The Fairfax County Police Department is hoping to add a detective from the Town of Vienna to its ranks.
Under a reciprocal agreement set to be approved by the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors tomorrow (Tuesday), the Vienna detective will specifically help investigate drug and vice crimes as part of the larger department’s Organized Crime and Narcotics division.
“These crimes have a substantial and detrimental effect on the health and welfare of our communities and the cooperative effort between the Town of Vienna Police Department and FCPD would be advantageous in disrupting illicit activities,” county staff said in the board agenda.
According to the staff memo, Vienna had provided a detective who worked full-time in the FCPD’s narcotics division since July 1990. However, the partnership got put on hold in 2021 when the Vienna Police Department encountered “staffing constraints.”
Since then, the Vienna department has managed an about-face on those staffing challenges, reducing its vacancies to just one out of 52 positions, as of May.
With the revived reciprocal agreement, the Vienna Police Department will once again assign a detective to work with the FCPD full-time. County officers in the Organized Crime and Narcotics division will also get the authority to enforce drug and vice laws in the Town of Vienna, including by making arrests.
In addition, the Vienna Police Department will be able to claim a portion of the property seized in cases worked by its detective, according to the staff memo.
Sharing of forfeited assets shall be distributed based on the amount of work performed by each detective on any given case as determined by the Commander of OCN. The minimum amount that the Town of Vienna Police Department will receive shall be 5% of all asset sharing requests processed by the Fairfax County Police Department’s OCN. The maximum amount that the Town of Vienna Police Department will receive shall be no more than 70% of all asset sharing requests processed by the FCPD.
While working with the FCPD, the detective will be required to follow county rules, including the Trust Policy that bars county employees from sharing information about an individual’s citizenship or immigration status with federal immigration authorities unless required by law or court order.
A stretch of Idylwood Road will be closed to through traffic in Dunn Loring this week.
The road between Williams Avenue and Cedar Lane will be closed from today (Monday) to Thursday (Sept. 14) from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. for stormwater pipe replacement, according to the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT).
Properties along Idylwood Road will have access, but traffic will not be able to go beyond the pipe replacement in both directions.
“Through traffic will be detoured via Idylwood Road, Williams Avenue, Electric Avenue (Route 697) and Cedar Lane back to Idylwood Road. Drivers are asked to follow posted detour signs,” VDOT wrote in a statement.
Hundreds of County Drivers Mistakenly Receive Tickets — Roughly 2,8000 people were wrongfully received speed camera tickets. The issue stems from flashing lights that were not working properly near Irving Middle School and London Towne Elementary School in July. [WTOP]
Alcorn Releaseds Mark-up Ahead of Vote on Comprehensive Plan — Hunter Mill District Supervisor Walter Alcorn has released a mark-up on the pending update to Reston’s comprehensive plan. A public hearing before the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors is slated for Tuesday. [Fairfax County Government]
Man Arrested After Argument Leads to Stabbing in City of Fairfax — “A 26-year-old man is facing charges after City of Fairfax police said he stabbed an acquaintance multiple times Thursday, Sept. 7. Officers said they responded to a CVS at 10090 Fairfax Boulevard for reports of a stabbing. An investigation revealed that the victim had been stabbed by an acquaintance after an argument. [WJLA]
Lorton Police Station, Animal Shelter to Open This Fall — “A Lorton police station and Fairfax County’s second animal shelter, both under construction since 2021, are expected to open this fall.” [WTOP]
FCPD Invites Young People to Join Public Safety Cadet Program — “The Fairfax County Police Department is putting out a call for young people aged 14-20 to join its public safety cadet program. Police told 7News the program teaches young people about law enforcement and the law itself. Young people spend time in a classroom learning, but also go out and do things like police ride-alongs, training, fundraising and community events.” [WJLA]
Young Fox Outfoxes Cat in Tudor Hall Neighborhood — “Early on Thursday morning, a young fox outfoxed Popeye, the feral cat living in the Tudor Hall neighborhood located just north of the Fairfax City border. The family of a Patch reporter has been leaving water, a bowl of food, and treats for Popeye every night for the last several years.” [Fairfax City Patch]
It’s Monday — There is a 20% chance of showers and thunderstorms before 8am and after 2pm today, with patchy fog in the morning. Expect partly sunny conditions and a high near 85°F. Tonight, patchy fog may develop after 2am, and it will be partly cloudy with a low of around 67°F. [Weather.gov]
The Fairfax County Police Department’s drone unit has taken on new responsibilities and added a full-time drone program manager.
