Disabled Marine veteran Mickey Triplett was nervous when he walked into the Prince William General District Court this morning.

But shortly after the court was called to order at 9 a.m., the Prince William Commonwealth’s Attorney Paul Ebert stood before the judge and called for ‘null process’ – a legal term that means that the court will not prosecute the case – for a destruction of property charge brought against Triplett for painting a picnic table at his former apartment complex.

Triplett had painted the deteriorating picnic table behind his building at Potomac Ridge Apartments in Woodbridge as a nice gesture before his granddaughter came to visit him in July.

The apartment complex, which is managed by Klingbeil Capital Management, decided to have Triplett charged with destruction of property for painting the table white, according to Prince William County General District Court documents.

Had the null process not been declared in court, Triplett could have faced a $2,500 fine or up to a year in jail, according to the Virginia Code.

Despite the case being dropped, Triplett’s lawyer Jason Pelt, may be filing a civil suit on Triplett’s behalf against Potomac Ridge Apartments for ‘malicious prosecution’.

According to Virginia law, a malicious prosecution case can be filed when an individual or group uses the judicial system with malicious intent, and for prosecution against someone without probable cause.

Ebert told Potomac Local this morning that he had received several calls proceeding this morning’s hearing, asking that he declare ‘null process’ for the case.

“I’m so relieved and so thankful to everyone that came out and helped me. I tried to do a good thing, and it got out of hand…I’ve been going through a rough time, and I’m happy about what happened in court today,” said Triplett.

Get ready to tune in to the Travel Channel tonight.

Tonight at 9 p.m. the Travel Channel will be airing an episode of ‘Mysteries at the Monument’, which features the Manassas National Battlefield.

Each episode looks at a location or a monument and explores the history and stories behind it, according to the show’s host Don Wildman.

“Manassas National Battlefield – site of the great battle of Bull Run, if you’re a Yankee – Manassas if you’re Southern…The story is really a question about ‘How does this happen’ so early in this war, when the Union just thought it would trounce the Confederates. How did the opposite happen at Manassas? This [episode looks at] the story behind that battle, which is so important, because it kind of launched the rest of the long war,” said Wildman.

According to Wildman, there’s a lot more to the story of what happened at the Manassas Battlefield, than a tourist visiting might hear about.

“We look at these complex stories that are behind the scenes, like what happened at Manassas Battlefield, and that’s the point behind this show. There’s always more than meets the eye,” Wildman said.

Wildman shared memories about visiting battlefields, including Manassas National Battlefield, growing up.

“I used to go to battlefields all the time as a kid, and [Manassas] was one of the big ones we went to…that’s the real value of the show for me. That families of all ages watch these stories together and it takes me back to that experience,” said Wildman.

Sky Zone Trampoline Park is coming to Manassas next month.

In advance of their September opening, Sky Zone is hosting a job fair August 21 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and August 22 from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m.

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The jury is still out.

Boston looked like it may have been the front-runner to host the 2024 Summer Olympic Games, but after withdrawing their bid, the United States Olympic Commission (USOC) is back to the drawing board.

A committee named ‘Washington 2024’ had submitted a bid for the Olympic games to come to the area, with a lot of community support.

According to Stafford spokeswoman Cathy Volbrecht, Stafford even issued a proclamation in October 2014, supporting the bid.

Because Boston has pulled out their bid, Washington 2024 still has a window of time to resubmit their bid for consideration with the USOC.

According to Visit Fairfax President Barry Biggar, the USOC has to make their decision on who they’ll support by the end of August.

“The International Olympic Committee needs to know by September,” said Biggar, continuing, “L.A. (Los Angeles) seems to be the USOC’s choice…It’s really in the hands, right now, of the original committee that put forward the initial and original bid.”

George Mason University professor Dr. Stephen Fuller, who works at the university’s Center for Regional Analysis, stated that if the Olympics were to come to the region, it would have a huge economic impact.

“I undertook the economic impact analysis for the Washington-Baltimore Region’s proposed bid on the 2012 Olympics. While the costs were significant, the benefits were even greater.  I believe this would be the case today if the Washington region succeeded in capturing the bid,” stated Fuller.

Biggar and Fuller both stated that they felt Washington D.C. may not be able to compete internationally for the 2024 Olympic slot.

“To prepare for the bid and compete with the other four or five international cities chasing the 2024 Olympics would be substantial and the likelihood of the US winning against Paris (it would be the 100th anniversary of its last summer Olympics) or the other cities would be small,” stated Fuller.

Despite these obstacles, there is still a possibility that the Olympics could be coming to Washington D.C.

“At this juncture, not much has been said, nobody has committed. No one has said, ‘yes we’ll move forward’ or ‘no we won’t move forward,’” said Biggar.

The Prince William Art Society is exhibiting art work at Manassas City Hall.

The exhibition will run from August 17 to September 28, according to a city release.

More from a Manassas release.

The Prince William Art Society is a non-profit organization that offers its members an online gallery, shows, workshops, field trips and other art related activity. They support the development of artistic talent with an annual arts competition and scholarship program. More information about the Prince William Art Society and their programs is available atwww.princewilliamartsociety.org.

Exhibits in The Hall rotate on a monthly basis and include different forms of visual art. Visiting The Hall is free and open to the public from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. and later when evening meetings are held in the building.

Habitat for Humanity is opening a new Habitat Restore in Woodbridge.

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