2007’s top stories

Tech massacre stirs sorrow, changes at UVa

For a record-breaking 50 days, the frequently graffitied Beta Bridge at the University of Virginia was painted with the message: "Hoos for Hokies."
The UVa students' offer of condolence came in the aftermath of the slayings April 16 of 32 students and faculty members at Virginia Tech.
"For UVa, especially on this day, Virginia Tech is family," wrote UVa President John T. Casteen III at the time. "… Our hearts are with Virginia Tech and its many families today, and they will be so long into the future as we remember this awful day."
In the days and months that followed, the ripples of the shooting were tangible in the Charlottesville area.
A candlelight vigil was held at UVa the day after the shootings. UVa students mourned the loss of their friends over Facebook and MySpace.
A panel appointed by Gov. Timothy M. Kaine to investigate the shooting spent much of its time at UVa. Its final report, released Aug. 30, included recommendations for campus security enhancements, many of which have been implemented at UVa and Piedmont Virginia Community College.
In October, 32 UVa students laid down on the Lawn to represent the Tech victims and highlight what they believe are lax gun laws. At its upcoming session, the General Assembly is likely to take up bills related to the issue of firearms on campuses, as well as mental health issues.
At the Nov. 24 football game between the Hoos and Hokies, the on-field rivalry returned.
Off the field, the two schools seemed closer than ever, with even the marching bands holding a joint, benefit concert.
"Everyone's cheering for their own teams, but we're all still together," said UVa first-year Alex Moore during the game.
"Yeah," added her friend, Tech freshman Katherine Lee. "We talk smack, but it's OK."
- Brian McNeill

Authorities use DNA to track down rapist

More than any other case in recent area history, the hunt for a serial rapist captured the attention of both the public and the police.
DNA linked at least seven attacks over the past decade to the same rapist, an elusive figure investigators believed stalked his victims before creeping into their homes to attack.
In response, a task force of area investigators spent years scrutinizing leads, developing suspects and trying to forestall the next attack.
Then in August, authorities arrested Nathan Antonio Washington and charged him in two of the serial rapist attacks, sending shockwaves through the community. Washington is a 40-year-old married father of four who lived in the Abbington Crossing subdivision in Albemarle County.
Was the serial rapist finally in custody- Authorities were reluctant to say at first, initially confirming only that Washington had been charged in two sexual assaults previously attributed to the serial rapist and that he was a suspect in other attacks.
Then in December, Washington pleaded guilty to charges stemming from five sexual assaults, confirming that he was the serial sexual predator long sought by area authorities
At his court hearing, it came out that the observations of one of Washington's victims helped bring him to justice.
A woman who had been attacked in her Webland Drive home in 2004 had approached investigators with her suspicions about Washington. She believed he could be the same man who fondled her in 2002 at her work, and told authorities that Washington acted strangely toward her when she saw him at his job in the deli at the Harris Teeter grocery store at Barracks Road Shopping Center.
This prompted police to get a covert sample of Washington's DNA and used it to link him to the cases.
Washington is facing four life sentences plus 20 years at his February sentencing, and authorities are hopeful that his help will allow them to clear other cases he might have been involved in.
- Rob Seal

