Governor Commutes Police Officer’s Sentence

Gov. Glenn Youngkin has commuted the sentence of former Fairfax County Police Sergeant Wesley Shifflett, who was sentenced last week to serve three years in prison for his role in fatally shooting a shoplifter outside a Northern Virginia mall in 2023.

“I am convinced that the court’s sentence of incarceration is unjust,” Youngkin wrote. “Sgt. Shifflett has no prior criminal record, and was, by all accounts, an exemplary police officer. It is in the interest of justice that he be released immediately.”

A jury found Shifflett not guilty last year on a charge of involuntary manslaughter but found him guilty of recklessly handling a firearm.

Shifflett testified that he shot the suspect, Timothy Johnson, in self-defense, believing Johnson might be reaching into his pants for a weapon. Prosecutors told the jury that Shifflett overreacted.

Former Senate Candidate Named Navy’s No. 2 

President Trump has nominated Virginian Hung Cao for the position of Under Secretary of the Navy, the second-highest civilian position in the service.

“Hung served in combat as a Special Operations Officer for twenty-five years,” Trump wrote. “With Hung’s experience both in combat and in the Pentagon, he will get the job done.”

Cao graduated from the United States Naval Academy and served with special forces in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Somalia, retiring as a captain after a 25-year active-duty career. He also has Pentagon experience and a master’s degree from the Naval Postgraduate School.

He lost to incumbent Tim Kaine in a U.S. Senate bid last fall. During that campaign, Cao criticized the Biden administration’s diversity, equity, and inclusion policies for driving down military recruiting.

Virginia’s Dark Sky Parks Shine

If you missed last week’s parade of planets due to light pollution where you live, you will have another chance to look to the skies on March 13 to see the “Blood Moon,” a total lunar eclipse.

Virginia has four state parks that are ideal for stargazing. Staunton River, James River, Natural Bridge, and Sky Meadows State Parks are all designated as International Dark Sky Parks by DarkSky International.

Staunton River State Park is in the center of the state, near the North Carolina border. It achieved the designation by establishing an outdoor lighting policy that minimizes light pollution.

In Central Virginia, James River State Park in Gladstone and Natural Bridge State Park are both working to keep visitors in the dark all night long.

Further north, Turner Pond at Sky Meadows State Park is the ideal observation area for astronomers and stargazers to gather after regular park hours.

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➤ Statewide: The Virginia Department of Education announced that it would expand literacy efforts for students in areas with the greatest need, adding three networks to assist in improving literacy throughout 30 school divisions in the Commonwealth. (More)

➤ Salem: More than 20 people were fired via email from the VA Medical Center as part of ongoing federal cuts in the Veteran’s Administration. “The agency finds that your performance has not met the burden to demonstrate that your further employment at the agency would be in the public interest,” the email read. (Details)

➤ Richmond: The Small Business Recovery Grant Fund was established to provide aid to businesses that were harmed by the city’s water crisis in January. Applications for the program will be accepted from March 17 through March 28. (More)

➤ Norfolk: The president of Old Dominion University responded to last week’s shooting on campus with a second message of reassurance. “Please be reminded that there is no ongoing threat and has not been one to our campus since the all-clear message was sent late Wednesday,“ Brian Hemphill wrote. Two men, neither students at ODU, were killed in the incident. (More)

➤ Danville: The remains of hundreds of black tenant farmers are being moved from the site of a former tobacco plantation and will be given a proper burial about a mile away. One descendant said that his ancestors are finally being treated as “patriots who are coming out of their graves with equal rights in 2025.” (Details)

➤ Alexandria: JD Vance moved to the vice president’s residence this year and listed his former home—a five-bedroom, three-and-a-half-bath residence in the Del Ray neighborhood—for $1.7 million. (More)

➤ Virginia Tech softball, ranked No. 15, finished 4-1 in its Hokie Invite, capping off the tournament with wins against JMU and Radford. (More)

➤ Virginia Tech’s men captured the ACC Indoor Track and Field championship, with Virginia finishing second. On the women’s side, the Cavaliers finished fourth and the Hokies placed sixth in the meet. (Scores)

➤ UVA, No. 9 in the nation in baseball, hosts William & Mary this afternoon after it swept three games from Dartmouth. (Details)

➤ VCU, leading the Atlantic 10 Conference in men’s basketball, visits Duquesne tonight. (Preview)

➤ Yesterday’s results: NBA | NHL | NCAAM | NCAAW | NCAAB | Soccer

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➤ The price of a gallon of gas dropped 4.9 cents per gallon last week across the Commonwealth, according to GasBuddy. The average price yesterday was $2.93 per gallon, which is 10.5 cents per gallon less than a month ago and 28 cents per gallon less than last March. (Details)

➤ Air Filter Systems, based in Roanoke, said it will relocate to Bedford County, where it will build a $1.5 million facility and hire up to 30 additional people. (More)

➤ Clasen Quality Chocolate announced plans to build a $230 million production facility in Frederick County. It plans to create 250 new jobs. (Details)

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➤ An army runs on its stomach, and military chefs from around the world were at the 49th annual Joint Culinary Training Exercise at Fort Gregg-Adams to show how they feed their troops. (Details) 

➤ The Harrisonburg Innovation Hub opened last week and will be able to provide space for at least 150 small businesses. The building was redesigned to reduce carbon emissions. (More) 

➤ The Virginia Arts Festival kicks off its 28th season on March 15 in Virginia Beach. Events will happen at several venues through July. (Details)  

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Did you see the Parade of Planets on Friday?

1. Yes, amazing
2. No, too much light
3. Not interested

Monday’s Results:

Should state law enforcement officers be deputized to assist ICE? 

1. Yes: 65%
2. No: 35%

Before Monday, when was the last time Virginia Tech won the men’s ACC Indoor Track and Field championship?

Show me the answer