Washington, D.C. Police Chief Peter Newsham will become the top cop in Prince William County.

The Board of County Supervisors hired Newsham today after a day-long interview session at Old Hickory Golf Club in Woodbridge. He was one of our top four finalists from a pool of 50 candidates who applied for the position, to include acting Police Chief Col. Jarad Phelps, who’s been serving as the county’s top cop since former Chief Barry Barnard retired on June 1.

Prince William County announced the hiring tonight.

Chief Newsham is currently the Chief of Police of the Metropolitan Police Department in Washington, D.C., and has held that position since 2017.  Washington, D.C., is a community of over 705,000 residents within 68 square miles and a Police Department of 4,500 total employees.

Chief Newsham joined the Metropolitan Police Department in 1989 and progressed steadily through the ranks to his present rank of Chief of Police.  Prior to his current appointment, Chief Newsham served in various capacities within the department – Assistant Chief of Police Investigative Services Bureau, Assistant Chief of Police Internal Affairs Bureau, Assistant Chief of Police Regional Operations Command North, Assistant Chief of Police Office of Professional Responsibility and District Commander.

“Chief Newsham brings a wealth of experience and leadership to this position,” said Prince William Board of County Supervisors Chair-At-Large Ann Wheeler.

Chief Newsham earned a bachelor’s degree in Political Science from the College of Holy Cross, and a Juris Doctorate from the University of Maryland School of Law. He is a member of the Maryland Bar. He has attended numerous police executive trainings and seminars and is actively involved in the Major Cities Chief’s Association and the Police Executive Research Forum. Additionally, he has attended the Anti-Defamation League’s (ADL) training on Law and Society, and the ADL’s National Counter-Terrorism Seminar in Israel.

“I am excited to join the team and look forward to making a difference in the community,” said Chief Newsham.

Chief Newsham was selected as the top-ranked candidate after a national recruitment process. The County received 50 applications from 16 states and Washington, D.C. The candidates went through an extensive vetting process as part of a contract with a recruiter, GovHR USA. Chief Newsham distinguished himself throughout the intensive recruitment process.

In Prince William, Newsham will oversee a police department that employs about 1,000 people, including nearly 700 sworn police officers.

His hiring comes as the Board of County Supervisors is filling positions on a newly created “Racial and Social Justice” Commission, which stands in addition to the county’s Human Rights Board created in 1992. The social justice commission will spend its first year of existence probing the Prince William County Police Department’s hiring policies and its use-of-force policy following riots in the county that erupted on May 30.

It was the first time a riot occurred in Prince William County.

Students at Manassas City Public Schools are returning to the classroom for the first time since March.

Special Education students returned to the classroom on November 4. In December, the city School Board is set to vote on when to return the remainder of the school division’s nearly 8,000 students to the classroom, up to three days per week.

However, some students may return to find a key element of the classroom experience missing: A teacher at the front of the classroom.

During a special meeting of the City School Board on November 11, Dr. Melissa Saunders, director of the student achievement at the city school division, said some teachers might opt to remain at home and teach virtually. Those teachers would be given the option to work remotely.

“We don’t speak for other divisions, but as for [Manassas City Public Schools], we do not know how many teachers [the return to in-person learning plan] will impact yet, as they will need to go through the process of obtaining documentation for their doctor,” said schools spokeswoman Al Raford penned in an email to PLN. “The goal is to keep consistency for students. If a teacher has the proper documentation for teleworking, and we can find coverage for the classroom, we will explore this idea.” 

A classroom monitor would sit with children while teachers provided virtual instructions from home. It would be a newly created position within the school division, which has yet to be advertised on the school division’s employment website, Radford added.

Many will have students in their classroom and children who are participating in the discussion at home for teachers who do return to teach in person. The in-person teacher will use a computer monitor and a microphone to see and interact with the at-home students.

The school division planned to send a survey to parents on November 16, asking whether they wanted their children back in the classroom for in-person learning.

A similar survey was sent to parents over the summer, and the majority of respondents opted to send their children back to the classroom. Only 31% of respondents said they would opt to keep their child at home, while 49% of teachers surveyed said they were comfortable returning to the classroom.

The school system started classes on August 31, with all students learning from laptops at home.

If the city School Board in December selects a date for students to return to the classroom, students will continue to be on their own, from home, for “asynchronous” learning on Mondays and alternate in-person days Tuesday through Friday.

Pre-kindergarten through first-grade students will be the first to go back.  Two to three weeks later, grades two through four will return, followed by the remaining grade levels three weeks afterward.

