After 43 years, the murder of 18-year-old Ohio waitress Debra Lee Miller has been solved through advanced DNA technology. Mansfield Police Chief Jason Bammann announced Monday that James Vanest, Miller’s upstairs neighbor at the time of her death, was conclusively identified as her killer. Vanest, who was 26 in 1981, was fatally shot in November while authorities attempted to serve him an indictment on unrelated federal gun charges.
Henrico Doctors' Hospital in Richmond, Virginia, has shut down its neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) following a series of bone fractures suffered by seven infants under suspicious circumstances. The injuries, which include a fractured leg in one baby, have sparked an investigation by local authorities.
A Virginia man was arrested on December 17 after authorities uncovered a large stash of "finished explosive devices" on his property. Brad Spafford, 50, was apprehended outside Norfolk after the FBI found over 150 explosive devices, including pipe bombs, at his 20-acre farm.
Outgoing West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin expressed strong disapproval on Thursday over President Joe Biden's decision to commute the death sentences of two men convicted in the brutal 2002 murder of Samantha Burns, a 19-year-old student at Marshall University. The two men, Brandon Basham and Chadrick Fulks, had been sentenced to death for their roles in Burns' killing. On Monday, as part of a larger commutation effort, Biden reclassified their sentences from execution to life in prison without the possibility of parole, along with 35 other inmates on federal death row.
An Ohio school district has agreed to a $450,000 settlement with a middle school teacher, Vivian Geraghty, who was forced to resign after refusing to use a transgender student's chosen pronouns. Geraghty, who taught English at Jackson Memorial Middle School, filed a lawsuit against the Jackson Local School District for violating her First Amendment rights and freedom of speech.
The National Rifle Association (NRA) is optimistic about the future of Second Amendment rights with President-elect Donald Trump in the White House. After years of battling anti-gun policies in Washington and state capitals, NRA CEO and Executive Vice President Doug Hamlin expressed excitement about working with Trump on several pro-gun initiatives. The NRA is eager to support Trump in pushing for national concealed carry reciprocity and reforms at the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF).
A federal appeals court has ruled that the Biden administration can open the Affordable Care Act (ACA), also known as Obamacare, to illegal aliens enrolled in the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. This decision comes after the Biden administration’s May announcement that it would allow some DACA recipients to access Obamacare. The DACA program, created by former President Barack Obama through executive order, shields over a million illegal aliens from deportation.
The push for full federal recognition of the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina has taken a significant step forward with the U.S. House of Representatives passing the Lumbee Fairness Act. The bill, which aims to provide federal services and benefits to the Lumbee people, passed with a vote of 311-96 on Tuesday. While the bill received broad support, it also saw opposition from Reps. Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.) and Chuck Edwards (R-N.C.). Notably, Reps. Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.) and Wiley Nickel (D-N.C.) did not vote.
NCAA President Charlie Baker faced sharp criticism on Tuesday for placing the burden of safety on female athletes uncomfortable sharing locker rooms with transgender athletes.
