The Shadow
I trust everyone had a splendid Easter and navigated comfortably through the roller coaster ride of weather that flip-flopped between winter and spring. Did anyone catch the Eclipse on Monday? Truly a rare spectacle, one we won’t witness again until 2044.
The Virginian Review celebrates its 110th anniversary this year with a move to downtown Main Street in Covington. This relocation highlights the newspaper’s crucial role in being a community watchdog, nurturing community ties, delivering reliable local news and sports, and chronicling the area’s activities as a historical record. A new, must-see attraction is the mini-newspaper museum, a treasure trove of journalistic memorabilia and antiques that will surely be a splendid walk down memory lane for many of you.
To celebrate the move, the Alleghany Highlands Chamber of Commerce and Tourism is hosting a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Thursday, April 11, 2024, at 4:30 pm at the new Virginian Review offices located at 229 W Main St, Covington.Mayor Sibold and Congressman Ben Cline’s Director of Special Projects, Jonathan Hartsock will be there as special guests. And while you’re there, pick up a special edition of my Coffee Mug “The Shadow Knows.”
Now that election season is in full swing, there have been many discussions about what the First Amendments and Freedom of Speech means. A while back, we had a very interesting discussion about several political “Flags” that have been flying around town proclaiming “F… Biden.”
The discussion centered on whether certain flags, deemed not suitable for children or the community due to their profane content, should be removed for being “obscene.” However, a deeper look into the First Amendment reveals that “obscenity” specifically pertains to explicit material, primarily of a sexual nature, and does not extend to mere profanity. Therefore, flying flags adorned with vulgar language fall under the protection of free speech, as affirmed by the 1971 Supreme Court ruling in California v. Cohen, which recognized the display of profanity as a form of free expression. Despite this, some municipalities have crafted specific ordinances to address the issue. Seeking clarity on Covington’s stance, we reached out to Mayor Sibold, who verified that the city presently lacks any such regulations against profane flags.
Speaking of Covington, recently there’s been some chatter about a group called “Recover VA” moving into the former Edgemont School building. Seems some neighborhood residents weren’t very happy with the City’s decision and expressed their concerns during the last City Council meeting. The Council heard the message and is working on finding another location.
City Manager Allen Dressler stated, “Allen is working on a relocation and has been since last month’s council meeting public concern. If there are any suggestions for relocation of this much-needed service please contact me.”
However, the focus here isn’t on doubting the value or necessity of Recover VA’s services. Instead, the pivotal inquiry revolves around the city’s rationale for choosing to financially back this specific entity amidst a myriad of other deserving organizations in the Covington area. This isn’t to undermine the organization’s merits but to question the transparency and process behind allocating public funds to support it. Given that city funds are essentially public assets, the decision-making process should be transparent and conducted with the community’s comprehensive understanding and consent.
Speaking of Public Service organizations, The Shadow is hearing several concerning reports about our local Alleghany-Covington Department of Social Services, which includes Child Protective Services (CPS). This local agency is part of the Virginia Department of Social Services (VDSS), which offers a wide range of services including financial assistance, child welfare, nutritional programs, and foster services to communities across Virginia.
The VDSS is required to publicly disclose how well local DSS agencies are performing in several areas. Seems our local agency’s performance has been declining over the past few years, and is now performing well below standards across almost every performance area. For example, in “Monthly Foster Care Visits Required”, the target is 95% or better. Our agency is performing at 82.5%. Monthly Foster Care visits in residence are benchmarked at 50% or better. Our agency is currently at 44.7%. The most concerning areas are in CPS referrals closed before the due date, which should be at 85%, but are only at an appalling rate of 23.3%. Timeliness of first contact with a victim in a valid CPS is benchmarked at 95%, however, our agency is performing at a concerning rate of 70.7%.
Shouldn’t child protection and social services and our local agency’s sub-standard performance be a major concern and top priority for our community? Stay tuned.
Speaking of kids, seems there’s a whirlpool of rumors about Alleghany High School’s plumbing issues that don’t quite hold water. The Shadow team caught up with Jacob Wright, Board Chairman for Alleghany Highlands Public Schools to flush out the facts from the rumor pipeline. Wright shared, “The school system is trying to have a proactive response to both the maintenance side of this as well as recognizing the problem of vaping amongst our youth.”
