Here are some of the effective dates for FDA regulations of tobacco products:
  July 22, 2009: Use of descriptors such as “light” and “mild” prohibited for newly introduced cigarettes.
  Sept. 20, 2009: Artificial flavors other than menthol banned from cigarettes.
  Oct. 1, 2009: Start of fee collections from tobacco companies to fund the new FDA tobacco center.

“His passing is, of course, a major loss for journalism. He was a great broadcaster and a gentleman whose experience, honesty, professionalism and style defined the role of anchor and commentator. For almost two exciting and turbulent decades during the 1960s and 1970s he helped inform our nation, and bring us together.“—CBS Corp. chief executive Leslie Moonves.———

Former Miami businessman Edward Hugh Okun is facing 400 years in prison when his two-day sentencing hearing starts Aug. 4. Okun, 58, was convicted in March of 23 charges in a $126 million scam that victimized hundreds across the country. The scam was run through Okun’s now-defunct, Richmond-based businesses, Investment Properties of America and The 1031 Tax Group. It has not been disclosed why Okun moved his Indianapolis businesses to Richmond in 2005.

Former Miami businessman Edward Hugh Okun is facing 400 years in prison when his two-day sentencing hearing starts Aug. 4. Okun, 58, was convicted in March of 23 charges in a $126 million scam that victimized hundreds of people across the country. The scam was run through Okun’s now-defunct, Richmond-based businesses, Investment Properties of America and The 1031 Tax Group. It has not been disclosed why Okun moved his Indianapolis businesses to Richmond in 2005.

SILVER SPRING, Md. An important part of Bonnie Schloss’ life centers on sailing a modest, 30-foot boat she keeps in Annapolis. The semiretired video editor enjoys the companionship of other sailors. And, she said, “there’s something about sailing. You just go out there and there’s a nice breeze, it’s quiet and I love the water. There’s nothing like the water, any kind of water.“

Miami businessman Edward Hugh Okun is facing 400 years in prison when his two-day sentencing hearing starts on Aug. 4. Okun, 58, was convicted in March of 23 charges in a $126 million scam that victimized hundreds of people across the country. Some of his victims are expected to testify during the sentencing hearing. The scam was run through Okun’s now-defunct, Richmond-based businesses, Investment Properties of America and The 1031 Tax Group. It has not been disclosed why Okun moved his Indianapolis businesses to Richmond in 2005.

Police investigating Michael Jackson’s death looked into his medical treatment Friday, seeking to interview one of the pop king’s doctors and seizing a car that they said may contain drugs or other evidence.

Marriage made in fraud: Watch scenes from the lavish wedding of Edward Hugh Okun and Simone Bolani, financed by a $126 million scam. Read the story of a couple defrauded when their nest egg of $854,000 is stolen.

Even as a teen, Michael Jackson was a reclusive superstar. After a Jackson 5 performance at the Richmond Coliseum in 1974, Ben Miles, then a DJ at WANT, was invited to a nearby hotel to spend some time with the brothers. “We were just sitting around, all of us shooting the breeze, but Michael never showed up,“ he said last night with a chuckle. “They kept saying he was coming, but he never did.“

1: Anchorage, Alaska
  2: Provo-Orem, Utah
  3: Kennewick-Richland-Pasco, Wash.
  4: Yakima, Wash.
  5: Omaha, Neb.-Council Bluffs, Iowa
  6: Richmond
  7: Winston-Salem, N.C.
  8: Colorado Springs, Colo.
  9: Amarillo, Texas
  10: Washington, D.C.-Arlington-Alexandria

The Chesterfield County Board of Supervisors this week could increase what are already the stiffest fees in the region on residential development. Tomorrow, the board will vote on a proposal to increase proffers to $18,966. That’s on top of last year’s decision by supervisors to adjust the proffer amount from $15,600 per home to $18,080—a move to account for inflation, according to Allan Carmody, the county’s budget director.

Under new regulations, snuff and cigars will have to go behind store counters, where cigarettes are now kept. How the different products share that space will be a challenge for tobacco companies.

Manuel Loupassi owned and ran the popular Robin Inn restaurant in Richmond’s Fan District for 32 years. And after the restaurant closed each night, he mopped the floor himself. In 1993, when his son, Manoli, needed a job between his judicial clerkship and his job as a prosecutor for the Richmond Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office, “Papa Loup” gave him one—as a dishwasher.

CELEBRATING FATHERHOOD From his perch just beyond the top row of the Siegel Center at Virginia Commonwealth University, Michael J. Jones could keep one eye on each of his children. On the court below, daughter Jocelyn, 10, was running through drills in basketball camp. A few feet away on the concourse, son Jalon, 8, was playing. “There’s no place I’d rather be than right here, with my kids,“ Jones said.

Jonathan Axselle puts in too many hours at work with his father to hang out with his friends very much. “I’ve always enjoyed working,“ he said. “It’s kept me out of trouble.“ He works for his dad, David Axselle, at Axselle Auto Service in the Lakeside area of Henrico County near Bryan Park. The full-service shop was started by David’s late father, Ed, in 1951.