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Norfolk firefighter who lost his job over medical marijuana use challenges firing after change in Virginia law
For as long as he can remember, Brandon Beltaine wanted to be a firefighter. He grew up watching the 1991 film “Backdraft” and took pride in people who worked hard. ... Beltaine attained that dream, completing the fire academy and started working as a Norfolk firefighter in 2018. But Beltaine’s career is now in jeopardy. He was fired in 2023 for medical marijuana use off the job — a dismissal that would now be illegal under changes made to Virginia law last year.
Early childhood education programs deserve robust support
President Donald Trump’s ill-suited choice to lead the Department of Education, World Wrestling Entertainment founder Linda McMahon, got it exactly right in recent testimony before the House Appropriations Committee: “The earlier we can start education, the better it is for every child.” Yet the Trump administration and many state governments — including Virginia — follow spending plans and policies that continue to fall short of providing universal access to early childhood education.
Who is running in the District 70 primary in Newport News?
... In Newport News, there are two Republican candidates running in the primaries to get on the November 2025 ballot, hoping to represent District 70 in the House of Delegates. ... Hailey Dollar is one of two candidates running in the Republican primary. Dollar is an army combat veteran who was born and raised in Hampton Roads, between York County and Newport News. ... Dollar's Republican primary opponent is Cynthia Scaturico. Scaturico was born in Illinois, then in 2014 she moved to York County for a few years where she worked at Smithfield Foods. During the pandemic, Scaturico moved to Iowa where she began her political career after being elected to the Board of Supervisors.
Virginia Board of Education member is also serving in Trump administration
Virginia Board of Education member Amber Northern started a new job in the Trump administration on Monday, as a senior adviser to Secretary of Education Linda McMahon – raising questions about whether simultaneously holding the positions at the state and federal levels poses a conflict of interest. ... She is serving in the federal role under an Intergovernmental Personnel Act agreement, which allows employees from outside organizations to temporarily work in federal agencies. Northern said she is awaiting guidance from “the powers that be” on whether her roles in the state and federal government could present a conflict.
Republican candidates vie for Virginia’s 62nd District seat
Two Republican candidates are competing to represent Virginia's 62nd District in the House of Delegates, which encompasses Greene and Madison Counties, as well as large parts of Orange and Culpeper Counties. Clay Jackson, the current Chair of the Madison County Board of Supervisors, and Karen Hamilton, a small business owner and military wife, are both vying for the position.
Where the hot spots are for immigration enforcement
Efforts to arrest and remove unauthorized immigrants appear most aggressive in five southern states with Democratic-leaning cities, while deeply red, rural states are seeing less activity, according to an Axios analysis. Our review of removal orders, pending deportation cases and agreements between immigration officials and local law enforcement agencies sheds light on where the Trump administration is dispatching resources to support its mass deportation plan. The analysis shows local law enforcement agencies in Texas, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and Virginia have been most cooperative with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in rounding up immigrants through deals known as 287 (g) agreements.
Grants funded by your car insurance pay for surveillance tech in Virginia
More than 30 years ago, the General Assembly created a fund to reward tipsters who shared information leading to motor vehicle theft arrests. If there’s leftover money in the Help Eliminate Auto Theft — better known as HEAT — reward fund, the Virginia State Police can allocate it to educational programming to help drivers prevent auto theft or to support local law enforcement or judicial agencies in their efforts to reduce theft. Since 2022, the Virginia State Police has been using an increasing amount of money from the fund to help local law enforcement agencies buy equipment to help them prevent and solve vehicle theft and related crimes.
Va. attorney general says Loudoun County school system misused authority in locker room case
Virginia's attorney general found “disturbing misuse of authority” by a school district that investigated three boys regarding claims of sexual harassment of a transgender student in a boys’ locker room. Jason Miyares referred the Title IX investigation of the incident to the U.S. Department of Education and the U.S. Department of Justice for further investigation. Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin asked Miyares to investigate Loudoun County Public Schools over its handling of an alleged incident in which three boys at Stone Bridge High School expressed concern about a transgender boy in the locker room in March. The transgender student allegedly recorded cellphone video of their reactions.
Shushok: In Virginia, private colleges are the new front line for access
This summer marks three years since I became president of Roanoke College. When I arrived in 2022 after 30 years serving at large research universities, including nearby Virginia Tech, I brought what some on campus jokingly (and not-so-subtly) called “big school energy.” I had a lot to learn about leading a small private college. ... Over the past two decades, many public land-grant universities in the U.S., including our own Virginia Tech, have boomed in popularity, prestige, resources and selectivity. At the same time, Virginia’s independent, nonprofit colleges and universities, like Roanoke College, have stepped up to become the front line for college access — a striking role reversal in the higher education ecosystem.
2 newcomers to Newport News compete in House District 70 GOP primary
An Army combat veteran and former Iowa Board of Supervisors representative are on the ballot in the Republican primary for House District 70 as newcomers to Newport News. Republicans Hailey Dollar and Cynthia Scaturico are running in the June 17 primary to see who will face Democrat incumbent Del. Shelly Simonds.