Claire Marshall Watkins, ASSOCIATE EDITOR
Fredericksburg Free Press
Drug testing for new school hires lands on Spotsylvania’s legislative wish list
By Adele Uphaus 10/02/2026
he Spotsylvania County School Board is asking its state legislators to support legislation allowing local school boards to petition for authority to implement pre-employment, suspicionless drug testing for new hires and rehires.
At a work session Monday, the board voted to include this request — among other legislative priorities — in communications with state senators and delegates.
The Free Lance-Star
Spotsylvania filmmakers bring true story to the big screen (paywalled)
By Pilar Davis 10/04/2026
The red carpet will be rolled out as Spotsylvania residents Shamila Beslow and Vernon Beslow III premiere their first feature film, “When Fatal Attraction Hits Home,” on Oct. 24 at Alamo Drafthouse in Woodbridge.
Beslow says the film, a psychological thriller, is based on her true story of meeting and marrying her husband while dealing with the often-violent responses of his child’s mother. The filmmakers hope that premiering during Domestic Violence Awareness Month will encourage conversation about the warning signs of obsessive behavior and mental illness.
Man who stabbed victim 8 times found guilty in Spotsylvania (paywalled)
By Keith Epps 10/04/2026
Maryland man who nearly killed a man by stabbing him eight times outside a Spotsylvania County party earlier this year was convicted of aggravated malicious wounding Thursday.
Jonas Lorenzo Thomas, 37, of Baltimore, was found guilty by a Spotsylvania Circuit Court jury after about 90 minutes of deliberations. He will face the possibility of up to life in prison when he is sentenced Dec. 18.
Bright Hope Baptist Church gets state marker (paywalled)
By Free Lance-Star Staff 10/04/2026
A new state historical highway marker is planned for Bright Hope Baptist Church in Louisa County, one of 11 markers approved by the Virginia Board of Historic Resources on Sept. 17. The other markers will be placed in communities across Virginia.
Bright Hope Baptist Church emerged in the early 1880s from Oak Grove Baptist, which had been founded by freedpeople after the Civil War. Oak Grove was led by the Rev. Fountain M. Perkins, a formerly enslaved man who became a landowner and member of the Virginia House of Delegates.
Potomac Local News
Maryland’s governor visits Virginia to stump for Vindman, according to Cole’s Facebook page
By Potomac Local News 10/04/2026
Delegate Joshua Cole said on his Facebook page Saturday that Maryland Gov. Wes Moore was back in the 65th House district as volunteers launched for Rep. Eugene Vindman.
“Honored to welcome Governor Wes Moore BACK to the 65th district today as we launched volunteers for Eugene Vindman for Congress,” Cole wrote. “31 days to go.”
ADVANCE READS
Drew Gallagher, Phil Huber, Jake Pearson
The AI Doctor is In
Drew Gallagher, ADVANCE COLUMNIST
One of the arguments for data centers is that the increased reliance on AI necessitates more and more storage and processing capacity that only they can provide—especially in the Fredericksburg area where there’s always been plenty of water and questionable judgement.
As Kurt Vonnegut once said, according to AI: “We are not limited only by where we start but by how we continue.” (Kurt Vonnegut never said or wrote any such thing, but if we had more data centers AI would have known that right away and already corrected me.)
AI has many uses, including thoughtful responses for people who may need advice on how to get out of untenable situations of their own making. Here are a few possible examples, completely made up, but nonetheless further proof of the vital need for more data centers lining the banks of the Rappahannock River and, what the hell, why don’t we put one downtown?
When the Tote Board Meets the Ballot Box
Phil Huber, ADVANCE COLUMNIST
For two summers while I was in college, I worked as a groom at The Meadows, the harness-racing track near Washington, Pennsylvania. Today it is called Hollywood Casino at The Meadows, but when I was there, it was simply The Meadows. There were horses in the barn, drivers on the track, trainers watching every detail, and bettors studying the program for an edge.
I learned something about betting in those summers.
A wager can make a race more exciting. It can make a person pay close attention to a horse’s form, the driver, the track, and the odds. Many bet on the horse’s name or number or the stable colors and hope for the best. But betting can also make people see what they want to see. It can persuade someone that a number on a tote board is knowledge, rather than a reflection of money already placed.
Now, at 79, I am learning about prediction markets—because apparently the country decided that elections were not complicated enough without turning them into a stock ticker.
I Deliberately Bet Like a Problem Gambler. DraftKings Made Me a VIP. PART I.
Jake Pearson, ProPublica
It was late May, the French Open was on and DraftKings was pushing me into the action.
A promotion pinged on my phone. “BET & GET,” it boomed, offering to boost my profits if I threw down on tennis, punctuating the point with a cartoon stack of cash. I was already in the middle of a two-hour betting spree, ripping 64 wagers on the clay courts of Paris from my office chair in New York City.
A $75 bet that Claire Liu would win the fifth point of her first set tiebreak against Maria Sakkari? Wrong. How about an easy $300 on Francisco Comesana to win the first game of the second set against Luciano Darderi? Negativo.
I’ll be the first to admit that my backhand needs some work. But this wasn’t about sports. It was about scratching an itch.
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