FREDLINES
Claire Marshall Watkins, ASSOCIATE EDITOR
Fredericksburg Free Press
Early-morning I-95 crash kills mother and child
By FPP Staff 11/6/2026
A Stafford man has been charged in connection with a crash that killed a mother and her child and closed northbound Interstate 95 in Stafford County early Friday.
The wreck occurred at 1:53 a.m. near mile marker, authorities said.
Virginia State Police are investigating and said preliminary information indicated a Dodge Charger, traveling at a high rate of speed, struck the rear end of a Nissan Rogue.
Park marks 50th anniversary with new film about Washington’s birthplace
By Clint Schemmer 11/6/2026
There’s been nothing like it in half a century.
That’s how long it’s been since the George Washington Birthplace National Monument saw such a festive occasion as it did last Wednesday, when the Northern Neck historic site celebrated its visitor center’s 50th anniversary by premiering a brand-new film.
Titled “Lost, Reshaped, and Rediscovered,” the 15-minute movie orients people coming to Pope’s Creek in Westmoreland County to learn about the place where the first U.S. president was born.
The Free Lance-Star
Two killed in early morning crash on I-95 in Stafford (paywalled)
By Keith Epps 11/6/2026
A Stafford County man was arrested Friday, accused of causing a grisly crash on Interstate 95 that resulted in two deaths, including that of a young child.
Malik Jeremiah Thomas, 25, was charged with driving while intoxicated and two counts of aggravated involuntary manslaughter, and other charges may be pending. He is being held in the Rappahannock Regional Jail. Court records list his blood-alcohol content as between .15 and .20, well above the legal limit of .08.
Annual fall update on transportation set for next week (paywalled)
By Scott Shenk 11/6/2026
Virginia’s transportation leaders are making their annual fall visits to localities to discuss statewide and local transportation topics.
The Commonwealth Transportation Board is coming to the Fredericksburg area on Thursday, Nov. 12. The hearing will be held at the Fredericksburg Virginia Department of Transportation District auditorium at 86 Deacon Road in Stafford County.
All of the CTB’s nine meetings start at 2 p.m.
Stafford Fire and Safety says warm a child, lift a spirit, change a life (paywalled)
By Pilar Davis 11/6/2026
Mountain View Fire & Safety Association is partnering with Stafford County Fire and Rescue, Stafford County Schools, and Operation Warm for the 17th year to make sure children in Stafford County don’t have to face frigid temps without a warm coat.
For nearly two decades, the groups have collaborated to raise funds to provide more than 15,000 new winter coats for children in the Stafford area, keeping kids from preschool through senior year in high school warm during the coldest months. Organizers say there are coat sizes ranging from little ones in Head Start to high school students needing up to size 4XL.
Potomac Local News
Longtime FCPS educator Emma Brown slated to lead Hugh Mercer Elementary School
By PLN News 11/6/2026
Fredericksburg City Public Schools announced that longtime educator Emma Brown is slated to become the next principal of Hugh Mercer Elementary School, beginning Monday, November 30, 2026. Brown has served the division since 2012, starting as a teacher at Walker-Grant Middle School and later working as an instructional technology coach at Walker-Grant and Hugh Mercer.
She has also been an administrative intern at Hugh Mercer and Lafayette elementary schools and has served as assistant principal at Walker-Grant Middle School since 2022, including a stint as interim assistant principal at Hugh Mercer during the 2024-2025 school year. The Fredericksburg City School Board is expected to formalize the appointment at its regularly scheduled meeting on Monday, December 7, 2026.
Fredericksburg resident and UMW alumna wins on Jeopardy!
By Mike Salmon 11/6/2026
Final Jeopardy! decided it last night. Betty Hume pulled ahead, defeated the other two contestants, and put Fredericksburg on the national stage Thursday night, November 5.
Betty Barnhardt Hume, University of Mary Washington Class of 1971, is a retired library reference assistant from Fredericksburg. She entered Final Jeopardy! in the Religion category trailing four-day champion Erica Doornek. The clue referenced John Calvin and the Holy Sudary. Hume answered correctly—“What is the Shroud of Turin?”—wagered $5,000, and finished with $21,000 to claim the win and end Doornek’s streak.
ADVANCE READS
Ranjit Singh, Steve Watkins
The Hedgehog’s War: Seven Concepts for Environmental Action by Other Means
Ranjit Singh, ADVANCE ENVIRONMENTAL COLUMNIST
I love aphorisms. The poet Archilochus gifted us one of the best ever:
“The fox knows many things, but the hedgehog knows one big thing.”