Cavaliers win 7 in row, earn Gator Bowl trip

Al Groh was on the hot seat and his football team was predicted to stumble in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
On the heels of a 5-7 campaign that did not include a date in the postseason, expectations were low. Those sunk even further after a dismal, season-opening loss at Wyoming.
Magically, however, Virginia enjoyed a meteoric rise, winning seven straight games - a feat unmatched in the previous 17 seasons.
Although the Cavaliers stumbled in two of their final four games, including a 12-point setback against archrival Virginia Tech, the program, in opportunistic fashion, became the first in Division I-A history to win five games by two points or fewer.
For their merits and a 9-3 record, the Cavaliers were invited to play on New Year's Day in the Gator Bowl against Texas Tech.
Groh was named the ACC Coach of the Year and had an extra year added to his contract, which now runs through the end of 2011 and will pay him almost $2 million in 2008.
"I've always considered it to be an honor and a privilege to be the head coach at the University of Virginia, and I look forward to doing that for quite a while," Groh said. "I don't coach for contracts. I coach for the players and for the sense of accomplishment that comes with our achieving together, but I certainly do appreciate this gesture."
Senior Chris Long, a former St. Anne's-Belfield star, was also honored as the league's Defensive Player of the Year and was a unanimous All-American pick.
"It means a lot," said Long, who also won the Hendricks Award as the nation's best defensive end. "To go out with a solid senior season means a lot to me, and the way we've played this year makes it all the more gratifying."
Virginia has a chance to match history in the Gator Bowl - with a win, the Cavaliers would post just the second 10-win season in the program's history.
- Jay Jenkins

Biscuit Run project gets supervisors' OK

It seemed fitting that the largest development ever approved in Albemarle County got the go-ahead at about 1 a.m. at an hours-long Board of Supervisors meeting in mid-September. While the vote was unanimous, residents' opinions on the issues were hardly so.
The 3,100-unit development, which will also feature thousands of square feet of retail space, had been mired in controversy since its conception, as the ability of area roads to handle what will be an influx of more than 30,000 vehicle trips per weekday became the most prescient issue.
But developers, including principal backer Hunter Craig, consistently sweetened the pot and thereby assuaged some concerns residents had. Located near the Charlottesville-Albemarle border on the city's south side, many concerns early on came from those living in that area, particularly in the Fry's Spring neighborhood around Old Lynchburg Road. The controversy, however, largely died down after developers promised millions for a road that would ease traffic in the area, as well as money specific to residents' concerns there.
When Biscuit Run was approved, developers said it would at least be six months before a house was built. It may be more than two decades, however, before colorful maps and detailed plans become a living community, and residents are going to be keeping a watchful eye to see whether promises are kept.
- Jeremy Borden

2 charged in slaying of UVa graduate, 26

Two Charlottesville cousins were charged in the shooting death of a 26-year-old University of Virginia graduate after one of them confessed to her murder, according to court documents.
Coworkers at the AIDS/HIV Services Group found Jayne McGowan's body in her living room on Nov. 9. She had been shot four times.
An affidavit says Michael Stuart Pritchett, 18, told police that he and his cousin William Douglas Gentry Jr., 22, entered McGowan's St. Clair Avenue home to rob her.
Pritchett admitted they took McGowan's computer and car, which they stashed less than a mile from her home near the Rivanna Trail, according to the affidavit.
After police found McGowan's car on Nov. 11, they discovered fingerprints that led them to Pritchett and Gentry, according to the affidavit.
There was a path leading from McGowan's car to the back of the home Pritchett and Gentry shared with Pritchett's grandfather.
During police interviews, Pritchett confessed to delivering the final of the four shots, documents say.
The search warrant does not state why the cousins chose McGowan's home or if they knew her. Police declined to comment.
In addition to capital murder, both men face burglary, robbery and firearms charges. They are being held without bond at the Albemarle-Charlottesville Regional Jail and could face the death penalty if convicted.
Charlottesville Commonwealth's Attorney Dave Chapman has not said whether he would seek the death penalty.
The men will appear in Charlottesville General District Court for a preliminary hearing Feb. 14.
- Kate Harmon

