Virginia

Virginia police has recovered an 80-pound statue of baby Jesus after a woman who allegedly stole it from a nativity scene uploaded a picture of the figure on her Facebook page.

Fredericksburg Police detectives found the plastic baby Jesus figure, which had been stolen from the city’s Central Park shopping center on Tuesday night, in the house of a Spotsylvania woman, the city police said in a message on the department’s Facebook page Friday.

A 25-year-old woman from Spotsylvania County had uploaded a picture of the stolen statue on her Facebook page. A citizen printed the image and related comments before the woman removed the post and submitted the evidence to police. more >>

The Virginia State Board of Social Services voted against proposed regulations Wednesday that would force faith-based adoption and foster agencies to act against their religious beliefs and provide adoption services to gay and lesbian couples.

The decision angered homosexual activists who submitted 2,500 comments in April supporting the regulations. The vote also encouraged officials who believe faith-based adoption groups should have the religious liberty to follow their convictions.

In a 5 to 1 vote, the Social Services board decided not to add extended discrimination protections to final regulations set to begin May 2012. The extended protection would have banned selective service based on “sexual orientation, gender, age, religion and political beliefs disability and family status.” more >>

Virginia state police said Friday the man who killed a police officer on the Virginia Tech campus before shooting himself was a 22-year-old part-time student at a nearby college and had stolen a Mercedes Benz SUV at gunpoint a day earlier.

Ross Truett Ashley, a part-time student at Radford University in Radford, Va., approached 39-year-old campus police officer Deriek W. Crouse, who had just stopped a motorist, and shot him dead as he sat in his patrol car around noon on Thursday, police said Friday.

Ashley, from Spotsylvania County, then fled on foot from the scene and changed out of his wool cap and pullover top, and put them inside a backpack. When police began to canvass the campus for the shooting suspect, a Montgomery County Sheriff’s deputy observed a male pedestrian in a parking lot. But when the deputy reached the lot, the man was lying dead on the ground with a handgun nearby. more >>

The two deaths at Virginia Tech are resolved, but still not completely understood.

To face the tragedy of losing yet another life to gun violence, students look to vigils as a source of hope and solace.

Yesterday, students gathered in an impromptu vigil following the untimely death of police officer Deriek Crouse, who was brutally murdered by the gunman at a routine traffic stop. While there, students reflected on the first and second times that blood was shed on the campus and lit candles in remembrance of someone who died trying to protect and serve. more >>

Imagine having to save a half a pack of crackers from the vending machine because you were worried your brother might not have food for dinner.

That was the case for one young boy in Virginia. Last year, his teacher discovered that many children in his school were going hungry on the weekends and weeknights, and they didn’t know where their next meal would come from.

She came to this realization, by accident, through an award she gave out each week to a student in her class for doing something special. The student who was picked got to choose a snack out of the vending machine as their reward. more >>

Virginia Tech announced that gunshots were fired on campus Thursday and authorities are still seeking the suspect.

So far two have been reported killed, one being a police officer.

Reports began around noon with shooting reportedly occurring at the Coliseum parking lot, which is an area designated to the school’s athletic department. more >>