FREDLINES
Eve Evans, EDITORIAL ASSISTANT
The Free Lance Star
Stafford County data center proposal moves to supervisors (paywalled)
By Scott Shenk, 08/28/2026
The Stafford County Planning Commission voted 4-3 to recommend approval of the Accokeek Center data center complex, a Falmouth Tech LLC project comprising two two-story data centers totaling 590,000 square feet and a power substation on land between U.S. 1 and I-95, near the regional jail and county animal shelter. The applicant scaled back the original three-data-center plan and repositioned the substation after an earlier proposal was pulled ahead of an April hearing, and now offers $6.4 million in proffers, a prohibition on groundwater and potable water use, and a closed-loop or Amazon-funded reuse cooling system. Opposition centered on impacts to active agriculture, biodiversity, endangered species habitat, and mature forests along Accokeek Creek, as well as reduced setbacks and buffers in parts of the site; Commission Chair Kristen Barnes and two other commissioners dissented over those concerns, while the majority credited the applicant’s “significant changes” in response to public input. The proposal now heads to the Board of Supervisors for final consideration.
Indictment reveals details of city canal path rapes (paywalled)
By Keith Epps, 08/28/2026
A 22-year-old man has been indicted under seal by a Fredericksburg grand jury on multiple counts including rape, abduction with intent to defile, aggravated sexual battery, and sodomy in connection with two attacks on the city’s canal path, several charges carrying potential life sentences. A capias has been issued for his arrest, and both the Commonwealth’s Attorney and police chief declined comment, citing the seal order. The Oct. 19 attack occurred near Cossey Pond, where a victim was grabbed from behind and assaulted before a passing bicyclist interrupted the attack and called 911; the May 31 attack occurred on Ficklen Island, where a victim was grabbed, raped, and forced into sex acts before escaping, later telling police the attacker communicated via a translation app. If arrested, the man will be tried in Fredericksburg Circuit Court.
Jury convicts Butler of murder in ding-dong-ditch case (paywalled)
By Keith Epps, 08/28/2026
A Spotsylvania jury found Tyler Butler, 28, guilty Thursday night of second-degree murder and seven other felony charges, rejecting his self-defense claim in the May 3, 2025 shooting death of 18-year-old Michael Bosworth Jr., a Massaponax High School senior killed while fleeing Butler’s yard after a “Ding Dong Ditch” prank. Evidence showed Butler confronted the teens near his back gate, making violent remarks caught on video, then fired 10 shots from a Glock as they ran, striking Bosworth and 17-year-old Andre’us Wilson in the back while they were about two houses away from the property. Defense attorneys argued Butler was protecting his frightened mother, but prosecutors disputed claims the teens had damaged or contacted the back door and argued his actions showed “conscious reflection” rather than a spontaneous reaction; jurors declined to convict on the sought first-degree murder charge. Butler was also convicted of attempted second-degree murder, malicious wounding, three firearm charges, and two counts of shooting into an occupied dwelling, and faces up to 40 years in prison at sentencing on Oct. 30.
Two charged with child porn offenses in separate investigations (paywalled)
By Keith Epps, 08/28/2026
Two men were arrested Wednesday in separate investigations that both began with tips from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. In Spotsylvania, 24-year-old Kenynin M. Burgess was charged with electronic solicitation of a minor and four counts of possessing child pornography after a search warrant on Nancy Court; investigators say he used Snapchat to solicit nude images from girls aged 11-17, threatening them if they refused, and have identified multiple victims with more believed to exist. Separately, the Caroline Sheriff’s Office arrested 39-year-old Aaron Jacob Brooks, a Henrico County school system employee living in Ruther Glen, on 11 counts of possessing child pornography after tracing illegal activity to his internet address; Sheriff Scott Moser said Brooks worked in a non-instructional maintenance role and that there’s currently no evidence the activity involved Henrico students or school systems. Burgess is held at Rappahannock Regional Jail, and Brooks is held without bond at Pamunkey Regional Jail.
The Fredericksburg Free Press
By Taft Coghill Jr., 08/28/2026
The Caroline County Planning Commission voted 3-1 Thursday to recommend denial of the Carmel Technology and Enterprise Center, a proposal by Richmond-based Luck Stone to rezone roughly 1,111 acres from Rural Preservation to Industrial for a technology and enterprise campus. Commissioners Mary Hodge, Chair Richard Williams, and Steve Rollins voted to deny, citing concerns over the loss of rural acreage and Luck Stone’s refusal to name a future tenant despite pledging the project won’t be a data center; Commissioner Lee Tingler voted for approval, Carol Horton was absent, and JD Young abstained amid scrutiny over a $25,000 Luck Stone proffer to a nonprofit run by his wife. The project has drawn support from some community leaders, including Oxford Mount Zion Baptist Church’s pastor, since Luck Stone pledged to help build a community center for the church and assist two other churches with ministry needs if the rezoning is approved. The Board of Supervisors, which approved a related comprehensive plan amendment in 2024, will have the final say.
