Monday, June 18, 2013
High speed chase covers 32 miles in two states:
(Reidsville, N.C.) -- Police in Virginia and North Carolina joined a high speed pursuit Sunday that ended in the arrest of 22-year-old Joshua Kyle Moore of Eden.
The chase started in Reidsville, after Moore allegedly kidnapped his girlfriend in Eden, beat her and then released the woman near the Reidsville YMCA.
Authorities from Rockingham and Caswell Counties joined the pursuit after Moore’s ’96 Ford Ranger pickup crossed into their localities. The truck then traveled into Virginia and ended up back in Rockingham County, where officers used stop sticks to pop three of its tires in Ruffin.
That didn’t stop Moore, who attempted to run over a deputy and twice slammed into the side of Lt. Tim Newman’s patrol car before Newman made a maneuver that forced him to stop.
He wouldn’t come out of the truck, so police smashed the window and placed Moore in Handcuffs.
He faces 19 charges including attempted first degree murder of a law enforcement officer, eluding police, driving while impaired, kidnapping, assault on a female and failing to stop for blue lights and siren.
He was treated for minor injuries suffered in the pursuit and jailed under a $104,500 secured bond. Moore will make his first court appearance June 27th.
Researcher finds groundwater contamination in test drills:
(Pittsylvania County, Va.) -- Paul Robinson says the state of Virginia needs to act now to establish a comprehensive set of regulations governing uranium mining before future exploration is allowed in Pittsylvania County.
Robinson is a researcher from New Mexico who prepared a 20-page report on behalf of the Roanoke River Basin Association, a chief opponent of the mining and milling operations.
He says his research found groundwater contamination from exploratory drilling and inadequate record keeping by Virginia Uranium Inc, the company that wants to mine the Coles Hill site near Chatham.
Robinson found contamination for uranium and radium in two of three groundwater wells that are continuing to be sampled, and that contamination was picked up from the beginning of 2008 through the end of last year. Robinson outlined his findings during three appearances in Danville and Pittsylvania County Monday.
Virginia Uranium Inc. wants to mine a 20-million-pound uranium ore deposit at the Coles Hill site near Chatham.
Work progresses on Danvile Science Center theater dome. (Photo: Travis Hackworth)
Danville man charged with Caswell Co. theft:
(Caswell County, N.C.) -- A Danville teenager has been returned to North Carolina, where he faces charges related to the theft of $100,000 worth of property from a Caswell County home.
Tyler McDaniel of Crestwood Drive was arrested by Danville Police last week after officers obtained search warrants and recovered 32 guns, jewelry, coins, ammo and electronic and outdoor equipment. The items were found at a home on Halifax Road.
McDaniel is now charged with felony larceny but additional charges are pending.
He waived extradition back to Caswell County and was returned to North Carolina over the weekend. McDaniel is scheduled to appear in Caswell County District Court June 26. He is being held under a $100,000 secured bond.
School resource officer grant coming to Pittsylvania County:
(Richmond, Va.) -- Pittsylvania County is among two dozen Virginia localities that will receive state grants to put school resource officers in public schools.
Sheriff Mike Taylor pushed the program, which was approved in a pared down form by the Board of Supervisors. The matching grant will help pay the cost of putting an officer in each of the county’s schools.
Statewide, officers will be placed in a total of 42 elementary, middle and high schools that don’t currently have school resource officers. The state money will help cover the cost of salaries and benefits.
Gov. Bob McDonnell announced Monday that the Criminal Justice Services Board had approved the matching grants.
Grants also were approved for Amelia, Charles City, Grayson, Isle of Wight, Madison, Montgomery, New Kent, Page, Prince George, Pulaski, Richmond, Rockbridge, Russell, Smyth, Stafford, Surry and Warren counties.
The Town of Tazewell also will receive a grant.
Police ID pedestrian struck & killed on North Main:
(Danville, Va.) -- Danville Police have identified the pedestrian who was struck and killed on North Main Street Friday afternoon as 50-year-old Linda Conner. Witnesses reported that Conner was walking across North Main into oncoming traffic at the time of the accident, which happened about 4:35 Friday afternoon in the 2400 block of North Main.
Conner was struck in left northbound lane by a northbound 2003 Honda Pilot. She was pronounced dead at the scene of the crash by rescue personnel.
