Metal detectors are not being considered at Alexandria City Public Schools.
After a rocky start to the school year with multiple students caught bringing weapons to Alexandria City High School, the issue has been publicly raised more than a few times in recent weeks.
Just as the school resource officer debate started to cool down, things have started heating up between the City Council local first responder unions and city leadership over pay issues.
At the same time, city officials are entering the final stretch before election day on Tuesday, Nov. 2., which among other statewide elections will see candidates competing for the City Council, mayoral and School Board seats in Alexandria.
At an upcoming Alexandria City Council meeting on Tuesday (Oct. 26), City Manager Mark Jinks is scheduled to present a planned mid-year pay increase for city employees, though local unions that have been pushing for pay adjustment say it’s far from enough.
According to the docket, the proposal will be to restore a compensation initiative that had been eliminated last year because of COVID-19 revenue losses.
(Updated 10/22) One of the possible motives being the recent violence in Alexandria City Public Schools being investigated by the Alexandria Police Department seems to be, of all things, disagreements over music lyrics, a police officer said at a meeting of the Gang Prevention Task Force last night (Wednesday).
“The issues at the school… appear to be a dispute over rap music,” said Lt. Jerry Newcomb, commander of the Crimes Against Persons Section. “It’s an ongoing investigation. We’re hoping to find out more… It’s a dispute over lyrics. Some of them think that the lyrics they’ve come up with are proprietary in some way, but we’re still trying to dig into it. That’s the underlying reason that we’re hearing.”
A 43-year-old Orange County man was arrested in the Braddock area earlier this month for selling drug paraphernalia and providing a false statement to police after a concerned resident reported people passed out in a car.
On October 7, Alexandria Police found a black Acura TL parked in the 900 block of North Fayette Street. The man was asleep in the driver’s seat, and provided police with the false name of Thomas Sprow, police said in a search warrant affidavit.
(Updated 3:40 p.m.) Organizations representing Alexandria police and firefighters are taking the city to task for what they say are chronic underpayment issues that put local residents at risk, but city officials say the push is a negotiation tactic in the ongoing collective bargaining discussions.
Local labor unions Alexandria Committee of Police, IUPA Local 5, and Alexandria International Association of Firefighters Local 2141 issued a joint press release decrying current pay conditions.
The Alexandria Police Department announced that a 17-year-old male has been arrested and charged with crimes related to a shooting on Four Mile Road last week.
Last Sunday, Oct. 10, a juvenile male was shot at Park Vue of Alexandria apartments (511 Four Mile Road) just before noon. The victim had a gunshot wound on his upper body, but the injuries were considered not life-threatening and he was taken to the hospital.
(Updated 11:30 a.m.) Francis C. Hammond Middle School was locked down this morning after a call about a shooting at the school, but the Alexandria Police Department said the call was unfounded.
According to the Alexandria Police Department:
An Alexandria woman looking to buy a puppy was scammed by a Facebook contact who blocked her after she made a deposit, according to police.
On September 17, the victim agreed on buying a puppy from a Facebook friend for $300. The victim provided $175 as a deposit via Cash App, but when she went to pick up the puppy at the agreed location the suspect allegedly blocked the buyer on Facebook.
(Updated 9:40 a.m.) Alexandria City High School and the Minnie Howard Campuses are on lockdown and will have an asynchronus learning day.
According to the school’s website:
A man was unsuccessful in trying to walk out of the Restaurant Depot on Eisenhower Avenue with $1,851.73 using a discarded receipt, according to the Alexandria Police Department.
The incident at the store at 4600 Eisenhower Avenue occurred in August, and the suspect has not been arrested. He “passed all the points of sale without purchasing the store merchandise,” police said in a search warrant.