The drone unit now conducts more detailed work with the FCPD’s helicopter program, according to an FCPD news release. Among other tasks, the drone unit complements the helicopter program in crime scene and crash scene investigations, FCPD Second Lieutenant Brad Woehrlen wrote in a statement to FFXnow.
“Longer sustained operations illustrate how the drone program compliments the helicopter; the helicopter will go up initially and be able to more immediately provide input to the officers on the ground, and the drone team will take over to provide situational awareness to the officers and command,” Woehrlen wrote.
FCPD started using drones, also called unmanned aircraft systems, in 2019. Drones have since been involved with tasks including crime scene documentation, crash scene reconstruction and felonious suspect searches, per a public log of Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) missions. The full list of permitted use cases for drones is outlined in a program manual.
“In a much longer term, as staffing improves, the vision will include a full-time team that is on the street with the equipment able to respond to calls as they come out,” Woehrlen wrote.
The drone program manager, the unit’s newest addition, trains pilots, works on airspace waivers and updates equipment and software, among other responsibilities.
“Because drones are classified as aircraft by the (Federal Aviation Administration) there is a significant amount of management required, which is part of the reason a full-time position was created,” Woehrlen wrote.
The police department’s use of drones is governed in part by the program manual. Among other policies, drones cannot fly beyond the visual line of sight of their operators and operators must “take all reasonable precautions to avoid inadvertently recording or transmitting images of individuals and areas uninvolved with the mission,” per the manual.
“Reasonable precautions” can include only using the drone’s live transmission rather than recording footage during an operation, according to the manual Drones also cannot be used as weapons.
Organizations such as the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) have raised concerns about the privacy implications of drone use by police departments.
Protecting community members’ privacy is “an utmost priority,” Woehrlen wrote. He cited the program manual, directives for the FCPD’s helicopter unit and an additional privacy training that he said drone pilots are required to pass before operating missions or investigations.
“We also currently use software that logs our flight tracking, including the camera angle, which provides oversight of pilot activity and a record for any allegations of inappropriate usage,” Woehrlen wrote.
Nearby, Arlington County public safety agencies are working to develop and put in place a UAS program, police spokeswoman Ashley Savage wrote in an email to FFXnow.
“The program is not yet operational and additional information will be shared with the public as we get closer to the program’s launch,” she wrote.
In Loudoun County, the sheriff’s department also uses drones, according to a police spokesperson.
The FAA issued rules for drone operators in 2016. According to a March 2020 report from the now-defunct Center for the Study of the Drone at Bard College, more than 1,500 U.S. state and local public safety agencies have obtained drones.
The McLean Citizens Association (MCA) has thrown its voice behind some new design guidelines for downtown McLean.
At a meeting next Tuesday, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors will consider endorsing Vol. 2 of the District Design Guidelines for the McLean Community Business Center. The guidelines are non-binding, but could shape what development in McLean looks like for the foreseeable future.
The MCA voted unanimously to support new District Design Guidelines.
“These have been under consideration now for more than a year,” said Robert Perito. “These two volumes are designed to be used together by developers and others when proposing, designing or reviewing projects in McLean.”
Volume two follows some earlier foundational design guidelines, and the new version contains written guidance and visual suggestions for the design of streets, lighting and building frontage. The 134-page document details some of the principles behind building design in downtown McLean and specifications surrounding things like streetscape design.
“This has been a very good project,” said Perito. “It has reached a very successful conclusion.”
One MCA member asked about the incentives for developers to follow the guidelines.
“They are suggestions, not regulations,” Perito said. “The idea is to provide developers with good ideas and hope they’ll follow.”
Perito noted that the Mars Corporation, in redesigning their building, had planned to install a futuristic-looking bus station outside the new building. When case managers showed them the District Design Guidelines, the corporation changed the design to fit in with the town’s standards.
The feeling among the people who have done this… people who want to develop within McLean will follow these,” said Perito.
Two hemp businesses and a private citizen are challenging a Virginia law that instituted tougher limits on hemp products in Virginia in federal court, saying the new rules cause financial harm to hemp businesses and interfere in interstate commerce.
The law, which went into effect July 1, set the maximum amount of THC in hemp products at 0.3% concentration and 2 milligrams per package. This cutoff has made hundreds of products placed on shelves before July illegal and subject to fines if sold.
The lawsuit by hemp product retailer Northern Virginia Hemp and Agriculture, hemp customer Rose Lane and North Carolina-based hemp producer and distributor Franny’s Operations argues that if not halted, the law “will cause millions of dollars of irreparable harm” and “cause the Banned Products to be unavailable in the Commonwealth, exacerbating potential health problems to thousands of Virginians.”
