AP
ROANOKE, Va. (AP) — Wells Fargo Bank is letting go 115 workers at its Roanoke County call center. The company informed the workers Thursday they will be terminated later this year. They represent 6.4 percent of the center’s work force. According to The Roanoke Times, Wells Fargo spokeswoman Kristy Marshall blamed the cuts on fewer foreclosures and delinquency. She said demand for mortgage financing and refinancing also is down. The cuts are scheduled to take effect in mid-December. The center employs 1,800.
Bob and Maureen McDonnell
(Associated Press photo)
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Former Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell’s attorney says his client didn’t get a fair trial and will appeal his convictions on public corruption charges. McDonnell was convicted Thursday on 11 of 13 counts in a case that derailed the career of the onetime rising Republican star. His wife, Maureen, was convicted of nine of 13 charges. The former governor wept when the verdicts were read, but told reporters as he left the courthouse that his “trust remains in the Lord.” His attorney, Henry Asbill, said he was shocked and disappointed by the verdict. Maureen McDonnell’s attorney declined to comment. McDonnell and his wife now face up to 20 years in prison on each count, although a presentencing report by the federal probation office will result in a lighter recommendation. Sentencing is scheduled for Jan. 6.
Bob and Maureen McDonnell
(Associated Press photo)
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) _ A jury has convicted former Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell and his wife, Maureen, of corruption, fraud and bribery, after the couple accepted more than $165,000 of gifts and loans from a businessman. Both Bob and Maureen bowed heads and wept as a chorus of “guilty” kept coming from the court clerk. McDonnell was widely considered a possible running mate for presidential candidate Mitt Romney in 2012. He was charged with doing favors for a wealthy vitamin executive in exchange for the gifts and loans. Bob McDonnell was found guilty of 11 of 13 corruption charges against him. His wife was found guilty of nine of 13. A federal jury in Richmond returned the verdicts Thursday after a five-week trial and deliberating for three days.
Gov. Terry McAuliffe
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) _ Gov. Terry McAuliffe is in agreement with two Cabinet secretaries who say state permitting for natural gas drilling in Virginia’s coastal plain are years away. Spokesman Brian Coy said Thursday that McAuliffe is mindful of the unique nature of the Potomac Aquifer and is not inclined to hasten state reviews of hydraulic fracking in the Taylorsville Basin. A Dallas energy company wants to tap an estimated 1 trillion cubic feet of natural gas from tens of thousands of leased acres south and east of Fredericksburg. Critics fear the environmental impact, especially on water supplies. The Richmond Times-Dispatch (http://bit.ly/1Be50Tb) reported that two McAuliffe administration officials said the possibility of permitting the drilling is likely years down the road, and perhaps after McAuliffe finishes his present term.
MountainJustiice.org photo
ROANOKE, Va. (AP) _ Police arrested five people after they hung a large banner in downtown Roanoke to protest West Virginia coal billionaire Jim Justice’s mining operations. The banner was strung between two buildings Thursday morning. Police Sgt. J.H. Bowdel tells The Roanoke Times that officers removed the protesters from the rooftops of the buildings. They will be charged with trespassing. Bowdel says the protesters had bookbags containing climbing equipment, including rope and safety vests. The environmental groups Mountain Justice, Rising Tide North America and Radical Action for Mountain and People’s Survival say in a news release that they hung the banner to protest the practices of Justice’s mines. Last month, Justice reached a $1.5 million settlement with Kentucky officials over dozens of violations at several of his coal mines in eastern Kentucky.
Bob and Maureen McDonnell
(Associated Press photo)
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) _ Jurors have deliberated about 13 hours over five days without reaching a verdict in the public corruption trial of former Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell and his wife, Maureen. They will return to federal court in Richmond on Thursday to continue examining a massive amount of testimony and other evidence from a trial that’s now in its sixth week. The McDonnells are charged in a 14-count indictment with doing special favors for Jonnie Williams, the CEO of dietary supplements maker Star Scientific Inc., in exchange for $165,000 in gifts and loans. McDonnell is a onetime national Republican up-and-comer who was considered a possible running mate for presidential candidate Mitt Romney in 2012. He testified in his own defense and denied criminal wrongdoing. Williams testified under immunity as the prosecution’s star witness.
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) _ A new initiative is aiming to train Virginia workers for jobs in the state’s film industry. Gov. Terry McAuliffe said the Film Industry Training is a pilot program created by the Virginia Film Office and the Community College Workforce Alliance. Officials say the program is designed to prepare workers for film, television and commercial projects in Virginia. A two-day seminar will be held next month in Richmond to provide training for people seeking entry level positions within the industry. The course will be taught by Gary Romolo Fiorelli. He’s worked on projects including the television series Sons of Anarchy and films like Pirates of the Caribbean and Blades of Glory. The industry’s economic impact in Virginia totaled $328.4 million in 2012, provided 3,061 jobs and $50.5 million in tax revenue.
Bob and Maureen McDonnell
(Associated Press photo)
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) _ Jurors have their work cut out for them on day two of deliberations in the corruption trial of former Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell and his wife, Maureen. It’s a process that requires them to review five weeks of testimony and scores of exhibits. Jurors worked at it for more than five hours Tuesday before quitting for the day. They return Wednesday morning. The McDonnells are charged in a 14-count indictment with accepting more than $165,000 in gifts and loans from former Star Scientific Inc. CEO Jonnie Williams in exchange for promoting his company’s nutritional supplements. McDonnell testified that he didn’t do anything special for Williams in exchange for the gifts and loans. Williams testified under immunity that he spent money on the McDonnells solely to get their help promoting Anatabloc.
PULASKI, Va. (AP) _ Pulaski plans to sell its historic baseball park to a Christiansburg-based car dealership. Media outlets report that the Town Council voted Tuesday night to authorize the sale of Calfee Park to Shelor Motor Mile. The town manager and attorney will negotiate a purchase agreement. Calfee Park was built in 1935 under President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Works Progress Administration. Shelor Motor Mile plans to renovate the ballpark. Shelor Motor Mile Co-owner David Hagan told the council that the Pulaski Mariners won’t return for another season. The Mariners are a Seattle Mariners Appalachian League affiliate. Hagan says the dealership is in talks with several other minor league teams.
BRUNSWICK, Ga. (AP) _ A Georgia woman and a Virginia man have pleaded guilty of placing marijuana and other contraband into baseballs tossed over the fence of a south Georgia prison. The Florida Times-Union reports that 33-year-old Antonio Marcellus Jones of Hampton, Virginia, on Tuesday pleaded guilty to providing marijuana to an inmate. Authorities say 33-year-old Chrystaline Armstrong of Waycross pleaded guilty to providing a cellphone to an inmate. An FBI agent testified that the balls were loaded with marijuana, tobacco and a cellphone intended for an inmate. FBI Special Agent William Kirkconnell said Jones and Armstrong had disassembled the baseballs at Armstrong’s house in Waycross, stuffed the contraband inside and put the balls back together. The agent testified that Jones then hurled them into federal prison’s recreation yard.