Stafford Planning Commission advances Accokeek data center project
By Jonathan Hunley, 08/28/2026
The Stafford Planning Commission voted 4-3 on each of three measures Wednesday to recommend the Board of Supervisors approve the Accokeek Center data center campus, a 590,000-square-foot project on 121 acres between I-95 and U.S. 1 in the Falmouth District, despite opposition from most of more than 50 speakers at the public hearing. Commissioners Marcus Oats, Carlos Bratton, Neil Hamblin, and Willie Shelton Jr. voted in favor, with Oats citing significant changes made since an April version of the project that included three buildings and 100,000 more square feet; project attorney Charlie Payne noted the plan meets the commission’s recommended 500-foot setback from homes (though not the Board’s 750-foot standard) and comes with $6.4 million for county projects. Opponents, including former librarian Lillian Swain, who compared approval to the children’s book “If You Give a Mouse a Cookie,” argued that granting exemptions would only invite more requests and set a precedent, while resident Heidi Farley dismissed the proffer money as “lipstick on a pig.” The project now heads to the Board of Supervisors for a final decision.
Jury convicts Butler of second-degree murder in death of Spotsylvania teen
By Taft Coghill Jr., 08/27/2026
A Spotsylvania jury convicted Tyler Butler of second-degree murder Thursday evening after a three-day trial, along with attempted second-degree murder, malicious wounding, and firearm charges, for shooting 18-year-old Michael Bosworth and 17-year-old Andre’us Wilson in the back as they fled his yard around 3 a.m. on May 3, 2025; a related charge of maliciously shooting at an occupied dwelling was reduced to unlawful shooting, tied to gunfire that struck two other River Club homes. Survivors Wilson and Braylon Richards testified they had banged on a garage door about 600 feet from Butler’s home before running through backyards and briefly crossing Butler’s property to evade a responding deputy, and authorities found no evidence supporting the defense’s claim that Butler’s doors had been damaged. Front-door camera footage captured Butler shouting racial slurs and threats before firing 10 shots, while his mother could be heard trying to get him to come back inside; defense attorney Mitch Jacobs argued Butler was terrified and home alone with only his mother. Butler faces sentencing at a later date.
Potomac Local News
Police Blotter: Park Death, Teacher Arrested at School
By Uriah Kiser, 08/28/2026
Prince William County police found a 19-year-old man dead Wednesday in a wooded area of Prince William Forest Park in Triangle after responding to a missing-person report, with no preliminary signs of foul play or community threat. In the same roundup, Curtis Lucas Brown Jr., 45, was arrested without incident in connection with an Aug. 19 sexual assault near Sudley Road in Manassas and is being held without bond on rape and related charges; Manassas Park High School teacher Shannon Sanders, 40, was arrested and charged with being drunk in public after staff reported her intoxicated on school grounds, with no students involved. Other incidents included a man charged with assaulting an officer at the regional adult detention center after a Woodbridge disturbance, a 16-year-old’s arrest in a Woodbridge smoke shop burglary (four other suspects still sought), and in Stafford County, a public intoxication arrest, a shoplifting arrest at Target, and three separate fraud reports involving DoorDash, bank, and employment scams.
Occoquan officer honored for off-duty rescue at deadly I-95 crash
By Uriah Kiser, 08/28/2026
The Occoquan Town Council unanimously honored Officer Justin Hendrickson on Aug. 18 for stopping off-duty at a catastrophic I-95 crash in Stafford on May 29, 2026, that killed five people and injured more than 30, helping pull victims from a burning vehicle and providing first aid until fire-rescue arrived. Hendrickson, who joined the department in September 2022, was heading home from a shift when he came upon the roughly 2:30 a.m. crash. Mayor Earnie Porta read a resolution praising his actions and presented him with a framed copy, and Virginia State Police separately recognized his composure and willingness to put others’ safety above his own.
ADVANCE READS
Dr. Patrick Neustatter, Phil Huber, Bruce Saller
Medical Greed: The Sermon on the Amount
By Dr. Patrick Neustatter, ADVANCE CONTRIBUTOR
In the summer months, when the minister of the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Fredericksburg is off, and the UUs are desperate for people to fill the pulpit, I usually lead a service in which I carp about some interface of religion/spirituality/ethics and medicine.
This year I’ll be talking bout greed—how the cost of healthcare is out of sight, but all the venders in the industry still seem to be focused on making as much money as possible, undaunted by the hardship this causes.