At the time of the accident, officers were re-routing northbound traffic around the scene. Conner was hit near Bank of America and Northmont Exxon.
The driver was questioned at the scene but no charges have been filed. A reconstruction team was also called to the accident scene and remained at the site for several hours.
Child on bike struck on Glen Oak Drive:
(Danville, Va.) -- A City of Danville Public Works Department vehicle struck a 7-year-old boy riding a bicycle Friday afternoon on Glen Oak Drive in the Schoolfield community.
The police report indicated the child suffered injuries and was transported by emergency medical services for medical care.
Police responded to the call at 1 p.m. The accident took place at 93 Glen Oak Drive.
The investigation found that the boy entered the roadway from the driveway of 93 Glen Oak Drive and rode into the path of the Public Works Department truck. The vehicle struck the boy in the roadway. No charges were issued against the driver.
200 show up for 100 available Martinsville jobs:
(Martinsville, Va.) -- Monogram Food Solutions will add a hundred new jobs at their plant in Henry County. At an open house on Saturday, more than two-hundred applicants showed up, hoping to fill those positions.
Monogram is starting a new line of foods. It’s their third growth spurt in the last three years. Two years ago, Governor Bob McDonnell personally stopped by to present them with a two (m) million dollar check from the state’s Small Business Loan Authority. That allowed them to add a hundred jobs.
Monogram’s Henry County workforce has increased from 135 to 410. They took over the facility in 2009 from Knauss Snack Foods.
Monogram makes co-packed and company-owned brands of meat snacks.
Council to step up fight against blight:
(Danville, Va.) -- Danville City Council this week will vote on the City Manager’s request to step up the fight on blight.
At a work session last month, the panel looked over Joe King’s proposals to continue blight eradication efforts.
The Proposed Capital Improvement budget includes $1.75 million to expand blight eradication. But King says there is also an 166 properties already in the "demolition pipeline." That includes 53 houses ready for asbestos inspections---63 houses ready for demolition---and 54 owners that have been issued demolition orders. King says it’ll take more than two (m) million to handle those cases.
The City Manager says Council can make up the balance by transferring money from the undesignated General Fund balance.
City leaders to vote on transit proposal:
(Danville, Va.) -- Danville Transit bus fares will stay where they’ve been the past twenty years. Earlier this month, Danville City Council decided to transfer some money to make up for a loss of grant funding. Tomorrow night, they’ll make it official.
Transportation Director Marc Adelman said the drop in population below the 50-thousand threshold means less state and federal funding ---about 16-thousand dollars less Adelman proposed a 10-percent fare increase.
At a work session, Councilman Lee Vogler proposed Council apply some of the 100-thousand dollars in higher-than-expected levels of tax payments to make up the difference.
Adelman will present a revised proposal to Council tomorrow night.
Thursday afternoon's storm approaches
(photo: Sally Susan Popu)
Teens charged with stealing, killing dogs:
(Blairs, Va.) -- Two teenagers in Pittsylvania County are charged with stealing a dog from a home in Blairs…then killing the animal in an effort to cover up the crime. The investigation began Tuesday when the dog’s owner reported his pet had been missing for over a month. An investigation led deputies to a pair of 17-year old boys. They served petitions on the teens this week. They’re charged with felony theft and misdemeanor animal cruelty. Investigators expect a third arrest soon.
Fire destroys home:
(Blairs, Va.) -- There is still no cause in a fire that destroyed a home in the Blairmont subdivision.
Firefighters from several volunteer departments were dispatched to the 2900 block of Finch Drive just before 10:30 Thursday morning.
The home was fully involved when the first units arrived and part of the house had collapsed. No one was home at the time and there were no injuries.
Firefighters worked to keep the flames from spreading to a wooded area behind the home and were still dousing hot spots at mid-day.
Medical Examiner ID's body as missing Danville woman:
(Danville, Va.) -- The body found in Buggs Island Lake last Saturday was that of a missing Danville woman.
The State Medical Examiner’s Office in Richmond used fingerprints to determine that the body was 57-year-old Kathy Keiling of Danville. The body was found floating in Kerr Lake near Clarksville last weekend, eight days after Keiling was last seen at her apartment on Bridge Street in Danville.
The Mecklenburg County Sheriff's Office confirmed the findings in a news release Thursday afternoon and said Kieling’s family has been notified of the identification.