Both foxes and hedgehogs are well represented among No Lines in Nature readers. But I’ll venture to say that, like the hedgehog, we all know one very big thing. And that thing is:
Our planet and its many interwoven ecosystems are in dire straits.
Farm to Neighbor, Pot Talk, the Thurman Brisben Shelter, and a Nationally-Recognized Student Volunteer: Press Release Releases
Steve Watkins, ADVANCE EDITOR
The City of Fredericksburg’s Department of Economic Development and Tourism invites the community to the opening reception of The Raw, the Cooked, the Sacred, and the Profane: The Art of Plants within the Patawomeck Community on Friday, November 6, from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Fredericksburg Visitor Center, located at 601 Caroline Street. The reception takes place during downtown Fredericksburg’s monthly First Friday celebration.
Organized by Dr. Brad Hatch and David Jett, with assistance from University of Mary Washington students Alessandra Lisio and Aaron Harrell, who helped catalog and install the exhibit, the exhibition features historic and contemporary works that reflect the Patawomeck community’s deep ties to the natural environment and evolving sense of identity.
STATE OF THE STATE
VaNews/VIRGINIA PUBLIC ACCESS PROJECT
Wittman, Perriello concede congressional races
By ANNA BRYSON, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Subscription Required)
On Thursday, The Associated Press officially called the results for Virginia’s 1st and 5th congressional districts, declaring Shannon Taylor and Rep. John McGuire, R-5th, the winners. Taylor, who serves as Henrico commonwealth’s attorney, unseated Rep. Rob Wittman, R-1st, who has represented the district in Congress for 19 years. ... Wittman conceded the race Thursday and congratulated Taylor on her victory. ... Perriello also conceded Thursday, calling McGuire to congratulate him on his victory.
Democrats Increased Lead Across All Ballot Types
The Virginia Public Access Project
Democrats won the highest share of the vote across all voting methods since Virginia began separating totals for early in-person and mail votes in 2021. This year, votes cast on Election Day, early in person, and by mail all shifted left compared to the five previous election cycles.
Most Localities Reject Tax for School Construction
The Virginia Public Access Project
On Tuesday, 47 localities across Virginia voted on whether to impose a 1% sales tax to fund school construction projects, using their newly granted authority. Only 15 passed the measure. The majority of urban and rural areas voted against the tax, while most small cities and suburban localities supported it.
Mix of opposition, support on display at Dominion-NextEra merger hearing
By BRANDON JARVIS, Virginia Scope
The State Corporation Commission held its final in-person public comment hearing on Dominion Energy’s proposed $67 billion merger with NextEra Energy in Richmond on Thursday, drawing a mix of supporters and opponents as regulators prepare to begin weighing the deal and the protections that should accompany it. The evidentiary hearing is scheduled to begin Nov. 17, when the commission will hear arguments from Dominion, NextEra, SCC staff and other parties involved in the case. ... Jessica Schneider, who serves on the Chesterfield Board of Supervisors, was among those who spoke against the merger, raising concerns about NextEra’s history of disconnecting customers who fall behind on their utility bills.
Virginia lawmakers assess misuse of automated license plate readers
By JOE DODSON, Courthouse News Service
Members of the Virginia General Assembly met Thursday to review a report on misuse of automated license plate readers by law enforcement agencies and the need for stronger guardrails.The report, commissioned by the Virginia State Crime Commission, surveyed 191 local law enforcement agencies that reported using the controversial surveillance technology as of August. Of those, 10% self-reported unauthorized use of the technology, which uses a network of cameras to track vehicle movement.The commission, comprised of legislators, commonwealth’s attorneys and appointed citizens, discussed the need for more guardrails.
Could Airbnb save Virginia’s farms?
By HALEY SANDLOW, Daily Progress (Metered Paywall - 25 articles a month)
Farming isn’t as clean as Elise Lauterbach’s Nellysford Airbnb suggests. The picturesque cottage on her 10-acre hobby farm is filled with fresh produce and eggs, homegrown herbal tea blends and ceramics handcrafted from the terracotta vein running right through the property. “I plant a lot of really intensely scented herbs around the hen house,” Lauterbach told The Daily Progress. “That was never an expectation with the American small farm.” But in 2026, it may as well be. Amid the decadeslong decline of small farms in the United States, those that remain often need additional sources of income. Lauterbach is one of many farmers who have begun to rely on short-term rentals and creative workshops to sustain the actual farming that would have, in another time, produced a sufficient income.
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