All teachers are slated to return to the classroom three days before the start of school to familiarize themselves with the new technology set up in the classroom, as many will be teaching students sitting in desks in the classroom, as well as students who are learning from home, at the same time.

The Stafford County Board of Supervisors recently passed an ordinance to remove monuments and flag poles from the list of structures exempt from height limitations in the county’s code.

The move comes after an 80-foot-flag pole along Interstate 95, and a Confederate battle flag the flew atop it, sparked years of debate in the region about whether or not to remove the pole and flag. Last month, the Virginia Department of Transportation acquired the private property on which the flag pole sits, along with nine other parcels of land, and removed the flag pole.

The Stafford County Board of Supervisors passed the new ordinance passed by a five to two vote on Tuesday, November 17, approving recommendations from the county’s Planning Commission, which suggested flagpoles and monuments are not to exceed 35 feet in height in residential and agricultural areas, or 45 feet in commercial and industrial zoned districts. However, those heights could be exceeded by no more than 10 feet by special exemption or conditional use permits.

Stafford residents who showed up to the meeting supported the new ordinance.

“If it wasn’t one flag then it would be another flag that the other half of the county would be upset about and I think this is the best thing for us and it makes sense to pass this so that everyone would not be as much at war with each other, I think we have enough going on right now in the world,” one county resident commented.

The new heights considered for flagpoles have been discussed as far back as 2017 when then-Stafford County Attorney Charles Shumate stated the Board of Supervisors could limit flag pole heights on private property. Any flag standing before a new ordinance passed would most likely be grandfathered in, he added.

Aquia District Supervisor Cindy Shelton expressed concern with the ordinance feeling that discussion about the flagpoles was muddled with the issues of the Confederate flag.

Rock Hill District Supervisor Crystal Vanuch expressed concern about the ordinance’s unintended consequences, specifically about new broadband services coming to the Hartwood and Rock Hill districts that would be attached to tall towers. Vanuch mentioned that the limitations on flag poles could also limit the reach of the new broadband service.

George Washington District Supervisor Tom Coen supported the ordinance stating similar concerns as the residents did about the flag while paraphrasing Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. stating “ the right to swing my fist ends where the other man’s nose begins.”

Rick Horner is a freelance general assignment reporter and covers the Stafford County Board of Supervisors and Fredericksburg City Council. Please email news tips and questions.

Daijyonna Akira Renee Long was born on September 18, 2000 and passed away on November 22, 2020. Daijyonna was a resident of Stafford, Virginia.
The funeral home will be following Virginia state mandated Covid-19 measures. Temperatures will be taken at the door, masks are required, and social distancing will be practiced.

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Prince William County Supervisors voted to extend the deadline for residents to pay their property taxes.

During a meeting on Nov. 17, 2020, the Prince William Board of County Supervisors passed a resolution extending the payment deadline for real estate taxes for the second-half of 2020 for 60 days, changing the deadline from Dec. 5, 2020, to Feb. 3, 2021. The extension applies to both commercial and residential real property.

If the real estate taxes for the second-half of 2020 are not paid on or before Feb. 3, 2021, the amount of the installment is past due. Beginning Feb. 4, 2021, a 10% penalty is applied, and starting March 1, 2021, interest at 10% per annum begins to accrue on any unpaid amount of this real estate tax for the second-half of 2020.

Penalties and interest continue to apply and accrue on past due installments. The County cannot issue refunds to taxpayers who have already voluntarily paid their real estate taxes for the second-half of 2020, and who seek a refund solely because of the extended deadline.

Visit the County tax website for additional details. Please note that the payment portal may still reflect the Dec. 5, 2020, payment deadline for several days or weeks. The County is working actively to update it.

Meanwhile, in neighboring Stafford County, the second half of the year, property taxes are due on December 5 or the next business day.

Stafford County Real Estate and Personal Property tax bills for the second half of 2020 have been mailed. The taxes are due on December 5 or the next business day of the year. This year, December 5 falls on a Saturday, making the deadline Monday, December 7, 2020. The Stafford Treasurer’s Office encourages citizens to pay by the due date to avoid additional penalties. There are many convenient ways to pay, including the online my Stafford portal. As always, citizens are welcome to call the Treasurer’s Office with concerns or questions.

“This year, in particular, we ask residents to become familiar with our award-winning myStafford portal allowing them to make tax payments from the safety of their home or their mobile device,” said Stafford Treasurer Laura Rudy. “The portal has become a vital component for doing business, while we all make efforts to stay safe during the COVID-19 pandemic.”