Kieling was reported missing on May 30 by the manager of her apartment complex.
Danville Police worked closely with the medical examiner to determine that the body was Kathy Marie Kieling. The Danville Police Department said earlier that foul play was not suspected.
DRMC residency program grows:
(Danville, Va.) -- Some of the physicians who’ll finish their residency programs this weekend will continue their practice in the Danville area.
That was one of the goals when Danville Regional Medical Center established its Osteopathic Graduate Medical Education Program eight years ago.
Dr. Patricia Matto (pictured, left) directs the Medical Education Program and is pleased with the success of the hospital’s residents, whom she describes as "some of the most talented doctors in the country." Matto says Doctors Curtis Merritt, Eric Taylor and Scott Reames all plan to practice in the area following Saturday's commencement exercises.
Dr. Matto says the residents have been helpful in the emergency department, getting patients to doctors and helping to determine whether they will be admitted or discharged.
The program was started in 2005 and expanded in 2010 to include one, two and three-year residency programs in both internal and family medicine.
DRMC recently announced a partnership with Liberty University to provide clinical training to about 30 medical students each year through Liberty’s new College of Osteopathic Medicine.
Demographic trends continue in Danville:
(Danville, Va.) -- A new report today from the US Census bureau shows the demographic shift continues in Danville.
The annual population survey estimates from last June shows African-Americans now make up 49-point-3 percent of Danville’s population. Whites account for 47-point-8 percent.
Two years ago, in the official Census, Danville’s population was 49-point white and 48-and-a-half percent black. Last year was the first year African-Americans made up the largest demographic group in the city.
Danville’s Hispanic-Asian-Indian-and multi-racial groups account for nearly three-percent of the city’s population. That’s up from two-and-a-half percent in 2010.
Mixed numbers for Danville in crime report:
(Danville, Va.) -- The raw statistics from the State Police Crime in Virginia - 2012 report shows from interesting conclusions for Danville.
We’re 13th in size among the 39 cities in Virginia, but Danville has an overall crime rate for that is second. The numbers show Danville a violent crime rate that’s in the middle of the pack, but is second-highest in total arrests. That drives the overall crime rate up.
Police Chief Phillip Broadfoot will go over the numbers with Danville City Council in a work session next week. He’ll also talk about what the department is doing to cut into those numbers.
Independent challenger announces in 14th House District:
(Danville, Va.) -- There’s news in the 14th district, where Danny Marshall is running for re-election. Former Henry County School Board member Mary Martin filed the paperwork over the weekend to run as an independent. Last week, she held a pair of press conferences to formally launch her bid. The Ridgeway resident says she’s opposed to lifting Virginia’s long-standing moratorium on Uranium Mining. She also wants to crack down on utility rate hikes. Danville Vice-Mayor Doctor Gary Miller is the Democratic candidate. Marshall---the Republican incumbent---is seeking re- election.
Groundbreaking for the Gretna Medical Center
(B.J. Greene photo)
Centra breaks ground in Gretna:
(Gretna, Va.) -- Officials from Centra broke ground Wednesday on an expanded 50,000-square-foot medical facility in Gretna. Centra projects 80+ new jobs averaging $50,000 a year at the new Gretna Medical Center. The facility will be open 24-7. It’ll feature a wellness centera and a community meeting space. A 64-slice CT scanner is still pending final approval. Centra failed in their effort to build an outpatient center in Danville in 2010. The State Health Commissioner denied their request for a certificate of need. The state approved their certificate for a CT scanner for the Gretna facility back in January, but DRMC appealed the decision. Centra hopes to have the center open next year.
Smart Beginnings to expand local rating program:
(Danville, Va.) -- Choosing a child care center in the Dan River Region may get a little easier as a local group expands a formal rating system. Ann Stratton is director of Danville Pittsylvania Smart Beginnings. She says a quarter (m) million-dollar state grant will allow them to expand local efforts for the Virginia Star Quality Initiative. That gives a one to five star rating for participating child care centers. 15 centers in Danville and Pittsylvania County use the rating system. The rating process includes having a professional visit the child care center and check for quality of the staff, the instruction and environmental matters. Each center participating will receive a mentor who will work with them for months to help improve the center. Smart Beginnings Danville-Pittsylvania will also administer the program in Martinsville, Roanoke and Lynchburg.
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