(Updated on 12/23/21 at 11 a.m.) An Arlington man woke up in his Virginia Square bedroom early Thursday morning to find a stranger caressing his girlfriend’s face while she slept.
According to Arlington County Police Department spokesman Dustin Sternbeck, 25-year-old [name redacted], of Arlington, broke into the house just after 3:00 a.m., went downstairs and caressed the female victim’s face when the male victim woke up and yelled at him.
“[The male victim] recognized the suspect from a cast on his arm that he was the same man who assaulted him a few days earlier,” Sternbeck said. “During that incident, the suspect approached the victim outside the victim’s house and started punching him.”
Sternbeck said the victims hadn’t had any previous interaction with [redacted], calling the alleged assault and burglary “random” acts. [Redacted] was arrested and charged with burglary and assault and battery. He is being held at the Arlington County Detention Center without bond.
A local band, with the help of collaborators, will perform for eight hours straight at Artisphere tomorrow to promote its new EP release.
Bella Russia, based in D.C., will perform Sept. 7 from noon to 8:00 p.m. in Artisphere’s Black Box Theatre, at 1101 Wilson Blvd. The band is releasing its new EP, “Epaulet,” Saturday and — once the marathon concert is over — hosting a release party from 8:00 to 11:00 p.m. with performances by other artists and a cash bar.
Visitors will be able to watch the performance from a viewing window above the theater and will only allowed to enter the theater during the afterparty. The Sea Life and Janel and Anthony will be performing during the release party.
“With a live show consisting of manic instrument changes, unexpected arrangements, and blistering instrumentation, D.C.-based Bella Russia falls somewhere between rhythmic avant-indie and progressive instrumental,” according to The Pink Line Project‘s announcement of the event. “On stage, the band layers and builds their driving and occasionally nerdy compositions into sounds that at times seem too impossibly complex to be coming from a trio.”
Arlington County police have arrested an Alexandria man in connection with the 21-year-old rape of a college student.
Stevie Brinson, 50, of Alexandria was arrested Thursday after police say they “got a hit on DNA evidence” from the 1992 rape at gunpoint of a 25-year-old woman. The crime happened on the 2000 block of N. Adams Street near Lyon Village.
Brinson is being held without bond at the Arlington County Detention Facility. In June, ACPD resubmitted evidence to its laboratory which led to Brinson as a suspect, police said. ACPD, with the assistance of Alexandria Police, arrested Brinson at his place of work in Alexandria.
“Cases like this are not forgotten by the Arlington County Police Department,” Deputy Chief of Police Daniel Murray said in a press release. “Our Cold Case Squad detectives worked diligently in an effort to get justice for this victim and remove a dangerous individual from the streets.”
From the ACPD press release:
On January 28, 1992, the female victim opened her apartment door to the suspect, who claimed to be a maintenance worker. Once inside the residence, the suspect produced a handgun and demanded money. He then forced the victim into her bedroom where he bound her hands and proceeded to rape her at gunpoint. The suspect then robbed the victim of cash and fled the scene.
The house on Washington Blvd famous for hanging a giant American flag on its walls may be replaced with a four-story townhouse building.
The Ballston-area house, a duplex on the 4200 block of Washington Blvd near Washington-Lee High School, was built between 1895 and 1910, according to county documents. Its owners have submitted a site plan proposal for two semi-detached townhouses to take its place.
The proposal calls for the building to be demolished and replaced with a 4,707-square-foot, 43-foot-tall brick structure. The home’s solid-paneled doors, metal gutters, downspouts and other interior and exterior elements will be preserved as part of the redevelopment, according to the proposal.
The proposal is scheduled to go before the Planning Commission and County Board no later than November, according to county documents.
Buses will replace trains between Ballston and Vienna this weekend on the Orange Line.
Starting at 10:00 p.m. Friday and continuing until closing Sunday, East Falls Church and points west will not have Metrorail service.
An express bus will travel from Ballston to Vienna and add approximately 25 minutes of travel time. Local buses will stop at East Falls Church, West Falls Church, Dunn Loring and Vienna, taking approximately 15 minutes between each stop.
The station closures will allow track maintenance and signal system testing in preparation for the opening of the Silver Line.