Approximately 150,000 real estate and personal property tax bills are currently available online and ready for payment.  Individuals should have received their tax bills via post office mail the first week of November. If you did not receive a statement or have payment questions, please contact the Treasurer’s Office at (540) 658-8700 as soon as possible.

The Treasurer’s Office accepts cash, checks, money orders, debit and credit cards. You may pay online by credit card or e-check at the myStafford portal, by phone at 1(844) 817-9045, in person, with social distancing precautions, at the Treasurer’s Office, by mail, or via the after-hours drop box located at the front of the entrance to the George L. Gordon, Jr., Government Center, 1300 Courthouse Road, Stafford, VA 22554.

Visitors who want to visit the exhibit halls of the National Museum of the Marine Corps will be turned away starting Monday, November 23.

The museum announced it will temporarily close its building to the public due to the rising number of cases of coronavirus in Virginia. The museum details its plans in a press release.

The health and safety of visitors, staff and volunteers is the Museum’s first priority at this time.  The Museum grounds, to include Semper Fidelis Memorial Park and the playground, will remain open.

Visitors will still be able to stroll the museum grounds and visit the playground.

The closure comes 11 weeks after the museum had reopened to the public following the coronavirus lockdowns in March. Visitors were required to wear masks during their visit.

A total of 2,544 new coronavirus cases were reported in Virginia today, with about 23 new cases reported each day over the past week. A total of 99 new hospitalizations were reported today, for a total of  1,159 people hospitalized with the disease — 70 fewer than yesterday.

The museum is located at 18900 Jefferson Davis Highway just outside the main gate of Quantico Marine Corps Base.

As we approach the Thanksgiving holiday, there are only a handful of meetings we’re keeping our eyes on.

A meeting of the Manassas City Council that had been scheduled for Monday, November 23 has been canceled.

The Prince William Board of County Supervisors will meet at 9 a.m. Tuesday, November 24 to discuss the hiring of a new police chief.

• There, supervisors are expected to review applicants that have been vetted by County Executive Christopher Martino.
• Col. Jarad Phelps has been serving as the Acting Police Chief since the retirement of Barry Barnard, on June 1.
• The meeting will be open closed to the public and will be held at Old Hickory Golf Club, located at 1921 Chanceford Drive in Woodbridge.
• The golf club sits behind the county government center.

At a special meeting of the Fredericksburg City Council at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, November 24, City Manager Tim Baroody is sheduled to provide the pubilc with an update on the slave auction block. that used to sit on William Street.

• While the block has been noved to the nearby Fredericksburg Area Musuem, it has yet to be put on display there.
• The meeting will take place at City Hall, located at 715 Princess Anne Street.

Dropping a frozen turkey in a fryer can spell disaster at Thanksgiving, sparking large fires that have been known to burn down entire homes.

On Wednesday, the Stafford County Fire Department wanted to show those dangers of frying a turkey without being prepared. However, things didn’t go according to plan.

When a firefighter dropped a frozen turkey into a large fryer full of hot grease, aside from the awful smell of a frozen turkey meeting hot grease, nothing happened.

“There wasn’t anyone factor that caused the demonstration to not go according to plan, but it did show a few things that could cause problems, like the water splashing out of the pot,” stated the department’s Public Information Officer Katie Caler.

Nevertheless, the dangers of cooking fires are real, and they increase on Thanksgiving Day, officials said.

According to the North Carolina Department of Insurance’s website, cooking fires are the number one cause of home fires and injuries in the U.S., with approximately 2,000 home fires occurring on the holiday itself. Turkey fryers themselves cause an average of five deaths per year, 60 injuries, and more than $15 million in property damage.

The Stafford County Fire Department makes several recommendations to ensure a safe holiday. Among those are making sure to stay near what you’re cooking. That way, if anything does happen, you can react immediately.

Among the recommendations is to make sure the pot used for cooking or frying is on a balanced surface regardless of whether cooking is being done indoors or out. Also, having oven mittens and fire extinguishers nearby is recommended as well.

As far as advice when dealing with turkey fryers, the department said to plan how you’re going to cook your turkey a week in advance. This is especially important when thawing the turkey for frying since an unthawed turkey causes fires when dropped into hot grease.

The department also cautioned about working with oil since it can cause fires by spilling or splashing on the flames. They also recommended not use a turkey fryer under any structure that could cause a potential fire hazard.