News Near You for Nov. 7

NEWS NEAR YOU

Prince George Prince George County placed seventh nationally in the medium-sized category of the 2009 Pinnacle Awards program of the National Association of Government Webmasters. The judges noted that the Prince George Web site was "clean, simple, informative and makes good use of colors in overall design." The judges also noted that the site was "very functional and easy to navigate." County Administrator John G. Kines Jr. said: "Providing useable information to our citizens is a critical objective of county government, and our excellent Web site makes this task much easier. Our information technology staff is to be commended for a job well-done."

Hanover The historic Polegreen Church will be the site of a living history event today. Volunteers portraying the Richmond Howitzers artillery unit will camp at the church and provide demonstrations on weaponry, uniforms and equipment. The camp opens at 10 a.m. and demonstrations will be held at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. The site is at 6411 Heatherwood Drive in Mechanicsville.

Richmond Historian Christopher Browning is giving a lecture tomorrow at 7 p.m. at the Virginia Holocaust Museum. He will discuss how Germany moved from war to genocide on a local and national scale. He is the Frank Porter Graham Professor of History at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and is the author of seven books on the Third Reich and the Holocaust. He is currently working on a case study of the Jewish labor camps in Starachowice.

Chesterfield The Chesterfield County Board of Supervisors has approved a special 10-year tax district in the Midlothian Towne Center area. Businesses in the area will see an increase of 2 cents per $100 of assessed value in their property-tax rate to fund 1½ miles of landscaping improvements in the median of Midlothian Turnpike from Alverser Drive to Johnston Willis Drive.

Henrico The first Elko Craft Bazaar will be held from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. today in the parking lot of Elko Middle School, 5901 Elko Road, Sandston. Offerings from school and community artisans and vendors will include jewelry, photography, handmade scarves, toys, homemade solar lights, picnic tables, wreaths, Elko gear, baked goods and popcorn. Student clubs and sports teams also will have a car wash.

Richmond The Virginia Department of Forestry's online tree seedling store is now open. The department has expanded its annual offerings to include seedlings in bundles of 10 and 25. The smallest quantity previously available was 50. Each year, the state's two tree nurseries grow and sell 24 million bare-root seedlings. The site is http://www.dof.virginia.gov.

AROUND THE STATE

Manassas A judge has ordered a mental-health evaluation for a Manasass woman convicted in her 13-year-old adopted daughter's slaying. Alfreedia Gregg-Glover, 45, pleaded guilty in July to felony murder and other charges in the death of Alexis Agyepong-Glover. A judge delayed Gregg-Glover's sentencing last week after her attorney raised questions about her mental health. Prince William County Circuit Judge Craig D. Johnston ordered Gregg-Glover to undergo a mental-health evaluation to help determine if she should be sent to prison or first sent to a mental-health hospital for treatment. Another hearing is set for December.

Marion A Saltville woman pleaded guilty yesterday to charges related to a December 2008 home invasion that left one dead and three injured. A circuit court judge sentenced Mithrellas Curtis, 24, to 77 years in prison for aiding and abetting the capital murder of James Brown, aiding and abetting the malicious wounding of Brown's wife, daughter and daughter's then-boyfriend, grand larceny and concealing evidence. Of that sentence, Curtis will serve 20 years and must pay a $25,000 fine. Curtis was accused of helping Jason Betts, 25, also of Saltville, carry out the home invasion. Betts pleaded guilty to capital murder in August to avoid the death penalty and had agreed to testify against Curtis.