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Recent Articles from The Associated Press
Gay marriage ruling will help many veteran spouses
WASHINGTON (AP) — For Stewart Bornhoft, who completed two tours of duty in Vietnam, the Supreme Court’s decision granting federal benefits to married, same-sex couples means that he and his spouse, Stephen McNabb, can one day be buried together at Arlington National Cemetery. For Joan Darrah, who served nearly 30 years in the Navy and […]
AG pushes for settlement money to fund mental health training
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Police officers could be better trained to deal with the mentally ill if the federal government would release $800,000 of Virginia’s share of a national Medicaid fraud settlement, according to state Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli. In a letter earlier this week, Cuccinelli’s office asked the Treasury office to release the money […]
Jackson fined for late loan disclosure
(AP) The State Board of Elections has fined Republican lieutenant governor candidate E.W. Jackson for waiting too late to disclose a $25,000 loan to his campaign. Charlottesville lawyer Donald Lee Woodsmall gave Jackson the loan on May 8. Jackson reported it on June 3. State law requires that candidates report contributions or loans of $5,000 […]
US magistrate judge shocked by AAG’s role in lawsuit
A federal magistrate judge has expressed shock that an assistant Virginia attorney general has been assisting two natural gas companies that are being sued by landowners who allege the companies bilked them out of natural gas royalties. In an opinion issued June 5, U.S. Magistrate Judge Pamela Meade Sargent said the relationship was revealed in […]
Court orders new lawyers for death row inmate
New lawyers must be appointed for a Virginia death row inmate convicted in the bludgeoning and stabbing deaths of a Richmond couple and their two daughters, a federal appeals court ruled June 7. A three-judge panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ordered new representation for Ricky Jovan Gray, who was convicted in […]
Judge appoints attorney to determine site’s value
FREDERICKSBURG (AP) A judge on May 28 appointed a Fredericksburg attorney to determine the value of the 38 acres where former Gov. Doug Wilder wants to build the National Slavery Museum. Fredericksburg Circuit Judge Gordon Willis appointed Kevin Jones as commissioner in chancery. The hearing was the latest event in the long-running legal battle over […]
4th Circuit rejects Virginia ballot access provision
(AP) Virginia’s law prohibiting out-of-state residents from circulating petitions for third-party presidential candidates is unconstitutional, a federal appeals court ruled May 29. The unanimous decision by a three-judge panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld U.S. District Judge John A. Gibney’s ruling last year that the residency requirement is an impermissible restraint [&hell[...]
Virginia Tech president retires, reflects on 2007 massacre
(AP) — The president of Virginia Tech announced his retirement May 14, satisfied he had elevated the university’s reputation and acknowledging that the worst mass shooting in modern U.S. history on his campus would be a part of his legacy. Charles Steger, 65, continues to be a central figure and criticized for the way the […]
U.S. appeals panel ponders: what is a pirate?
(AP) — In the violent world of piracy, Mohammad Saaili Shibin was a multilingual negotiator based in lawless Somalia, working his cellphone to negotiate multimillion-dollar ransoms for merchant ships and sailors that dared to venture into pirate-infested international waters off Africa. Does that make him guilty of piracy? The question was the central argument May […]
Virginia audit says half of court fines, fees go unpaid
(AP) Nearly half of the fines and fees levied by Virginia courts for traffic tickets and in criminal cases went unpaid over the past five years, according to a state audit. The state Auditor of Public Accounts report found circuit and district courts assessed an average of $357 million in fines and costs from 2008 […]
VSU student president says hazing plea was coerced
(AP) The president of Virginia State University’s student government association is asking a judge to set aside his hazing conviction, arguing that he only pleaded guilty because the prosecutor said he wouldn’t graduate if he refused. Brandon Randleman, 22, and three others pleaded guilty April 8 to an August hazing incident involving a student. All […]
The Falls Church stays with Epsicopal Diocese, court rules
The Episcopal Church is the rightful owner of a historic church formerly occupied by a congregation that abandoned the denomination over the consecration of an openly gay bishop and other differences, the Virginia Supreme Court ruled Thursday. The justices unanimously upheld Fairfax County Circuit Judge Randy Bellows’ ruling against The Falls Church, one of seven […]
Verdicts & Settlements
- Driver fell asleep, causing significant auto accident — $1M settlement
- Defense verdict returned for company in rear-end crash
- Cauda equina syndrome developed after procedure — $625,000 settlement
- Passenger died months after sustaining multiple injuries — $725,000 settlement
- Plaintiff injured in crash with oncoming vehicle — $235,000 settlement
- Driver killed in rear-end collision with tractor-trailer — $1.5M settlement
- Man died from pancreatic cancer after delayed response — $1.8M settlement
- Worker fell off roof, rendering him a paraplegic — $1.25M settlement
- Driver sustained permanent hearing loss after traffic collision — $240,000 settlement
- Plaintiff suffered concussion in rear-end collision — $81,000 verdict
- Builder misrepresented home status to buyers — $675,000 verdict
- Low potassium led to cardiac arrest, death of patient — $1M settlement
Opinion Digests
- Company owner dodges breach of contract suit
- Employee’s own allegations doom minimum wage claim
- Federal government defeats former employee’s claims
- Principal wasn’t entitled to exclusively remote work
- USPTO properly redacted info in responsive documents
- Untimely lawsuit allowed to proceed
- Engineering consultant dismissed from suit
- Rule 60 motion was filed too late
- Nonprofit directors immune from ex-employees’ claims
- City, employees immune from whistleblower claims
- Experts excluded in condemnation damages suit
- Judgment entered against company for horse’s death
