CRIMINAL JUSTICE + POLICING
Four takeaways from Virginia’s 2021 crime stats
On Wednesday, the Virginia State Police released the state’s tally of crime statistics for 2021, showing a continued rise in violent crime and a sharp decrease in drug arrests, particularly for marijuana. Here are four takeaways from the report: Virginia saw 562 homicides reported for the year, up 6.4% from the 528 reported in 2020. […]
Late attorney’s pardon work revealed sentencing madness
John Coggeshall could’ve easily been called “the anti-Sisyphus.” The late Norfolk defense attorney handled the pardon applications for several state prisoners, and the self-taught jurist won them freedom after years — even decades — behind bars. Defendants and prisoners sought him out after other lawyers rejected their cases. Coggeshall represented people who faced insanely long […]
Congress roiled by U.S. Supreme Court decision revoking abortion rights
Republicans in Congress were jubilant at the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling overturning decades of precedent to revoke a constitutional right to an abortion, while Democrats were equally despondent about what they called an extremist decision that revoked a long-held right and represented an attack on women’s autonomy. The party-line reaction hints at how lawmakers will approach abortion […]
Youngkin vows to ‘protect life’ as Supreme Court overturns right to abortion
Gov. Glenn Youngkin applauded Friday’s U.S. Supreme Court decision abolishing the constitutional right to an abortion and said Virginia Republicans will get to work on legislation “protecting the life of unborn children” by potentially banning most abortions after 15 weeks. “The Supreme Court of the United States has rightfully returned power to the people and […]
U.S. Supreme Court overturns right to abortion in landmark decision
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday overturned the 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling that established abortion as a constitutional right. The decision by five of the Court’s nine justices will allow each state to set its own abortion laws, leading to a patchwork of access throughout the country. The result is expected to be an […]
Virginia AG threatens crackdown on ‘copycat’ THC edibles
Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares says his office is planning to crack down on “copycat” THC edibles made to look like popular snack and candy brands, saying the colorful, cartoonish packaging poses a clear threat to children who may not know what they’re eating. At a news conference in Richmond Wednesday, Miyares held up two […]
The District of Columbia allows incarcerated people to vote, a rarity in the U.S.
This article is published through a collaboration between States Newsroom and Bolts. WASHINGTON — Earlier this month, about 10 men detained in the Young Men Emerging unit in the Washington, D.C., jail sat around a TV to watch the Democratic candidates for mayor debate issues including affordable housing and gun violence. “It was on a communal TV, and […]
Will it be Maryland or Virginia? Feds near a verdict on new FBI headquarters
WASHINGTON — Maryland and Virginia politicians vying for the prize of a new FBI headquarters have just a few months left before a crucial federal government decision. The U.S. General Services Administration is expected to pick the best of three locations as soon as September, ending nearly two decades of advocacy, confusion and frustration across […]
Beagle breeding facility shutting down over violations will be allowed to sell 500 dogs
A federal judge will allow Envigo — which is shutting down a controversial dog-breeding facility in Cumberland County under pressure from federal regulators because of a string of animal welfare violations— to sell more than 500 dogs to labs over the objections of the U.S. Department of Justice. Federal attorneys seeking an injunction to enforce […]
Judge dismisses restraining orders against Sen. Joe Morrissey over radio show outburst
A Republican delegate and a Democratic senator huddled in the corner of a courtroom Tuesday afternoon, trying to make out what was said on a garbled audio recording that captured some of the expletives hurled in a heated altercation last month in a Richmond radio studio. “Is that: ‘I will f**king knock you down’?” asked […]
One in 10 Virginians charged with police assaults have a history of mental illness
Around 10 percent of people charged with assaulting a law enforcement officer in Virginia over a nearly decade-long period had a history of mental illness, according to data from University of Virginia researchers presented Tuesday to the state’s Behavioral Health Commission. Altogether, between 2009 and 2018, a total of 2,213 people with a history of […]