The plaintiffs argue that the state’s definition of legal hemp conflicts with the federal definition — cannabis with less than 0.3% of specifically delta-9 THC content. Virginia’s law, in contrast, defines legal hemp products as those with less than 0.3% total THC content, which includes not just the most common delta-9, but also the milder delta-8 strain and all other natural and synthetic isomers combined.
The complaint says this puts state law in direct conflict with federal law, running afoul of the U.S. Constitution’s supremacy clause.
Northern Virginia Hemp and Agriculture said the new law has caused the loss of 90% of its business because nearly all of the products it manufactured and sold prior to July 1 are now banned.
The sale of hemp products “has turned into people’s livelihoods,” said Travis Lane, owner of the business. “This [lawsuit] is just worth a try, you know, like it’s a 50-50 shot for us to win or lose.”
Lane said if the law is not halted, he will be forced to shut his doors before the end of the year. “I feel like it should definitely be regulated, but not regulated to the point where you’re shutting doors of good businesses,” he said.
Jason Amatucci, president of the Virginia Hemp Coalition, which helped find plaintiffs and fundraise for the suit, said Virginia’s stricter limits were supported and lobbied for by medical marijuana companies that saw the hemp industry as a competitive threat. He called it “a double standard” that marijuana is still illegal at the federal level while its use has been legalized in Virginia, but some federally legal hemp products are now banned in the state.
Lawmakers, however, have shown rising concern about the growth of a largely unregulated market in Virginia and associated sharp increases in the hospitalization of minors who have ingested hemp-derived products. Besides the THC limits they imposed, the new law includes packaging security and labeling requirements and imposes escalating fines for non-compliance.
Chloe Smith, a spokesperson for Attorney General Jason Miyares, declined to comment on the pending litigation but reiterated that Miyares “is dedicated to combating the rise of accidental THC poisonings in children, and is concerned about the rise of dangerous, counterfeit THC-infused products marketed towards our vulnerable youth.”
Amatucci, however, said he doesn’t think the law sufficiently targets child safety or counterfeit synthetic products.
“We need education for these things, and we also need smart laws that target exactly what we want to target, but to take a straight sword and cut the industry down like they did was irresponsible,” said Amatucci. “Whether we win the lawsuit or [are] coming back next session, we’re going to have to fix this.”
Complicating Virginia’s law is a carveout for hemp-based CBD products, written after complaints by caregivers of epileptic children who use CBD oil as an anti-seizure treatment, that sets a minimum 25:1 ratio of CBD to THC for products with more than 2 milligrams of THC.
Del. Dawn Adams, D-Richmond, has pointed out that manufacturers will still be able to sell large amounts of THC provided they also include 25 times that amount of CBD. Visitors to NoVa Hemp’s website are greeted with a popup that reads, “All products in Virginia now come with an additional 25:1 ratio of CBD isolate added to the packaging. You will not be disappointed!”
“It’s just like more steps that we have to put into something that we don’t think needs to really happen,” said Lane. “It’s ridiculous.”
The plaintiffs are also challenging a provision of the law prohibiting hemp processors from selling industrial hemp to anyone inside or outside state lines if the seller has reason to believe it will be used in a substance that violates the state’s 0.3% THC limits.
On the federal level, marijuana remains illegal, but the 2018 farm bill removed hemp from a Schedule I controlled substances classification, a category that includes heroin. Last week, the Department of Health and Human Services suggested the Drug Enforcement Agency change marijuana’s classification to a Schedule III drug.
The case will be heard on Sept. 29 by District Judge Leonie M. Brinkema in Alexandria.
The preceding article was reported and first published by the Virginia Mercury
An inaugural fall market is set to kick off at The Boro in Tysons later this month.
The six-week market — Tysons Fall Mixed Market — will bring more than 30 local producers, markers and food vendors to the parking lot next to The Boro’s sandlot.
The event kicks off on September 20th and will take place every Wednesday from 3-7 p.m through October 25.
“We are thrilled to be partnering with The Boro to bring a fall market to Tysons,” said Tysons Community Alliance CEO Katie Cristol. “This market provides the opportunity for Tysons’residents and visitors to connect with local small businesses and gather together in a fun and festive way, while shopping for unique goods from local makers.”
Some vendors will remain every year while others will participate on a rotating basis.