The Unitarians, whose second principal is “Justice, equity, and compassion in human relations,” get fired up about this kind of thing, so I’m hoping this year’s sermon goes over well.
Forty-Five Million Acres, One Month to Speak Up
By Phil Huber, ADVANCE COLUMNIST
There’s a decision moving through Washington right now that will decide whether logging trucks and bulldozers get access to some of the wildest, least-touched forest land America has left—45 million acres of it, an area larger than the state of Washington. Most Americans have never heard of it. That’s not an accident, and it’s worth fixing.
How Can We Get Out Of Our Electricity Mess?
Bruce Saller, ADVANCE CONTRIBUTOR
The proliferation of data denters in Virginia has forced our utilities to import a growing amount of electricity at higher prices resulting in large increases in our electricity rates. Per Dominion’s 2025 Integrated Resource Plan, they are currently short about 5 billion watts of generation, and need to add 5 million watts of generating capability every year for the next 10 years. That is the equivalent of adding a Lake Anna reactor every other year. We can lower our imports by increasing supply and reducing demand.
There are several options to increase our supply of electricity: nuclear, natural gas, wind and solar. (Geothermal is not viable in Virginia.)
STATE OF THE STATE
VaNews/VIRGINIA PUBLIC ACCESS PROJECT
Obamacare premiums set to rise next year, filings show
By DAVE RESS, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Subscription Required)
Premiums for Affordable Care Act coverage are on track for sharp increases next year, according to the current rate increase requests health insurers are seeking from the State Corporation Commission’s Bureau of Insurance. Most insurers offering plans in the Richmond area are proposing double-digit-percentage increases, a bureau summary of average premium rates shows. HealthKeepers, the largest Obamacare insurer in the state covering 115,000 Virginians, is seeking an average increase of 12.6%, for an average monthly bill of $687.18.
Inside Virginia’s city halls: Concerns, confusion rise with Flock protests
By KUNLE FALAYI, Virginia Center for Investigative Journalism
A Williamsburg resident in March asked the police department at the College of William & Mary how data collected by the school’s Flock Safety surveillance system is shared. Police Chief Don Butler asked Flock for the answer, according to records obtained by the Virginia Center for Investigative Journalism at WHRO. “I’m trying to be transparent with some folks who would rather we didn’t have Flock cameras,” Butler wrote to the company, “and want to make sure I tell them correctly.” Flock Safety vice president Chris Colwell replied several days later with a list of talking points, each one with a supposed question and scripted answer ... Colwell wrote that “having simple, ready-to-share language is often just as important as the underlying controls.” The response did not directly address Butler’s question.
New groups will lobby for 1% sales tax increase, as school districts aren’t allowed to themselves
By ELEANOR SHAW AND VICTORIA A. IFATUSIN, The Richmonder
Increasing the sales tax by 1% to fund school construction and maintenance will be a major issue on ballots across the state in November, as more than 20 localities have opted into a newly-authorized referendum. Richmond, Chesterfield and Powhatan will all have the increase on the ballot, but state laws prohibit the localities from lobbying for its passage with taxpayer money. New groups are stepping into that void, locally and statewide. Former Richmond City Council and School Board member Kristen Nye is helming Virginians for Modern Schools alongside Lincoln Saunders, the city’s former chief administrative officer.
Parents call for less screen time, more intentional use of technology in schools
By MEGHAN MANGRUM, Cardinal News
Amber Rhodes first grew concerned with students’ use of technology as an eighth grade teacher as she witnessed the impact increased use of cellphones and laptops had on her students in Chesterfield County. But when her own 6-year-old son came home from school and told her about the online games he and his classmates had gained access to, she knew something had to change. Troy Farmer was equally alarmed when his 8-year-old son came home from his public elementary school in Richmond talking about the Spiderman cartoons he’d watched and the Minecraft accomplishments made that day. ... He was one of nearly two dozen parents who spoke about the issue during a Virginia Board of Education meeting on Thursday.
If Virginia’s reproductive rights amendment passes, challengers say they’ll fight to overturn it in court
By CHARLOTTE RENE WOODS, Virginia Mercury
A legal challenge to amend the ballot language for Virginia’s pending reproductive rights constitutional amendment has been in limbo since June. Even if no movement on the case happens before Election Day, counsel for the plaintiffs said this week, they will seek to invalidate the vote. Josh Hetzler, a lawyer with the Founding Freedoms Law Center said, “If the amendment passes, we would seek to be in court as soon as possible to ask the court to overturn the result, similar to how it happened with the redistricting amendment.” Virginians approved another amendment to redraw congressional maps in a special election that the Supreme Court of Virginia struck down weeks later — an outcome Hetzler would push for if voters accept the reproductive health amendment.
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