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Tuesday, February 9, 2010
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October 22, 2009 - WASHINGTON (AP) A 45-year-old District man has pleaded guilty to threatening a federal prosecutor. Darryl Tipps and 47-year-old Wayne Pannell were charged with threatening an assistant U.S. attorney and threatening to kidnap her adult son.
WASHINGTON (AP) Jill Biden, the wife of Vice President Joe Biden, is slated to speak to fellow Washington-area teachers at the Smithsonian Institution tomorrow. She teaches at Northern Virginia Community College.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
October 22, 2009 - OCEAN CITY, Md. (AP) The owner of a boardwalk hotel where a carbon monoxide leak sickened several people over the summer has pleaded guilty to failure to provide carbon monoxide detectors. Salvatore Rinaldi, owner of the Americana Hotel, pleaded guilty to the 10 counts today in District Court.
WESTOVER, Md. (AP) A Somerset County task force is expected to recommend that the county create diversity policies and an equal employment opportunity oversight committee. Kirkland Hall, the president of the county's branch of the NAACP, says the committee's report will be released November 12th during a town hall meeting hosted by the Somerset NAACP and the ACLU of Maryland.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
October 22, 2009 - RICHMOND, Va. (AP) The Virginia Board of Education wants the state to set staffing levels for full-time teachers of special, gifted, and career and technical education. The board also supports establishing ratios for support staffers--which include social workers, school nurses, and clerical workers--but said further study is needed to determine the best way to approach the issue.
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) Virginia game officials will take a closer look at a proposal to increase the size of a small herd of Rocky Mountain elk in the state's remote southwest corner. Officials decided today to size up an elk management plan.
BLACKSBURG, Va. (AP) Virginia Tech police are investigating written messages on YouTube that threaten a mass shooting at the university, but believe there is no direct threat to the school. A university spokesman says authorities believe the threats may have originated in Europe.
CHANTILLY, Va. (AP) Two committees of the Washington Metropolitan Airports Authority board have voted unanimously to increase rates on the Dulles Toll Road. Yesterday's vote was expected and comes over the objections of many commuters.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
October 22, 2009 - In Virginia, concerns about scam artists taking advantage of seniors has prompted a call for state regulation of tree trimmers.
Police say the tree trimmers roam the streets looking for senior citizens that might be easily confused. Concerns about fraud have prompted some members of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors to call for state regulation.
Michael Pope reports...
October 22, 2009 - Crime and punishment. Just one part of the discussion held during Metro's board of directors meeting.
Crime on Metro was high on this morning's agenda. Recent figures reveal a 40 percent increase in robberies throughout the system and a 5 percent increase in overall crime on Metro in the same period.
Metro General Manager John Catoe says those figures have been on the decline since 2005, and offers at least one reason for the sudden uptick. "It's a national trend; with items like iPods and other electronic devices that people have, the bad guys are trying to steal them," said Catoe.
"We have a robbery squad of plain clothes officers who are out there and sometime posing as decoys for the robbery suspect" said Jeff Delinsky, deputy chief for the Metro Transit Police. "We've locked up 96 people so far this year for robbery in the subway system."
The chief adds that they'll also increase the number of surveillance cameras in the system.
Elliott Francis reports...
October 22, 2009 - The National Museum of the Marine Corps in Virginia has a new chapel, dedicated today.
The new chapel stands overlooking the Marine Museum near the Quantico marine base. Its high walls are mostly glass, its corners made of stacked stones. It's meant to be reminiscent of the improvised chapels marines would use in the field.
"Well, I've never seen one that fancy," said Jim Rogers, who served at Iwo Jima. "In the field we'd have a hut almost where we'd go to church."
Rogers came up for the chapel's dedication. So did Ben Craven, who joined the marines in 1957. He remembers how he and his fellow marines would have to make do aboard his battle ship. "We used the forks of a forklift for the altar, we had a palate on there spread with a sheet, and that was an altar," said Craven.
The new chapel is non-denominational, and a compass engraved on the floor allows worshipers to locate the east. Lieutenant General Ron Christmas said the space is really about being faithful to the memory of sacrifice, hence the name, Semper Fidelis Chapel.
"What Semper Fidelis means is being always faithful, to your God, family, country, corps and most especially to your fellow Marines," said Christmas.
Sabri Ben-Achour reports...
The new chapel stands overlooking the Marine Museum near the Quantico marine base.
Courtesy of: Sabri Ben-Achour
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October 22, 2009 - Mayor Adrian Fenty is quickly drafting plans to redevelop part of the Walter Reed Army Medical Center campus when the hospital moves to the National Naval Medical Center in Maryland.
On Thursday, the mayor announced the D.C. government will draft a reuse plan over the next 12 months for the southern half of the campus. The city expects that about 62 acres will be transformed into a mixed-use development along Georgia Avenue.
The Army is expected to move off the campus in 2011 as part of the base-realignment legislation approved in 2005. The General Services Administration plans to take over the northern part of the campus. And the State Department has plans for the western part of the area. The city also is seeking a developer for two lots overlooking Walter Reed.