Drivers who use the iPark devices to pay for parking in Arlington will no longer be able to refill them.
The manufacturer, ePark Systems, declared bankruptcy Tuesday, Arlington Chief Deputy Treasurer Carla de la Pava said, notifying the county of the impending bankruptcy at about 1:00 that morning. Funds that are still on the devices can still be used, but refills cannot be processed.
The county first stopped selling the iParks in January 2011 when ePark Systems stopped manufacturing them due to financial troubles, but started selling the devices again nine months later when the company had “recapitalized,” Treasurer Frank O’Leary said at the time.
About a year ago, de la Pava said, the county once again ceased the sale of the small, white devices that hang from rearview mirrors. There are approximately 1,200 devices that have been refilled in the past year, de la Pava said. O’Leary told ARLnow.com that about 4,000 devices are currently “in circulation.” When the office is able to compile a list of current users, it will begin notifying customers of the service’s termination.
O’Leary said the county is in talks with a company, OTI America, about using their in-vehicle personal parking meter technology. OTI’s device would be similar to the iPark, but would be capable of having funds refilled online, whereas the iPark could only be refilled at the Treasurer’s Office.
“It’s only a matter of weeks, not months,” before a deal with OTI could be in place, O’Leary said. He added that the county had been talking to OTI before the ePark bankruptcy.
“We hadn’t anticipated that they’d collapse this quickly,” he explained.
Until a new system is in place, iPark devices that run out of funds will no longer be usable, and those used to pressing a button or two will need to use change or credit cards at the parking meter.
Arlington County has given the go-ahead to 27 restaurants and cafes to host dogs in outdoor dining areas.
The restaurants were approved for variance permits to allow dogs, in a program first announced in April, according to the county’s Public Health Division. Previously, it was against county code to allow pets to hang out in all restaurant dining areas.
“Public Health staff has worked closely with restaurants to ensure that the restaurants’ operating plans comply with all health and safety requirements, and staff will continue to work with restaurants on an ongoing basis,” the county said in a press release. It “is left to the restaurants with variances to decide which outdoor tables are reserved for patrons with dogs.”
Below is the list of restaurants approved for canine dining:
American Seafood
Arlington Capital View Renaissance & Residence Inn
If someone approaches you in the Ballston area, claiming to be in need of gas money, you might want to think twice before obliging. According to an ARLnow.com tipster, the man is perpetrating a scam.
The tipster said a man in Ballston came up to her and her husband earlier this year and said he needed gas money to visit his dying father. They handed over $20. This week, the same man — apparently not recognizing the couple from the earlier encounter — came up to them again and recited the same story.
Here’s what the tipster had to say, in an email sent Monday night:
Here is how the story went the first time he tried his trick on us:
My husband and I were walking back from dinner. We were in the courtyard by Grand Cru (4401 Wilson Blvd) when this man walked up to us. He was a tall (6’3″ or so) white male and was wearing a baseball cap. He said that he was looking for gas money to go visit his dad in Raleigh, N.C., who just had had a heart attack. He said he needed $60 for gas and needed to leave right away in case his dad was not going to make it. He offered to have us take a picture of his driver’s license and to take his phone number. He promised he would call us in a few days and reimburse us as soon as he could. He added that he lived at the old Avalon complex on Glebe. He sounded as genuine as could be. His story was convincing and we couldn’t help but feel bad for him. We gave him $20, all the cash we had on us. Of course, we never heard back from him and never got our money back. We then realized it probably was all a hoax.
Tonight, we know for sure it was a hoax… He started telling my husband the exact same story about his dad and how he needed gas money to go visit him. Almost verbatim. Since my husband didn’t want any trouble with a potential sociopath, he just told him he was sorry but didn’t have any cash on him. He had been going around each car at the gas station asking for money with the same story. I was burning inside but was too scared of saying anything.
The tipster’s description of the alleged scammer is different from the scooter scam artist in Rosslyn last year, who pretended to be out of gas and asked passersby for money.
Board Member Jay Fisette and Audrey Clement in 2013
Del. Rob Krupicka
Issues like the Columbia Pike streetcar and the housing authority referendum were at the forefront last night during the Arlington Civic Federation’s annual candidates’ forum.
