AP
BALTIMORE (AP) _ Advocates for sexual assault survivors are worried the discredited account of an alleged gang rape at the University of Virginia may have a chilling effect. A Rolling Stone article about a student identified as “Jackie” described an alleged rape on campus and a culture of binge-drinking and looking the other way when students filed sexual assault complaints. On Monday, Charlottesville Police Chief Timothy Longo said an investigation turned up no evidence of a sexual assault, or any wrongdoing by the school. Daniel Carter has been a sex assault victim advocate for more than two decades. He says the discredited story may deter victims from coming forward, but progress has been made and he hopes it will continue.
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) _ The Virginia Department of Education is awarding more than $1.6 million in grants to enhance teachers’ knowledge of science and math and their ability to teach the subjects. The department said in a release that nine partnerships between school divisions and colleges and universities won the awards as part of the Math and Science partnership grant competition. Officials say the money will provide professional development for nearly 650 teachers throughout Virginia. The partnerships will provide professional development to teachers in an effort to reduce achievement gaps in math and science among student groups as well as raising achievement of all students. The partnerships are tied to state math and science Standards of Learning tests.
Joseph Morrissey
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) _ A delegate charged with fabricating a document says he is going to run for the Virginia Senate. Del. Joe Morrisey told media outlets over the weekend that he plans to challenge Petersburg Sen. Rosalyn R. Dance in the Democratic primary in June. He says he will be able to accomplish more in the Senate. Morrissey won re-election to his Richmond-area House seat in a January special election. He had resigned the seat after he was convicted in December 2014 of contributing to the delinquency of a minor. The 57-year-old Morrissey was released from jail earlier this month after completing his sentence. He still faces felony charges of fabricating a document in the original case. He has denied wrongdoing.
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) _ The attorney for a University of Virginia student says his client will plead not guilty this week to charges stemming from his highly publicized arrest last week outside a Charlottesville bar. Twenty-year-old Martese Johnson was charged with obstruction of justice without force and public intoxication or swearing after his arrest Wednesday. The Chicago resident will enter his not guilty plea at a scheduled court appearance Thursday in Charlottesville, according to a statement issued Monday his attorney Daniel Watkins. Johnson was arrested by Alcoholic Beverage Control officers after he was denied entrance into a bar. Photos and video of the arrest circulated widely on social media, showing Johnson with his face bloody as he’s pinned to the ground by an officer.
Noah Thomas
DUBLIN, Va. (AP) _ More than 100 officers are participating in a search for a 5-year-old boy who disappeared from his home in Dublin. Pulaski County Sheriff Jim Davis says Noah Terry Thomas’ mother discovered he was missing on Sunday morning. Davis said Monday at a news conference that there’s no evidence of foul play. He says no one in the area reported seeing anything suspicious. Teams of officers conducted a ground and air grid search on Monday of a 1-mile area surrounding the family’s Dublin home. Bloodhounds also are being used and investigators are canvassing the neighborhood. Davis says the boy’s family is cooperating in the investigation.
BEDFORD, Va. (AP) _ Authorities are conducting a new search on a Virginia mountain for the remains of two Maryland sisters who disappeared in 1975. The Bedford County Sheriff’s Office said Monday that additional leads prompted another dig on Taylor’s Mountain but didn’t provide details. The operation is expected to take several days to complete. The sheriff’s office, the Virginia State Police and the Montgomery Police Department in Maryland are conducting the search for the remains of 10-year-old Katherine Lyon and 12-year-old Sheila Lyon. The sisters disappeared after walking to a shopping mall in Wheaton, Maryland. An earlier dig was conducted on the mountain in January. Authorities have named Richard Allen Welch Sr. and his nephew, Lloyd Lee Welch, as persons of interest in the case. Neither man has been charged.
(Continue reading for the Bedford County Sheriff’s Office news release.)
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) _ A University of Virginia student who was bloodied during an arrest by a state liquor control agent says in a statement read by his attorney that he kept wondering how such a thing could happen. Martese Johnson appeared at a news conference Thursday evening, accompanied by his attorney who read a statement from the injured man. The statement read, “As the officers held me down, one thought raced through my mind: how could this happen? I trust the scars will one day heal, but the trauma of what the officers did will stay with me forever.” Students at the university have demonstrated in support of Johnson, who needed 10 stitches to close a gash on his head. Gov. Terry McAuliffe ordered the Virginia State Police to investigate the incident.
SALEM, Va. (AP) _ An oversized tractor-trailer will deliver a big load at slow speeds through southwest Virginia over the next few days, complicating travel along several routes. Starting Friday, the big rig will be hauling power transformers between Pulaski and Max Meadows. The tractor-trailer will be traveling from 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. every day through Tuesday. The truck will travel at speeds between 1 and 5 mph. The Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles says it has plotted a route that will minimize the impact to drivers, local businesses and residents. The truck’s journey begins at the rail station in Pulaski and ends at
Appalachian Electric Power’s Jackson Ferry Substation.
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) _ The governor of Virginia is calling for an investigation into the arrest of a college student who was shown in a photo with his face bloody as he was held down by an officer. Charlottesville General District Court records show that Martese Johnson is charged with obstruction of justice without force and public swearing or intoxication. The Alcoholic Beverage Control agent who made the arrest, listed in court records as J. Miller, said in the arrest report that Johnson “was very agitated and belligerent.” A statement from a group calling itself “Concerned Black Students” claims the arrest of Johnson was unprovoked. Gov. Terry McAuliffe’s office issued a statement asking state police to investigate “the use of force in this matter.”
DANVILLE, Va. (AP) _ Two children have died in a house fire in Danville. Danville Fire Department battalion chief F.D. Fowler says bystanders reported children being trapped in the house. Firefighters found a 4-year-old girl and a 10-year-old girl and removed them from the burning one-story frame structure. Both girls were pronounced dead at a local hospital. The fire occurred late Wednesday night and caused extensive damage. The cause hasn’t been determined. Fowler says the fire department Fire Marshal’s office is investigating.