Law students speak out against UVA police expansion
Two weeks ago, the University Police Department announced the establishment of its Community Oriented Police Squad (COPS), which will increase police presence on the Corner and surrounding areas. The move comes after a handful of violent incidents in the area, including an accidental gun discharge inside Boylan Heights, had UVA parents concerned about their kids.
On October 6, a group of law students released a letter addressed to university President Jim Ryan, UPD Chief Tim Longo, the UPD, and the UVA community denouncing the COPS unit. The letter accuses the school of prioritizing “parents’ concerns over the wellbeing of the larger Charlottesville community.” The letter states that, according to UPD crime logs, the recent crime levels are comparable to those of September 2019. However, parents are now able to receive emergency alerts—they get an email when crime occurs inside or outside of university areas. Previously, students had to sign their parents up through their own UVA Alerts account.
The letter reminds readers that increasing police presence does not decrease violent crime and “goes directly against the desires of University students,” citing a 2020 Student Council survey that reported that students of color have felt harassed by UPD officers on Grounds. The letter calls for UPD to reverse its decision to increase police presence in student areas and to dismantle the COPS program; for UVA to “make efforts to address the root causes of violent crime by promoting social and economic development in the Charlottesville community;” and for UPD to be more transparent about the number of complaints received and how the department addresses instances of police harassment. At press time, the letter had over 120 student signatures and 11 signatures from student organizations.—Amelia Delphos
Interim police chief retires
City of Charlottesville
Staff churn continues at City Hall—the latest departure is Assistant Police Chief James Mooney. Mooney’s had a whirlwind couple of weeks. The long-serving cop announced his retirement in August, only for Police Chief RaShall Brackney to be abruptly fired a few days later. In the wake of that departure, Mooney was promoted to interim chief. But he’s decided not to stick around, and Captain Tito Durrette will take the reins.
There’s almost certainly more turnover coming. On Tuesday evening, City Council held a closed meeting to discuss “urgent personnel matters,” which in the past has been a sure sign that someone is headed for the hills. The meeting ended too late for this issue, but stay tuned for more coverage in the coming days.
In brief
Terry and Taylor team up?
Terry McAuliffe’s campaign is using every angle it can to tarnish Glenn Youngkin’s reputation—including a digital ad buy that highlights Youngkin’s Carlyle Group’s role in selling Taylor Swift’s master recordings to much-reviled former manager Scooter Braun. McAuliffe’s camp hopes the fearless strategy will prevent Virginia from going red.
Redistricters see red
The new Virginia Redistricting Commission is in trouble. The bipartisan group, made up of eight Republicans and eight Democrats, was tasked with redrawing Virginia’s voting districts, both at the state and federal levels. But the two sides haven’t managed to reach any sort of compromise so far, and missed their first deadline to submit maps. Mackenzie Babichenko, the commission’s Republican co-chair, told VPM that the group hasn’t been able to overcome “a fundamental lack of trust of each other’s motives.” The committee says it’ll be back in action on Thursday, hoping to smooth things over and get back to work. If members can’t eventually find a compromise, the map-drawing will fall to the Supreme Court of Virginia.
Troubled JAUNT system hires new head
Nearly a year after booting former CEO Brad Sheffield, JAUNT hired Ted Rieck as its new boss. Rieck has worked in transit for more than 30 years, most recently as CEO of the Metropolitan Tulsa Transit Authority. Sheffield was asked to step down in December after it was revealed he had spent company money on luxury hotels, expensive meals, plane tickets, and other “beyond reasonable” expenditures.