Monticello, STAB earn championships

Monticello High School capped a magical season as it defeated Richlands, the defending state champion, to claim the program's first VHSL Group AA, Division 3 state crown.
It was the first state title for a Jefferson District football team ever and the first for a Central Virginia public school since Madison County won the Division 2 championship in 1999.
Senior Takeem Hedgeman, who earlier in the year became the all-time leading rusher in Central Virginia, ran for 158 yards on 33 carries and three touchdowns, as the Mustangs upended the Blue Tornado, 36-22.
Michael Graham continued his efficient passing in the playoffs, as he threw for 232 yards, and hooked up with his favorite target, Daniel Lieb, for a pair of touchdowns. During the game, Lieb became the area's all-time leading receiver.
Hedgeman and Graham led a balanced offensive attack all season, while the team's defense came along in the postseason. In the Mustangs' 46-7 win over Poquoson in the state semifinals, the defense shut out the Islanders for three quarters and held them to 181 yards of total offense.
Hedgeman, a 5-foot-10, 190-pound running back, tallied 6,383 yards in his career at Monticello.
Monticello (13-1), piloted by coach Brud Bicknell, advanced to the title game with wins over Handley, Millbrook and Poquoson after going unbeaten in the Jefferson District.
Also impressive in the postseason was St. Anne's-Belfield, which secured its second consecutive VISFA Division II championship with a 46-22 win over Virginia Episcopal in November.
STAB opened its season with a 1-4 record, but turned it around to capture its third title in five years.
Howie Long threw a pair of touchdowns while Joe Chambers ran for two and caught another in the win. Alex Asher also had two touchdowns for the Saints.
- Liz Keller

Area reflects slump in housing market

After a scorching five-year run, the Charlottesville area's torrid real estate market cooled significantly in 2007.
Mirroring a nationwide trend, the pace of home sales in Central Virginia has slowed and houses have languished on the market for longer. And the slowdown means smaller increases in revenue for area governments, possibly affecting services and programs.
Home sales through the first nine months of 2007 decreased by 18 percent in Albemarle County and 25.6 percent in Charlottesville. And houses took longer to sell this year, with the average number of days on the market jumping from 62 to 90 in Albemarle and 54 to 71 in the city. At the end of the year, there was a 20-month supply of homes on the market - possibly a record high.
"With the concerns over mortgages and the over-supply of homes on the market, we slowed down in the second half of the year," said Dave Phillips, chief executive officer of the Charlottesville Area Association of Realtors.
While homeowners have faced double-digit increases in their real estate assessments in recent years, next year most assessments will be flat or even decrease slightly. Therefore, local governments will see much smaller increases in tax revenue, unless they raise tax rates.Because of the slowdown, Albemarle is dealing with a more than $3 million budget shortfall this year. While Charlottesville is not facing any budget gap to fill, both governments are expecting tighter budgets next year.
But things may be starting to turn around. Realtors are expressing guarded optimism that the housing market has bottomed out and will begin improving in 2008.
"The market has shows signs that it is starting to rebound, though we have a long way to go," Phillips said.
- Seth Rosen

Construction begins on ambitious UVa project

Construction began in May on the University of Virginia's South Lawn project, the university's most ambitious undertaking in a century.
The $105 million first phase of the project is slated for completion in 2010. All told, it will add more than 112,000 square feet of classroom and faculty office space to UVa's College and Graduate School of Arts & Sciences.
"We have no space. We have no place to go," said Adam R. Daniel, senior associate dean and chief operating officer of the College, in September. "When the South Lawn project is finished, it'll be a big step toward addressing that shortage of space."
The project's first phase will be made up of three adjoining buildings that will be located across Jefferson Park Avenue from New Cabell Hall.
A bridge - covered in grass to echo the Lawn - will cross over JPA and connect the three new buildings to New Cabell Hall.
The South Lawn project is meant to be a physical and symbolic extension of the Lawn at the center of Thomas Jefferson's original designs for UVa.
The project is "right on track," said university architect David Neuman.
The project's second phase will be a major renovation of New Cabell Hall. In early December, Gov. Timothy M. Kaine proposed a $1.65 bond referendum to finance higher education construction projects, including the New Cabell renovation.
If approved by the General Assembly, the bond package will go before voters in November.
- Brian McNeill

