Wednesday, April 1, 2026

Good Morning! On this day in 1754, Lt. Gov. Robert Dinwiddie presented Norfolk with a silver ceremonial mace, a symbol of the city’s authority. Over the centuries, the mace has been hidden, lost, and found again.

The state DMV warned this week about a text scam targeting Virginians. One reader told us about another scammer posing as an official.

“I was called by a man claiming to be a Chesterfield County sheriff’s deputy. He had my address and knew my full name. He even gave me his name and a badge number,” a reader wrote in. “He said there was a warrant for my arrest because I had ignored a summons for jury duty in federal court. But, he said, if I gave him my credit card over the phone, he could take care of the fine for me.”

“He was quite insistent, even calling back when I hung up on him, and threatening me with extra charges if I did not comply. I shudder to think what might have happened if I had been taken in by this liar. Please warn your readers not to be intimidated.”

We’re excited to announce the official launch today of The California Flyover, the 10th and newest state to join the Flyover network, covering the news from Sacramento to San Diego and all points in between. If you’re interested in keeping up with daily happenings in the Golden State, click here to subscribe.

Today’s sponsor, Incogni, helps protect you from scams by removing your personal data from hundreds of broker sites, making it harder for bad actors to find and target you online.

Take The Flyover with you. Busy day? Listen to our daily 15-minute podcast while commuting, cooking, or walking the dog—your Flyover fix, anywhere.

Polls, Odds on Redistricting Passing

Virginians have about three more weeks—until April 21—to vote on whether to amend the state constitution to allow for a gerrymandered map that would give Democrats an edge in 10 out of 11 districts in this fall’s election.

According to a recent poll by the conservative advocacy group Heritage Action, 45% of voters said they would support the amendment based on the language on the ballot, while 36% said they would oppose it, and 18% were unsure.

Betting markets gave the referendum an 80% to 85% chance of passing as of Sunday night. That likelihood has been moving up since February.

Voters across the state are learning more about the proposal. Stop the Gerrymander events will be held all week in Hampton Roads, while dueling rallies in Rocky Mount represented both sides of the issue.

Trooper Rescues Truck Driver

A Virginia State Trooper acted quickly to save a man from a burning pickup truck last week, and it was all captured on video from the trooper’s dash cam.

Trooper S. Baker responded to a call just after midnight last Wednesday and found a disabled vehicle on the side of a road in Emporia with its engine running.

The officer noticed that the grass underneath the truck had ignited, so he pulled the driver out of the truck and away from the flames, which had spread to the vehicle.

He used his patrol car’s fire extinguisher to control the blaze until firefighters arrived and put it out. The driver returned home safely.

Shooting Suspects Detained

Three suspects, an 18-year-old and two juveniles, have been charged in connection with the shooting death of a teenager in James City County on Sunday. Omari-Ahmad Martin is the only suspect named by authorities.

The motive for the shooting is under investigation. “Incidents like this are often the result of reckless and dangerous choices fueled by personal conflicts and a profound disrespect for human life,” Police Chief Mark Jamison said.

The 18-year-old suspect is in custody at Virginia Peninsula Regional Jail, while the younger suspects are being held at the Merrimac Juvenile Detention Center.

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➤ Goochland County: Four residents filed suit against the board of supervisors and planning commission after they approved the creation of a Technology Overlay District that could bring data centers and a power plant. The suit claims officials violated zoning regulations and made changes without hearing from residents. (Details)

➤ Norfolk: The USS George H. W. Bush Carrier Strike Group deployed yesterday as scheduled. Its exact destination hasn’t been disclosed, but it is believed to be headed to the Middle East. (More)

➤ Caroline County: Authorities haven’t been able to identify a body found in the woods last week. “We are making progress, and we will continue to pursue every lead until we identify this individual and bring those responsible to justice,” the sheriff’s office said. (Details)

➤ Arlington: The county spent more than $4.5 million to clear streets after January’s snow and ice storm. Its annual snow-removal budget is $1.7 million. (More)

➤ Smith Mountain Lake: Testing revealed the presence of cyanobacteria, often called blue-green algae, in 42.9% of dock samples taken in the lake last year, up from 30.9% in 2024. (Details)

➤ Charles County, Maryland: Dayton Webber, the quadruple amputee athlete who is accused of shooting and killing a man during a heated argument on March 22, arrived in Maryland to face charges after being extradited from Charlottesville. (More)

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➤ UVA baseball, ranked No. 10, crushed Old Dominion 16-2 in a mercy rule-shortened game. (Score)

➤ The University of Richmond’s men’s lacrosse team is ranked No. 1 for the first time ever. The 9-0 Spiders will face Notre Dame this weekend. (Details)

➤ The family of ninth grader Samuel Palmer sued the Virginia High School League over a state policy that prevents homeschooled students from participating in public high school sports. Palmer said he hopes to eventually compete for Virginia Tech. (Details)

➤ Liberty men’s basketball’s Brett Decker Jr. plans to enter the transfer portal after averaging 16.8 points per game and shooting 48% from three-point range as a sophomore. (More)

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➤ BAE Systems laid off 119 employees in Vienna after it lost a federal contract with the FBI. (Details)

➤ Ice cream lovers in Northern Virginia will have seven new shops to sample this summer. (The List)

➤ CoStar, based in Arlington, updated its lawsuit claiming that Zillow is improperly using about 53,000 images that belong to CoStar affiliates. (Details)

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➤ Volunteers in Radford and Blacksburg planted over 2,400 trees last month as part of the annual Big Plant to create a riparian buffer, a strip of vegetation along a waterway used to improve water quality and resiliency to storm events and flooding. (Details)

➤ Prince William County Public Schools placed the use of AI-enabled glasses under the same restrictions as cell phones. (More)

➤ Virginia Military Institute hosted the 36th annual Environment Virginia Symposium last week, bringing together 570 representatives to discuss regulation. (Details)

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