Meymo Lyons reports...
October 22, 2009 - There are only ten questions on the 2010 Census. But Montgomery County Executive Ike Leggett says the survey will speak volumes about Maryland's residents. And it will impact how $400 billion in federal funds is distributed to local communities.
At a rally in Rockville, Leggett encouraged residents to participate in the census. Wanjiru Kamau is president of the African Immigrant and Refugee Foundation. Kamau says many immigrants are afraid to fill out the forms for fear of being deported. But she says they shouldn't be; the census is confidential and can't be shared with immigration authorities.
Jessica Gould reports...
Montgomery County Executive Ike Leggett says the 2010 Census survey will speak volumes about Maryland's residents.
Courtesy of: Jessica Gould
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October 22, 2009 - The National Association of Elementary School Principals has honored some area leaders for their "extraordinary leadership and commitment to their students."
When Cheryl Warley took over as principal of J.O. Wilson Elementary School in D.C., she realized early on that to educate the children, she would first have to educate their parents. Warley held one on one meetings, created a parent center and encouraged them to use school computers to search for jobs. "You see them in the schools more, the behavior problems stop, they volunteer-we have a lot of parent volunteers," says Warley. The school has reached it's academic goals for four consecutive years.
Brian Hull heads the Colin L. Powell Elementary School in Fairfax, Virginia. After his daughter was diagnosed with cancer, he created a district policy to support children transitioning back to school after long absences. "Many of these children still have catheters and we have to be very very cautious of their time during recess," said Hull. "Many times these children come to school with tremendous fatigue. So what we try to do is have an extra set of books at home so the children don't need to carry them in their backpack."
Sixty-three principals from across the country will recieve the Distinguished Principal Award this evening.
Kavitha Cardoza reports...
October 22, 2009 - (October 25) THE ART OF TEA Craft and design come together during The Art of Tea, a tea party, demonstration and exhibit at the VisArts Center in Rockville, Maryland on Sunday afternoon from 1 to 4. The show gathers some of the most fantastical pots imaginable: a combination of form and function that draws artists, collectors and drinkers from around the world. The event will raise money for the VisArts Education and Outreach Program which has served the D.C. region for more than twenty years.
(October 22) NoMa INSTALLATIONS If you're in D.C.'s NoMa - "North of Massachusetts Avenue" - and find yourself surrounded by beautiful objects, you're not seeing things. The Cultural Development Corporation fills vacant storefronts with Construct: a Space Transformed, opening tonight with an Art Walk and reception from 5 to 8 at 1200 1st Street in Northeast. These temporary art installations hope to attract eyes and traffic to the NoMa Business District. You can take a cell-phone tour created by the artists and view the displays which will be up for the next two months. Call 202-292-1385 for the cell phone tour, or meet the artists in person on November 5th from 5 to 6pm and November 19th from noon to 1pm. RSVP to karyn@culturaldc.org karyn@culturaldc.org.
Marko Fields' "Prince Darwin Meets His Maker"
Courtesy of: Judith HeartSong
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October 22, 2009 - Hundreds of energetic children zip around the gymnasium at Claremont Elementary School in Arlington, Va.
Two of the children belong to Marna Louis, who is impressed by the quality of the food served at Claremont. "They've really increased the number of fresh fruits and vegetables that they offer," said Louis, "as opposed to canned things."
Governor Tim Kaine visited the school to bestow his Nutrition and Physical Activity Gold Star Award, an honor only 13 other schools in the Commonwealth have received. Kaine encouraged students to eat breakfast every morning, drink at least 64 ounces of water a day, and to make sure they go outside.
"Go outside and what?" Kaine asked the students. "Play!" They shouted back in unison.
Governor Kaine then joined the students for their daily dance routine, stepping and waving his arms to the beat.
David Schultz reports...
Virginia Governor Tim Kaine stressed the importance of nutrition and physical activity to students at Claremont Immersion School in Arlington, Va.
Courtesy of: David Schultz
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October 22, 2009 - Two military bases in Virginia are being considered as the possible home of several Marine Corps anti-terrorism units that are being consolidated into one unit.
Marine Corps officials say the Yorktown Naval Weapons Station and the Naval Security Group in Chesapeake are two of the three finalists selected from a pool of 35 bases to become the home of the Fleet Anti-Terrorism Security Team. The third is the Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, in Havelock, North Carolina.
According to the Daily Press newspaper the sites will undergo environmental-impact assessments, as well as studies of potential economic and social effects, including the likely impacts on traffic and area schools.
Bill Redlin reports...
October 22, 2009 - As health care providers and public health departments across the country await more shipments of H1N1 flu vaccines, local pediatricians say parents should be looking out for a wider range of flu symptoms.
Virginia has received approximately 265,000 doses of H1N1 vaccine, far less than what the state was expecting. Meanwhile Dr. David Ascher, with Inova Fairfax Hospital for Children, says the number of children coming to his hospital with flu symptoms has quadrupled in the last two weeks. And Dr. Ascher says parents should be on the lookout for more than the traditional fever and cough.