Police call for cameras after teenagers attack

It was the talk of the town all summer long.
A series of unprovoked assaults in and around downtown Charlottesville raised concerns about the safety of the city, sparked a media frenzy, spurred the creation of a new police task force and helped convince the police department to propose starting a security camera program.
In all, there were 14 assaults throughout the spring and summer, and in most cases no one was seriously hurt. The attackers were groups of teenagers - often wearing white T-shirts - who seemed to pick their targets at random. At the time, police theorized that rival groups of juveniles were competing to see who could pull off the brashest attack.
Once school resumed, the attacks ceased. Only two teenagers were arrested in connection with an assault, and they both pled guilty to the July beating of a Charlottesville man.
In part to counter the perception that downtown was no longer safe at night, the police department introduced a $300,000 plan to place 30 cameras on the Downtown Mall and surrounding streets. Police said the cameras would deter criminal activity in the city center and aid authorities in their investigations of crimes by providing surveillance footage.
"We need to leverage this important technology to ensure a safe environment for our citizens," Police Chief Timothy J. Longo said at the time.
But city councilors begged to differ. Some had concerns about civil liberties and the infringement on privacy. Others questioned the effectiveness of the cameras and called the program a waste of money.
In the end, the council shot down Longo's proposal. But Charlottesville residents will likely continue to debate the merits of security cameras in 2008. Police will bring back to the council the option of a smaller, more flexible camera system.
- Seth Rosen

Presidential hopefuls make stops in city

Charlottesville became a Mecca for Democratic presidential candidates holding fundraisers during the last four months of 2007.
Three Democrats running for president visited Charlottesville in the fall, drawing more than 5,700 people to their events within 10 blocks of each other and collecting more than $510,000.
The city's newfound identity as a fundraising stop for presidential hopefuls stems from its growing reputation as a wealthy community with liberal political leanings and the history and charms that add intangibles and spark more media interest.
U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., led off the parade of presidential hopefuls with a visit Sept. 23 to the Paramount Theater on the Downtown Mall, where she attracted more than 1,000 people to a conversation between herself and author John Grisham.
Clinton's event raised $200,000 for her presidential campaign, Grisham said.
Next, U.S. Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., drew more than 4,250 people to the Charlottesville Pavilion and raised more than $300,000 at the outdoor rally on a cold evening Oct. 29 at the east end of the mall.
The event attracted Gov. Timothy M. Kaine, who introduced Obama to the crowd, and was put together by a local group led by James and Bruce Murray.
The final fundraiser, on Dec. 7, was held a few blocks from the west end of the mall. Rep. Dennis Kucinich, D-Ohio, drew a crowd of more than 500 people and filled the main floor of the Albemarle County Office Building's Lane Auditorium.
The 61-year-old congressman, a former mayor of Cleveland, raised more than $10,000 at his event, said organizer David Swanson.
- Bob Gibson

