About a week ago, as you might recall, Charlottesville’s SWAT team had a seven-hour stand off with some poodles on Nassau Street. (They thought there was a fugitive inside the house.) They ended up storming the house, complete with tear gas, kicking-down-of-doors…the whole nine yards. Well, the house is a shambles now, and the city is putting up the owners in a hotel. In the meantime, the city hasn’t cleaned the house, and ServiceMaster is having trouble cleaning it, because of the danger of gas residue. The Progress has the story, but, of course, they delete their news after 24 hours. So, what gives? Why are we treating city residents like this?
News and meta-news about Charlottesville, VA, since 2001.
Sideblog
Police announced this afternoon that their investigation into what was initially believed to be a fatal fire on Rugby Avenue is now a homicide investigation. #
The Virginia Supreme Court has denied George Huguely’s appeal. His second-degree murder conviction will stand, WRIC reports. #
In a carefully worded story, and not citing specific sources, WTVR reports that forensic evidence belonging to Jesse Matthew Jr., the main suspect in the disappearance of Hannah Graham, matches forensic evidence collected during the investigation of Morgan Harrington’s 2009 murder. #
In the wake of Hannah Graham’s disappearance, and the evidence that came from private security footage, city officials are revisiting the question of installing security cameras on the downtown mall. #
Both Charlottesville Registrar Sheri Iachetta and former Electoral Board member Stephanie Commander have turned themselves in to the police on
foursix and four felony counts of embezzlement, respectively. #Ten years ago, the National Institutes of Health budget doubled and schools like the University of Virginia built massive new research facilities. A decade later, those buildings remain largely underutilized. NPR visits UVA in this story on the effect of federal binge and spurge spending in the sciences. #
In 2012, Council approved a new student housing complex on West Main—now some council members are questioning whether what they were shown matches what was built. #
The Architectural Review Board has approved a bike-themed mural on West Market, below the McGuffey Art Center, although at least one member expressed concerns that it might look like the bicyclists were riding away from Charlottesville’s downtown. #
City Police Chief Tim Longo is meeting with city leaders to work on protocols regarding the use of military surplus police weapons in Charlottesville. #
A 100-year-old Colonnades resident received military honors for her service in the WWII Women’s Army Corps #
-
Archive for Sideblog »
What I remember of the story, the resident had rented the house for 28 years and wasn’t the suspect or target. The fugitive was wanted for credit card fraud and didn’t live in the house; police suspected he might be in it and spent seven hours surrounding the house. They used stun gas and tear gas for nearly an hour on the Belmont residence which was empty except for (now toxic) pets.
I suspect that there’s more to the story than that, since credit card fraud doesn’t necessitate the sort of force that they exerted and were willing to exert with a SWAT team. After all, the Charlottesville police are usually as impotent as Bob Dole in a French whore house. Oops, was that out loud? : )