
Fairfax County Names First Independent Police Auditor
Richard G. Schott, a 27-year veteran of the FBI, was appointed by the Board of Supervisors to be Fairfax County’s first-ever independent police auditor.
Vienna, Oakton Home Sales: January, 2017
In January, 2017, 63 homes sold between $3,167,500-$230,000 in the Vienna and Oakton area.
Vienna, Oakton Home Sales: January, 2017

Era of the Iron Fist: How Did Democrats Rule the House of Delegates?
Democrats complain about Republican heavy-handedness, but were they any better?
Democrats complain that Republicans are sidelining their bills without much consideration. But were Democrats any better when they had control of the House of Delegates?

Fairfax County: Deadline Reached for Civilian Review Panel Nominations
Supervisors to review applications before Feb. 14 meeting.
Jan. 31 was the final day for applications and nominations for Fairfax County’s first Civilian Review Panel, one of two new forms of independent oversight for the police department.

Angry Birds on the Road: Lawmakers Want to Crack Down on Screen Time
Texting while driving is already illegal, but what about Facebook and Twitter?
Lawmakers in Richmond are a bunch of angry birds, frustrated at existing law they believe does not solve the problem of drivers devoting their attention to their handheld screen instead of the road.

Victims of Tribe-For-Rent Scam to Get $15 Million Payout in Settlement Agreement
15,000 Virginia victims get $6 million worth of predatory loans absolved, $9 million in cash awards.
The commercial features images of teepees and a tribal drumbeat. The company billed itself as having ties to the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe in South Dakota. But Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring says that was nothing more than a fraud, a scheme he calls rent-a-tribe.

So Much Happening, Don’t Blink
Demonstrations at Dulles in reaction to travel ban; fast moving General Assembly lacks transparency; other key issues.
As this date approaches, the General Assembly has a serious transparency issue, as it continues to kill most proposed legislation with unrecorded voice votes in subcommittee, with no accountability or record of how members voted.

Arrest Made in Shooting at Police Car in Great Falls
Suspect first apprehended in Herndon for waiving a gun.
Just before midnight on Jan. 22, several shots were fired at a marked police cruiser from another vehicle in the Great Falls area, Fairfax County police said.

Anti-Immigration Ban Rallies Held at Dulles
Demonstrators, volunteer attorneys and elected officials welcome travelers, extend help detainees.
Demonstrations sprang up at airports around the United States over the weekend, following an Executive Order by President Donald Trump that blocks travelers from seven largely Muslim countries — Iraq, Iran, Syria, Yemen, Sudan, Libya and Somalia — in the interests of more significant vetting and preventing would-be terrorists from entering the country.

Bipartisan Agreement Forged in House Panel on Reducing Suspended Driver’s Licenses
Republicans work with Cabinet officials to craft changes to let more people keep drivers licenses.
After Democratic Gov. Terry McAuliffe called on lawmakers to find a way to restore driver's licenses to people charged with crimes that had nothing to do with driving, Republicans responded. Now both sides are crafting a compromise that could end up being a hallmark of the 2017 session.

Party-Line Vote Protects Child Labor at Tobacco Farms in Virginia
Republican-led House panel kills effort to craft new protections for kids in unrecorded vote.
In an unrecorded party-line vote, House Republicans killed a bill that would have cracked down on child labor at tobacco farms in Virginia.

Fairfax County: Public hearing on yard waste bags follows premature administrative change
North Springfield resident Asher Grady has his leaf collecting down to a science. And with the mature trees around his quarter-acre lot, he needs to. Each fall, he said, he goes through between 60 and 80 bags of leaves, spending between eight and 12 hours to rake and bag them.

Vienna: Giving Voice to the Voiceless, Hope to the Helpless
Community volunteers share their work to support animal rescue efforts programs.
Most pet parents embrace their non-human family members as, well, as “family.” While the most common family pets are dogs and cats, there are people who count themselves as custodians of other creatures, from rabbits and snakes to rodents and birds.
Vienna, Oakton Home Sales: December, 2016
In December, 2016, 93 homes sold between $1,595,000-$175,000 in the Vienna and Oakton area.
Vienna, Oakton Home Sales: December, 2016