Notable deaths of 2007

Suzanne Foley. Curator of collections and exhibitions for the University of Virginia Art Museum, died Jan. 3. Before joining UVa, she worked at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts in Richmond; was the curator at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art; and served as the director of the University Art Museum at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. She also served on the board of directors of Virginians for the Arts and was secretary to the Piedmont Council for the Arts. She was 72.
David M. Taylor. Air Force veteran, died Jan. 9. Col. Taylor flew 27 combat missions as a lead B-17 pilot in World War II and earned the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Air Medal. He also flew in combat missions in Korea and Vietnam, earning numerous other medals. He was an avid horseman and breeder, and hunted with the River Hunt Club. Some of his exploits were covered in the book "I Always Wanted to Fly," by Wolfgang Samuels. He was 85.
Peggy Tompkins Flannagan. "Grandmother of Miller School," died Jan. 23. Just before her 18th birthday, she went to work at the Miller School. Over the next 80 years, she served in many capacities, including historian, at the Albemarle private school. She was 102.
Ian P. Stevenson. One-time chairman of the psychiatry department at the University of Virginia who focused on life after death, died Feb. 8. He traveled extensively for his work, logging more than 50,000 miles annually over a 50-year period in which he accumulated more than 2,500 case histories in Asian and Western cultures of young children who recounted their previous lives. Stevenson and his colleagues published their findings in more than 300 publications and 14 books. He also was a founding member of the Society for Scientific Exploration and its journal. He was 88.
Hovey S. Dabney. Prominent Charlottesville banker and former University of Virginia rector, died Feb. 9. A World War II veteran, he earned the Purple Heart. After the war, he returned to his hometown and earned bachelor's and law degrees at UVa. He eventually went to work for the National Bank and Trust Co., where he would become its president. Dabney was also a prominent community leader and proponent of UVa. He was 83.
Sybil R. Todd. A lifelong educator, died Feb. 13. She taught at public schools before joining the University of Virginia, where she worked for 23 years. While at UVa, she taught and served as associate dean. She was 67.
Edmund W. Morris. Worked with numerous area foundations, died Feb. 16. A World War II veteran who worked in advertising and marketing, Morris moved to Crozet in 1979. While here, he was active in public service. He was a board member and president of Hospice of the Piedmont and a member of the dean's council of the University of Virginia's Curry School Foundation, among numerous other activities. He was 87.
Alfred J.T. Byrne. FDIC chief legal officer, died March 7. During the banking and savings-and-loan association bailout in the late 1980s and early 1990s, he served as the primary legal adviser to the FDIC's chairman and its directors. Also, in the 1990s, he volunteered to help Jordan and the Palestine Monetary Authority develop central banking and regulatory laws. He was senior counsel to Virginia National Bank in Charlottesville. He was 63.
Lance Whitney Van de Castle. Area carpenter and homebuilder who also was president of the Charlottesville-Albemarle Technical Education Center Foundation, died March 22. While working as a carpenter, he also taught classes at CATEC and served as zoning administrator for the town of Gordonsville. He was a well-known and successful rugby player. He was 54.
George Walton Lindsay. Grandson of The Daily Progress founder and newspaperman, died April 23. Lindsay worked numerous positions at The Progress and eventually acquired two newspaper services and merged them to create Keister-Williams Newspaper Services. He later became the owner of Lindsay Publishing Co. He also was one of the first graduates of the University of Virginia's Darden Graduate School of Business Administration. He was 76.
Harold Hidmore Purcell. Former Virginia legislator, circuit court judge and lawyer, died July 14. After graduating from the University of Virginia, Purcell served in World War II. When he returned home, Purcell began a 17-year career in the General Assembly. In 1958, he introduced the Uninsured Motorist Act. He left the Senate in 1965 and was appointed to the 16th Judicial Circuit. He was 87.
George C. Tramontin. Former Charlottesville schools superintendent who presided over integration, died July 18. He joined the city school system in 1960 and was appointed to the top spot three years later. He spearheaded the full integration of the schools before the 1965-66 academic year. After facing pressure - some believed he was targeted for his role in desegregation - from the Virginia Education Association, he resigned in 1966. Tramontin went on to work in other school systems and universities, including Harvard. He was 84.
