Alexandria City Public Schools will give “thoughtful consideration and review” in upcoming meetings on Governor Glenn Youngkin’s recent executive order banning cell phones in public schools.
Youngkin issued Executive Order 33 earlier this week, directing the Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) to create guidance for school systems across the state to “adopt local policies and procedures establishing cell phone-free education.”
A contractor has been prohibited from returning to the city jail for work and will be charged with a Class 6 felony for allegedly providing an inmate with an iPhone, Sheriff Sean Casey confirmed to ALXnow.
The former contract employee, a female, worked in the kitchen of the detention center. She admitted “in April 2023, she smuggled an iPhone into the detention center and provided it to an inmate,” the Alexandria Sheriff’s Office said in a recently released search warrant affidavit.
A woman was allegedly punched in the face and robbed of her phone in the West End on Sunday night.
The incident occurred at around 11:45 p.m. in the 300 block of S. Reynolds Street. The 37-year-old victim was approached by three males and a female, got punched and was then robbed of her phone, according to dispatch reports.
A 33-year-old man with a history of making bomb threats in Alexandria faces three more counts of making bomb threats to the city’s 911 call center.
Mikhail Stefon Douglas, of Severn, Maryland, faces three counts of making bomb threats to the city’s Department of Emergency and Customer Communications call-takers on Nov. 8, 2022. No explosives were found during a police search of the DECC facility at 2525 Mount Vernon Avenue and no one was injured, according to a recently released search warrant affidavit.
Alexandria Police are investigating two armed robberies that occurred within a half hour of each other in Del Ray and Arlandria on Tuesday (May 4) afternoon.
A male victim was robbed of his cell phone at gunpoint by two male suspects at around 12:15 p.m. in the unit block of E. Oxford Avenue in Del Ray. Then at around 12:40, another male victim was robbed of his cell phone and wallet at gunpoint by two male suspects in the 3900 block of Courtland Circle in Arlandria.
City Hotlines Available to Stem Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault — “During a crisis like COVID-19, the risk for intimate partner and domestic violence increases. The City of Alexandria Sexual Assault Center and the Domestic Violence Program want survivors and victims to know they are not alone. Both programs are open during the COVID-19 health crisis, hotlines are available 24/7 and advocates are ready to listen and help.” [Facebook]
Gov. Northam Extends Executive Order by Two Weeks — “That means that gatherings of more than 10 people will remain banned, and entertainment and recreation and personal care businesses will remain closed, until at least May 8. In addition, restaurants are limited to carry-out or delivery orders only.” [Alexandria Living]
Alexandria officials have voted to allow mobile carriers to start installing what’s billed as a faster, and smarter, cellular network.
The Alexandria City Council voted during its meeting this past Saturday, October 19 to approve a 5-year agreements with Verizon and AT&T, allowing the company to install small wireless equipment on street poles to boost 5G cell networks to the city.
T.C. Grad Sets Sprinting Record — “T.C. Williams High School graduate and adidas professional athlete Noah Lyles is your new IAAF World Athletics champion at 200 meters. His winning time in Doha, Qatar, was 19.83 seconds, with a reaction time of 0.168 seconds.” [MileStat]
5G Antenna Applications Streaming In — “#AlexandriaVA received 50 applications for small cell wireless facilities this year. Green dots on this map show the 43 applications that were approved. Ten were in the historic district, and the Board of Architectural Review approved three applications.” [Michael Pope/Twitter]
