New Mayoral Fundraising Numbers, Another Fraternity Suspended, and License Plate Readers
Cheers RVA!
Today will be cloudy with potential rain in the morning and thunderstorms in the afternoon, with a high of 75 and a low of 66. Dark sky bike as you will.
the juice:
The most recent mayoral campaign fundraising numbers have been filed and are available to the public via vpap.org.
Danny Avula raised the largest amount of funds between July 1 - August 30, totaling more than the other four candidates combined in that period.
Below are the current totals raised and cash on hand:
In past mayoral elections fundraising was not necessarily the determinant of the winner, but often a major factor.
A candidate must win the most votes in five of the nine districts to be declared the winner. Otherwise, the top two candidates will face-off in a runoff election six weeks after election day.
The Richmonder provides a more in-depth analysis here.
the pulp:
The Scott’s Addition Mayoral Town Hall will be tomorrow from 6 PM at The Chapel. (The Mayoral forum held on Southside last night was standing room only, via Graham Moomaw on X.)
VCU’s Kappa Sigma Fraternity has been suspended through the end of the spring 2028 semester for misconduct.
The Virginia Department of Education has issued their final guidance on Cell Phone-Free Education pursuant to the Governor’s executive order. While many students have expressed interest in being able to use their phones during lunch, as is the current policy at some RPS schools, the guidance calls for “bell-to-bell” cell phone-free education for all K-12 students. There are slight differences in the policy for elementary, middle and high school students regarding after-school activities. Students are required to use school-based communication tools and platforms to communicate with parents in non-emergency situations.
Two concerts have been cancelled at the last minute at Virginia Credit Union Live! Both Megadeth and Peter Frampton have cancelled just hours before the show over the past few days, via channel 6.
the dive:
Henrico license plate readers have generated over 30k alerts on its 87 cameras since January of 2024, from the RTD.
Henrico County first purchased 50 cameras from Operator Flock, which provides license plate readers (LPR’s) to over 1400 cities across the country. The county has been able to purchase additional cameras at $2500 per camera per year.
The cameras can be mounted on vehicles or posted along roadways.
Richmond and Chesterfield also use LPR’s, with the City of Richmond currently operating 97.
Flock systems hold data for up to 30 days before it is wiped, according to the company.
The cameras are not without controversy and evidence collected has been interpreted differently by various judges in the Commonwealth.
In May, a Norfolk judge suppressed evidence from a case that was gathered using Flock plate readers. Judge Jamilah LeCruise wrote that the “prolonged tracking of public movements with surveillance” invades a citizen’s expectation of privacy, therefore should require a warrant.
Officers in that case made an arrest based on Flock evidence without getting a warrant.
Meanwhile, the same issue was raised with two other circuit court judges in Norfolk and Chesterfield. Judges in those cases said plate readers were not a privacy violation and did not require a warrant for police to investigate.
Chris Kaiser, policy director of the ACLU of Virginia, notes there is nothing inherently wrong with the technology, but says the lack of regulation on usage is problematic.
The issue is being studied by the Virginia Crime Commission and findings will be reported during the 2025 General Assembly session.
Read the full article here.
the vibe:
A view from Grace St. park via KikoTheWonderful on reddit.
Have a graceful day RVA!
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