RIGHT-FOOTED WONDER: Paralympic soccer star Nick Mayhugh attended Patriot High. Page 9
July 24, 2019 | Vol. 18, No. 30 | www.princewilliamtimes.com | 50¢ Covering Prince William County and surrounding communities, including Gainesville, Haymarket, Dumfries, Occoquan, Quantico and the cities of Manassas and Manassas Park.
Crime rate down in 2018, but overdoses, DUIs on the rise By Daniel Berti
Times Staff Writer
Prince William County Police Chief Barry Barnard
Prince William’s overall crime rate fell by about 1% in 2018, while overdose deaths, murders, assaults on police officers and DUI arrests were on the rise, Police Chief Barry Barnard announced last week. Barnard released the police department’s 2018 Crime Report at an afternoon news conference Thursday, July 18.
‘A lot of people loved this kid’
The overall crime rate was 12.9 crimes per 1,000 Prince William residents in 2018, down from 14 crimes per 1,000 residents in 2017. Murders, rapes, aggravated assaults, robberies, burglaries, car thefts and larcenies are used to calculate crime rates. “Prince William County has been a safe community, and continues to be a safe community,” Barnard said. “We’re an important element of keeping Prince William safe but
there are a lot of stakeholders, and that’s what it takes today … It’s not just us.” While the overall crime rate has dropped, crime in some categories has increased significantly in the last year. Overdose deaths rose 11.3%, with 59 deaths in 2018, up from 53 in 2017. There were 50 opioid overdoses in 2018, and of those, 40 were fentanyl overdoses. See CRIME, page 4
Manassas mourns loss of popular teen rapper, Malikyh Person By Jill Palermo
Times Staff Writer
It was a standing-room-only crowd at Osbourn High School last Friday afternoon, as hundreds gathered to say goodbye to Malikyh Person, a 17-year-old who was killed by accidental gunfire July 10 in his home in the City of Manassas. They came to mourn and celebrate Malikyh, a rising senior and aspiring rap artist better known to his friends and many fans as “Lil Black.” Another teen, a 17-year-old family friend, was charged July 12 with involuntary manslaughter in connection with his death.
On a scorching afternoon in the midst of summer break, teens returned to the City of Manassas’ only high school by the dozens, many wearing T-shirts with Malikyh’s picture and the initials “LLB,” for “long live Black,” or the words, “In Black we trust.” During the two-hour service, friends and family members told stories about Malikyh’s “goofy” sense of humor, his affection for his friends and relatives and his dreams of someday making it big as a professional rapper or music producer. During a July 15 interview at the Persons’ Diane Court home, Malikyh’s mother, Danielle Person, said INSIDE Calendar.............................................11 Classified............................................14 Lifestyle..............................................10
TIMES STAFF PHOTO/JILL PALERMO
Malikyh Person’s mother, Danielle Person, right, and his older brother, Kenny Person, left, hold a poster with Malikyh’s photo made by one of Malikyh’s friends. her youngest son had been writing and performing his own rap songs for a little more than a year. For his 17th birthday, she said, she started buying him Obituaries...........................................13 Opinion.................................................8 Real Estate..........................................12 Sports...................................................9
the recording equipment he needed to launch his own basement studio. See MALIKYH, page 2
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