The debate between County Board member Jay Fisette and Green Party challenger Audrey Clement was the night’s most divisive, with Clement challenging the streetcar project and the Board’s fiscal policies.
“I pledge to raise no taxes,” Clement said, “Repeal last year’s tax increase… and authorize an inspector general for the county’s budget.”
Clement again voiced her support for the referendum to create a housing authority, which Fisette and other Board members oppose. Fisette defended the Board’s actions, asserting that the tax increases were largely to pay for the increase in school enrollment and the streetcar “fulfills the vision of the revitalization of Columbia Pike.”
“I will ensure that Arlington continues to be a community that respects the differences among us,” he said. “I believe that there’s more to do, and I have more to give.”
Six races were represented during the forum: Fisette’s Board seat, James Lander’s School Board seat, and the 45th, 47th, 48th, and 49th District races for the House of Delegates. Lander and Del. Robert Brink (D-48) are running unopposed, and each gave two-minute speeches and took one question from the floor. Del. Rob Krupicka (D-45) did not have an opponent to debate at the forum after it was revealed that independent candidate Jeffrey Engle was not in attendance.
Del. Patrick Hope (D-47) and Libertarian challenger Laura Delhomme — participating in her first debate — fielded questions about affordable housing, wind energy and their thoughts on the Republican state ticket. No Republican is running for any seat, state or local, in Arlington.
“I’m not a socially liberal Republican, I’m not a fiscally conservative Democrat,” said Delhomme, who suggested repealing the state income tax and the Virginia Marriage Amendment.
Hope advocated for transferring more of Virginia’s energy from coal and natural gas to wind power and discussed how difficult it was to make progress in the General Assembly.
“In my first four years in office, I’ve learned that change can be very difficult,” Hope said. “Getting government out of our bedrooms and our doctor’s offices has divided our state and our parties.”
In the final debate of the night, Del. Alfonso Lopez (D-49), running in his first re-election bid, and Independent Green Party candidate Terrence Modglin, showed the starkest disagreement, particularly on abortion. Modglin supports greater restrictions on abortion.
“I think the laws and regulations enacted, the intent of them was to, regardless of what the language was, reduce the number of abortions in Virginia and I think that’s a good thing in terms of public policy,” Modglin said.
Following Modglin’s response, Lopez looked slightly taken aback. He shook his head before he responded.
“A woman’s right to choose is non-negotiable,” Lopez said. “The [transvaginal ultrasound] legislation put up…was a travesty. It made us a laughing stock on the national stage. I will definitely fight these backdoor ways of reducing a person’s access to contraception.”
Election Day is on Nov. 5. The forum, held at Virginia Hospital Center’s Hazel auditorium, is organized every year as the unofficial start to Arlington’s fall campaign season.
Teachers and administrators welcomed an estimated 23,586 students inside the halls of Arlington Public Schools for the first time since June this morning (Tuesday).
Students got their first chances to experience the final phase of the new Yorktown High School and the new Wakefield High School. Teachers and volunteers were on hand to show students around their new schools.
According to school officials, 137 school buses were mobilized today to pick up students from around the county.
The school system’s enrollment will grow by almost 1,000 students from last year’s Pre-K-12 enrollment of 22,645. The student count won’t be official until Sept. 30, when APS sends the number to the state Department of Education.
AFAC volunteer coordinator Laura Jackson said the end of the summer is typically when its dry food stores are lowest because the center doesn’t conduct as many food drives while people are on vacation.
“It happens most summers,” she said. “We get a lot of produce donations from farmer’s markets during the summer, but a tomato is not the same thing as cereal.”
Other items AFAC is looking for donations are low-sodium soup, canned tuna in water, small bags of flour and cooking oils in plastic bottles.
The center is participating in the nationwide Hunger Action Month, with several events planned around Arlington to collect food and donations. The biggest event, Jackson said, is the Fill the Bus campaign the weekend of Sept. 27-29 at the Giant supermarket at 3115 Lee Highway. AFAC hopes to collect 20,000 pounds of food to fill an ART bus.
There are numerous food drives and even a screening of a movie among the other events planned for Hunger Action Month. More information on donating money or food to AFAC can be found on the organization’s web site.
