Latest Virginia Headlines

All the headlines from our Virginia Topic Page, ordered by recency.

Questions Raised Over Virginia State Police Being Allowed to Investigate Itself

May 23 2023 // Late last year, with the Virginia State Police under scrutiny after authorities said a former trooper kidnapped a 15-year-old California girl and killed three members of her family, Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced he had...

Declarations

May 22 2023 // Riskworld Safety “I wanted to bring this update to let everyone know that everyone at Riskworld is safe and sound. … We’ve unfortunately had to cancel the closing finale session simply out of an abundance...

Mom of Virginia Boy Who Shot Teacher Doesn’t Know How Son Got Gun

May 12 2023 // Four months after a 6-year-old Virginia boy shot and wounded his teacher as she taught class in Newport News, an attorney for the boy’s mother said it still is not clear how the boy got the gun. Police have said Deja...

Towers Watson Hits Bump in Road to $80M Insurance for D&O Claims Over Willis Merger

May 10 2023 // A judicial panel of the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled insurance broker Towers Watson may not be entitled to $80 million in insurance to cover settlements of shareholder lawsuits related to the merger between...

West Virginia Fumigation Facility May be Barred by Zoning Rules

May 9 2023 // A West Virginia logging company hoping to locate a log-fumigation facility in the picturesque Allegheny Mountains won’t be allowed to build in that particular spot due to a zoning issue, a local official...

Richmond National to Expand Headquarters in Virginia

May 3 2023 // Richmond National Group, Inc., a specialty excess and surplus lines insurance company, said it will invest $350,000 to expand its headquarters in Virginia’s Henrico County. The company said it will add 7,200 square...

Virginia Workers’ Compensation Review Panel Clarifies COVID-19 Presumption

May 2 2023 // Virginia’s statutory presumption that a COVID-19 disability of a first responder is work-related, which went into effect July 1, 2020, does not require that the employee be diagnosed with COVID-19 on or after that...

Virginia Beach Tornado Causes $15M in Residential Damage; No Reports of Injuries

May 1 2023 // The Virginia Beach community in southeastern Virginia was hit by a tornado on Sunday, April 30, just minutes before 6:00 pm. City Manager Patrick Duhaney declared a state of emergency. Officials said there were no reported...

Virginia School: Workers’ Comp Bars $40M Suit by Teacher Shot by 6-Year Old

Apr 27 2023 // The Newport News public school board says the $40 million lawsuit filed against it by the teacher who was shot by a six-year old is barred by the state’s workers’ compensation law that is the exclusive remedy...

Virginia Family Reaches $5M Settlement Over Park Police Shooting

Apr 24 2023 // The family of a northern Virginia man fatally shot by U. S. Park Police officers has reached a $5 million settlement in its civil lawsuit against the government. Two officers shot 25-year-old Bijan Ghaisar of McLean in...

Court Affirms $2.5M Penalty for West Virginia Governor’s Coal Mines

Apr 11 2023 // A federal appeals panel has affirmed $2.5 million in penalties against Appalachian coal mines owned by West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice over claims they violated a settlement meant to prevent pollution. A three-judge panel...

Virginia Teacher Shot by 6-Year Old Sues School Officials for $40 Million

Apr 4 2023 // A first-grade Virginia teacher who was shot and seriously wounded by her 6-year-old student filed a lawsuit Monday seeking $40 million in damages from school officials, accusing them of gross negligence for allegedly...

AM Best Revises Outlooks to Negative for Virginia’s Northern Neck Insurance

Mar 31 2023 // AM Best has revised the outlooks to negative from stable and affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of A- (Excellent) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating of “a-” (Excellent) of Northern Neck Insurance Co. of...

Coal Miner Killed in West Virginia, Second Fatality This Year in the State

Mar 24 2023 // A coal miner died Wednesday in an accident at a northern West Virginia mine, Gov. Jim Justice said. Cecil Barker, 62, of Philippi, was working as a surveyor at Century Mining’s Longview Mine in Barbour County. Two...

U.S. Judge Rules Against Google, Keeps DOJ Advertising Case in Virginia

Mar 13 2023 // A U.S. federal judge on Friday rejected a bid by Alphabet Inc’s Google to move a Justice Department lawsuit against it over dominance in advertising technology from Virginia to New York. “I am going to rule...

Virginia County Judge Uses Slavery Law to Rule Frozen Embryos Are Property

Mar 13 2023 // Frozen human embryos can legally be considered property, or “chattel,” a Virginia judge has ruled, basing his decision in part on a 19th century law governing the treatment of slaves. The preliminary opinion by...

West Virginia House Backs Cap on Workers’ Damages in Deliberate Intent Cases

Mar 6 2023 // Republicans in the West Virginia House passed a bill last week that would cap some of the damages workers and their families can receive if their employer deliberately puts them in harm’s way on the job. The 52-45...

When ‘Preparing for Work’ Falls Under Virginia Workers’ Compensation

Feb 23 2023 // An employee who was injured while scraping ice off his company-owned truck parked at his home is entitled to workers’ compensation benefits, the Virginia Workers Compensation Commission has ruled, reversing a deputy...

Ohio Train Derailment Prompts West Virginia Utility to Take Water Safety Steps

Feb 14 2023 // A West Virginia water utility is enhancing its water treatment process as a precaution following the derailment of a train hauling chemicals that later sent up a toxic plume in Ohio. West Virginia American Water said...

Parents in Virginia Where 6-Year-Old Shot Teacher Plan to Sue School System

Feb 9 2023 // The families of two students at a Newport News, Virginia elementary school where a 6-year-old shot and wounded his teacher have filed notices of potential legal action against the school system over trauma they say the...