John Graham. Longtime University of Virginia professor and children's book author, died July 23. He worked at UVa from 1953 to 2003, teaching courses in speech and English, specializing in 18th-century literature. He authored two best-selling children's books - "A Crowd of Cows" and "I Love You, Mouse" - and numerous scholarly writings on intellectual and cultural history. His late wife, novelist Alexandra Ripley, penned "Scarlett," the sequel to "Gone With the Wind." He was 80.
Claudia Dodson. Pioneer of Virginia female high school sports, died Aug. 18. She joined the Virginia High School League in 1971, when gymnastics was the only option for female student-athletes. By the time she retired in 2002, there were a dozen sports options for girls. She also helped to establish Women in Sport, which promotes female athletes in Central Virginia. She was inducted into the National Federation of State High Schools Hall of Fame in 2004. She was 65.
Reuben Lindsay Gordon III. Longtime Orange County supervisor, died Aug. 29. He served on the board from 1964 until 1991. During that time, he did much for Orange, including getting the county's only public nursing home approved and helping to create the Central Virginia Regional Jail. The one-time owner of the Monrovia Dairy also served as chairman of the Virginia Milk Commission. He was 85.
Ann C. Cunningham. Veteran nurse who served in Vietnam, died Sept. 2. After the war, she continued work as nurse, eventually moving to Charlottesville, where she worked at the University of Virginia Medical Center. She also served on the Board of Directors with the Nelson County SPCA. She fought to place a statue at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial honoring the women who served in the war. She was 63.
Sture Gordon Olsson. One of the founding sponsors of the University of Virginia's Darden Graduate School of Business Administration, died Sept. 10. The UVa graduate served in World War II and afterward went to work in his father's paper mill, eventually becoming its president and board chairman. He also funded the Olsson Center for Applied Ethics. He was 87.
Adolphus Glenroy "A.G." Small. Well-known Nellysford farmer and businessman, died Sept. 16. He played a significant role in Nellysford's development when he sold a large chunk of the family land to the developers of Wintergreen, which used it to build a subdivision. In the last three years of his life, Small was in the news frequently regarding a controversial stump-grinding business run on his property by his grandson. He was 71.
Daniel Casey. One of several people who spearheaded the creation of the Hearthstone House in Charlottesville for pediatric patients and their families, died Sept. 17. He later served as manager and executive director of Hearthstone (now the Ronald McDonald House of Charlottesville). He was 51.
Neill Herbert Alford Jr. Professor emeritus of law at the University of Virginia, died Oct. 20. He taught at UVa for 41 years. He received the Raven Award in 1990 in recognition of his service and contributions to the university. An avid reader and lover of history, Alford also served in World War II. He was 88.
Martha Lewis Gleason. Lifelong Charlottesville resident and public advocate of growth, died Dec. 1. She helped form Preservation Piedmont and participated in the North Downtown Residents Association, Townwatch and Democrats for Change. She also was instrumental in the relocation of the Farmer's Market to its current location. She was 81.
Samuel "Mac" Sloan. Former Charlottesville police sergeant and restaurateur, died Dec. 6. He served with the Charlottesville Police Department from 1958 to 1988. For much of that time, he oversaw the city's traffic enforcement and was one of the chief designers of the traffic patterns on football game days at the University of Virginia. After retiring as a police officer, he opened two area restaurants with his sons. He was 74.
Kyle Wilson. Albemarle High School swim coach, died suddenly on Dec. 9. He was in his second season as Albemarle's coach. Wilson also was a coach for the ACAC Dolphins in the Jefferson Swim League. Prior to that, he swam for Auburn University, from 1989 to 1993. He was 36.
Andrew M. Sheridan. Longtime owner of Fluvanna County's Gooch Funeral Home, now known as Sheridan Funeral Home, died Dec. 17. He was known for his caring touch with grieving families, as well as his ability to do more than send folks to their final resting place - he delivered more than 50 babies. Sheridan was a big supporter of Fluvanna athletics. He was 81.
Edith Grace Mott. Intelligence analyst for the secret World War II Manhattan Project, died Dec. 22. She was an analyst for the Massachusetts Institute of Technology while working on the Manhattan Project, which was responsible for the development of the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan. She was the wife of William C. Mott, judge advocate general of the U.S. Navy. She was 86.
Scott G. McCandlish. Former University of Virginia basketball player and assistant coach, died Dec. 30. He was a co-captain of the UVa basketball team and later played professionally in France. He served as a basketball coach at the University of South Florida before returning to Charlottesville, where he was a teacher, basketball coach and guidance counselor at Charlottesville High School. He was 56.