Weekly exhibitors include Ashton Farms, Shotted Specialty Coffee, Panorama Bakery & Al Volo, Little Tibet Boutique and Chic and Ethnic.
The event is powered by Tysons Community Alliance a nonprofit community organization that aims to promote economic and social development in the Tysons area.
Police Arrest Suspect Who Crashed Car into Home — “Officers responded to the 9300 block of Cumbria Valley Drive in Lorton for a man entering vehicles. Officers parked their cruisers and approached the area on foot. Officers found Nico Anthony Doublet inside a 2020 BMW X3. Doublet ignored the officers’ commands, backed the car out of the driveway and sped off at a high rate of speed. No FCPD officers were in their vehicles when they contacted him and did not pursue him.” [Fairfax County Police Department]
Fairfax County Public Schools Maintain Accreditation Status — “All 195 Fairfax County public schools are accredited, two with conditions, for accountability year 2023-24, according to data released by the Virginia Department of Education. Ninety-nine percent, or 193 out of 195 schools, attained “accredited” status and two schools attained ‘accredited with conditions’ status. No Fairfax County public school received a status of ‘accreditation denied.’” [FCPS]
Fall Book Sale Returns to Reston Regional Library — “The Friends of the Reston Regional Library will host their Big Fall Sale this September 20 through 24. One of our two largest sales of the year, this sale will feature more than 30,000 books in very gently used condition, from over 20 categories.” [Friends of the Reston Regional Library]
Grand Opening Set for North Hill Park in Alexandria — “The Fairfax County Park Authority is pleased to announce the official ribbon-cutting ceremony for North Hill Park on Saturday, Sept. 16, at 9 a.m.” [Fairfax County Government]
Dog Daze Returns to Lake Fairfax Park This Weekend —Dogs get a chance for a final swim in the water tomorrow (Saturday) from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the water min. The cost is $10 per dog. [Fairfax County Government]
Batting Cages Reopen at Braddock Park — “The batting cages, which were closed in 2022, have reopened with new pitching machines, netting and a suite of new bats and balls. The batting cages will be open on Saturdays and Sundays only through Oct. 29.” [Fairfax County Government]
It’s Friday — Showers and thunderstorms are likely after 2pm, with areas of fog clearing by 8am. Expect mostly sunny skies with a high of 92 and light south winds. Rainfall may be less than a tenth of an inch, but possibly higher in thunderstorms. On Friday night, anticipate a 60% chance of showers and thunderstorms before 2am, with mostly cloudy skies and a low of 70. Winds will calm after midnight, and rainfall may reach between a tenth and a quarter of an inch, with higher amounts in thunderstorms. [Weather.gov]
A new bus rapid transit (BRT) route could connect Alexandria and Tysons, and the golden spike in that project could be Falls Church.
The Northern Virginia Transportation Commission (NVTC) is reviewing a study of Envision Route 7’s impact on Falls Church. The study doesn’t make recommendations but provides analysis on how BRT might impact bus and car traffic in Falls Church.
According to the NVTC agenda:
The Commission will be asked to accept the findings of the Envision Route 7 Phase 4-1 Mobility Study, a key element of the fourth phase of planning for a Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system designed to connect the Mark Center in Alexandria to Tysons via Bailey’s Crossroads, Seven Corners and Falls Church along the Route 7 corridor.
The study included a variety of scenarios for how the BRT route could run through Falls Church, from a “no-build” option to full transit lanes, along with various “hybrids” inbetween.
Unsurprisingly, the scenarios with the higher number of dedicated bus lanes having the largest travel time decrease for buses, though travel times would also increase for cars and other vehicles.
The study also included feedback from public engagement, which determined 60% of respondents agreed improving bus speed and reliability was a high priority, though there was also concern about how the changes might impact bicyclist safety.
The full report is available online.
NVTC is working with Falls Church throughout this fall to develop a preferred scenario, with the project going to various boards and commissions in Falls Church, Fairfax, Alexandria and Arlington this winter.
Image via NVTC/Twitter
After two days of excessive heat, rain is officially on the horizon.
Fairfax County and other neighboring jurisdictions are under a Severe Thunderstorm Watch.
The National Weather Service issued the watch around 1:15 p.m. It is in effect until 9 p.m. and includes much of eastern Pennsylvania and portions of New York State.
Forecasters say that scattered strong storms are likely later today in the immediate D.C. area.
“Damaging wind gusts are the primary threat. Isolated instances of considerable wind damage from severe thunderstorms are possible. Isolated instances of large hail are possible as well,” the National Weather Service said.