"Maybe 5 to 10 percent of children with documented H1N1 may not have upper respiratory symptoms," said Ascher. "They have gastrointestinal manifestations, which are vomiting and diarrhea."
Ascher says gastrointestinal symptoms do not suggest a more severe case of the virus.
Jonathan Wilson reports...
As health care providers and public health departments across the country await more shipments of H1N1 flu vaccines, local pediatricians say parents should be looking out for a wider range of flu symptoms.
Courtesy of: Centers for Disease Control
October 22, 2009 - Kaine says by the middle of November, everyone in Virginia who wants to get an H1N1 vaccination will be eligible to do so.
But until then, the H1N1 vaccine will only go to people in priority groups: health care workers, pregnant women and people younger than age 24. The department of health had to cancel nearly a dozen immunization clinics in Northern Virginia after supplies of the vaccine fell short of predictions.
Kaine says more doses of the vaccine will arrive soon, "but I would just encourage everyone to wait your turn. Let's go ahead and vaccinate the high-priority groups that really have a need for it."
So far, Virginia has received approximately 265,000 doses. Only California and New York have received more.
David Schultz reports...
Virginia Governor Tim Kaine says by the middle of November, everyone in Virginia who wants to get an H1N1 vaccination will be eligible to do so.
Courtesy of: Centers for Disease Control
October 22, 2009 - There's a road pricing proposal under consideration which could cost motorists approximately eight to ten cents per mile to drive on the regions highways. It's a plan that could have political implications.
The idea, conceived by the Brookings Institution and under consideration by the region's transportation planners centers on a GPS based roadway pricing system.
The plan would charge motorists based on the distance they drive, the type of vehicle they drive and the level of congestion on the road. So far, at least one elected official, Fairfax city councilman Dan Drummond, is calling foul.
"I don't feel it's appropriate for the transportation planning board to be surveying individual jurisdictions or individual constituents on the issues of taxes and fees. That is our job as elected official to make those judgments," said Drummond.
With transportation emerging as one of the central debates in Virginia's race for Governor, some transportation analysts feel a road pricing proposal could develop into a hot button issue.
A study to gauge public support of the proposal is underway.
Elliott Francis reports...
October 22, 2009 - The government's first time home-buyer tax credit is set to expire at the end of November. The National Association of Realtors would like to see the credit extended.
Elizabeth Wynne Johnson reports...
October 22, 2009 - A D.C. council member says a new study of students and school nurses is helping determine ways to improve sexual health education.
230 students participated in focus groups and more than 120 others were surveyed in the study.
Councilman David Catania chairs the committee responsible for the project. "We have long had a problem with STI rates among our young people but we simply have not done much about it," said Catania.
Students said they prefer Trojan or Magnum brand condoms, even though D.C. Public Schools distribute the Durex brand. Generally, students said they were disappointed with school health education classes and prefer peer-led programs or interactive workshops. They also considered school nurses were inaccessible, untrustworthy and judgmental.
"We've got very bright young people who are looking for tools to make smart choices and adults have simply failed them."
Catania said the council now has close to 50 action items, or next steps, to improve health education in the District. His committee will delegate responsibility among District agencies and community groups.
Rebecca Blatt reports...
October 22, 2009 - Virginia gubernatorial candidate Democrat Creigh Deeds now has President Obama campaigning on his side. Deeds has largely distanced himself from proposals Mr. Obama and Congressional Democrats support. But the President appears in ads, released earlier this week, for Deeds and will be stumping at a rally for him in Norfolk next week. Obama is the first Democrat to win Virginia in a presidential race in 44 years and Deeds hopes to gain some of that momentum. Deeds has been trailing in polls against Republican opponent Bob McDonnell.
McDonnell says the ads and appearance will help Deeds, but the election is about the candidates and the issues. McDonnell has campaigned with Senator John McCain and is scheduled to campaign with former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani next week.
Natalie Neumann has the details...
October 22, 2009 - At the National Museum of the Marines, near Quantico Marine Base in Virginia, a bell rang out. It's the type of bell that used to ring in the evening aboard a battle ship, when soldiers who made it through that day might reflect on those who didn't. Under that bell, Lieutenant General Ron Christmas dedicated the Marine Museum's new Semper Fidelis Chapel.
"The toll of the ship's bell reminds us of the reverence we owe to our departed comrades in arms," he says.
Chapels, and chaplains, are a way of dealing with the loss that is inherent in serving in the Armed Forces. Rear Admiral Mark Tidd is Chaplain of the Marine Corps.
"The role of chaplains is to serve the spiritual needs of our people," he says.
He says there are over 200 different religions or denominations with chaplains in the Marine corps. Jon Hart has been a marine for 65 years, he stopped by for the dedication of the Marine Museum chapel. He remembers pitching chapels out of tents or huts out in the field after major battles.
"It's after things settle down and you're looking for a refuge somewhere that the chapel - tent, whatever - starts meaning something to you," he says.
The chapel is non-denominational. A compass on the floor allows worshipers who wish to do so to orient themselves eastward. There was not an orientation towards Mecca, as some Muslims pray in that direction.
Sabri Ben-Achour reports...
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