Wright suggests that the situation might be more than a mere blame game on the youth. “We are not sure if these problems are caused solely by what is being flushed, failing lines, or a combination of both.” However, Wright sees a silver lining, noting, “This episode has actually unearthed some positives for us as a community and a school system, both in terms of maintenance insights and sparking important discussions and a much-needed awareness to a huge underlying problem we have in our community with our youth and vaping.”
“Although vape detectors have been installed in high school bathrooms for years, a major, unresolved issue still exists.” Wright states, “When I was in high school there were students that were old enough to buy or smoke cigarettes. Now the age for purchasing any tobacco is 21, so none of our students should legally have any of these items.”
Wright continues, “Are they being flushed because the students are about to get caught with them when a teacher walks in?I am not sure but, I certainly know all of the vapes that were found were not flushed at once to be malicious.There was also a cell phone found in the lines that appeared to have been there for ten years or more.“
AHPS’s response to the situation has been multifaceted: from utilizing the city’s jet truck to considering the acquisition of a jet trailer for routine maintenance that could serve all schools. “We are also currently using cameras to inspect and map out our sewer lines at the high school to see if there are problems within the terracotta sewer lines that were originally installed in the 60s,” Wright added.
Although the immediate plumbing concerns are being managed, the pressing question remains: How are minors accessing vape pens unlawfully? This situation could indicate lapses in parental oversight, retailers who disregard age restrictions, or perhaps insufficient law enforcement. It suggests a multifaceted problem that Mr. Wright now faces the daunting task of addressing.
In the “legal and law enforcement” corner this week, Iron Gate Mayor Gary Craig recently confirmed they stand 100% behind Attorney Jared Jenkins and they’ll continue to work with him as long as his appeal is ongoing. Craig thinks Jenkins will beat it.
Breaking news from local informants suggests that Old Town Covington has come under scrutiny for various issues, notably alleged overreach by city officials and mismanagement of funds. More on this story as more details emerge.
Did you know Alleghany County and the City of Covington are involved in a massive $5M lawsuit? Stemming from an incident in March 2023, the $5M lawsuit was initiated on August 25, 2023, against Deputy James R. Wright of the Alleghany County Sheriff’s Office for allegedly engaging in severe and unconstitutional force against local inhabitant Joshua L. Barricks. The lawsuit complaint states, “This case demonstrates the consequences that result from horrific acts of police brutality and abuse of power. Deputy Wright accused Mr. Barricks of “skateboarding” and “public intoxication” and then chased him through [Farm and Fuel] a convenience store. Mr. Barricks attempted to exit the store but ran into a locked door. Although wrongfully accused of public intoxication, Mr. Barricks attempted to surrender to police custody by placing his hands in the air, telling the Deputy, “ok, you got me,” and kneeling to the ground.”
The complaint continues, “Despite Mr. Barrick’s visual and verbal acts of complete submission to police custody, Deputy Wright failed to handcuff him. Instead, Deputy Wright slammed Mr. Barrick’s body to the concrete floor, pushed his skull into the ground, and punched him in the head at least twelve times. Deputy Wright’s excessive force left Mr. Barricks with debilitating injuries, including but not limited to: multiple facial fractures, multiple jaw fractures, and a brain bleed.”
Since the incident, Mr. Wright has now become a Virginia State Police Officer, and apparently the VSP saw no harm nor foul in the incident according to Wright’s body camera footage. However, it seems the store’s security video footage apparently tells a story more closely aligned to the lawsuit being represented by Gentry Locke in Roanoke. The Shadow team spoke to Scott Austin from Gentry Locke who is representing Joshua Barricks. Austin states the trial is set for October 1. We’ll have more coverage on this story shortly.
I’m out of time, and out of coffee, but make sure you stop by the Virginian Review’s open house this Thursday and pick up your “Shadow Knows” mug. I’m sure your significant other will love seeing my smiling face on your breakfast table each morning!
