1.3 million pounds of food for the hungry during a statewide food drive. Attorney General Mark Herring’s office says law firms, legal departments, government offices and law schools across Virginia held a food drive over two weeks in April. The Legal Food Frenzy is an annual collaboration between the Attorney General’s Office, the Young Lawyers Division of the Virginia Bar Association and the Federation of Virginia Food Banks. It pits Virginia law firms and legal departments against each other in a competition to see who could raise the most food for food banks in their local communities. The Norfolk-based law firm of B. Cullen Gibson took overall first place for the fifth consecutive year by raising more than 25,000 pounds per person.
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) _ Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders is heading to Virginia next week. The U.S. senator from Vermont has scheduled what he calls a budget town hall in Charlottesville on Monday. Sanders is the ranking member of the Senate Budget Committee. Sanders said the Charlottesville session will focus on Republican budget cuts and their impact on families, health care and older Americans. Sanders is casting himself as the liberal alternative to Hillary Rodham Clinton.