Author

Alex McCarthy

Alex McCarthy is a freelance writer based in Roanoke. He grew up in Kalamazoo, Michigan, and graduated from Indiana University with degrees in journalism and history. After starting out in sportswriting, he moved to Juneau, Alaska, where he covered city hall, state government and the occasional bear story for the Juneau Empire. Contact him at [email protected]

‘Still an ambush state’: The move toward discovery reform is going slowly in Virginia

By: Alex McCarthy - December 23, 2019

ROANOKE — Assistant U.S. Attorney Heather Carlton and Danville Commonwealth’s Attorney Michael Newman spoke quietly but intensely at the prosecution table. The two of them were part of a team tasked with prosecuting a federal trial that stemmed from gang activity in Danville. A critical error from Newman’s office had just opened the door for […]

‘This needs to go’: Why couples challenged Virginia’s racial marriage license disclosure requirement

By: Alex McCarthy - October 18, 2019

This past Friday, Brandyn Churchill and Sophie Rogers got an early wedding present. U.S. District Judge Rossie D. Alston, Jr. ruled Oct. 11 that state law requiring people seeking marriage licenses to disclose their race is not only offensive, but it’s also unconstitutional. Rogers and Churchill comprised one of a handful of couples who sued […]

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