INSIDE Ice fishing a big hit in Goochland
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Volume 57, Number 5 • February 3, 2011
School Board approves higher budget
Inmate at Goochland women’s prison dies in apparent accident By Ken Odor jodor@goochlandgazette.com
Photo by Ken Odor
Director of Finance and Operations Ernie McLeod puts pen to paper as Director of Secondary Education, Tom De Weerd, watches him work on the final budget numbers after the board added several items to the school budget at last week’s School Board meeting.
unanimously last week to tack on another $211,000 to a budget already more Goochland School than $700,000 higher than Board members voted what the county adminisBy Ken Odor jodor@goochlandgazette.com
INDEX
Calendar Classifieds Education Letters
16 17-19 2 6
News Opinion Sports TV Listings
4 6 13 14-16
tration had requested. School Superintendent “We’re going to take a Linda Underwood, as risk of making some peo- board members prepared ple angry if we put these see Board > page 2 things in,” said Goochland
SPORTS Supporters and teammates shear-on Adam Maguire > page 13
An inmate at the Virginia Correctional Center for Women has died as the result of an apparent accident Jan. 26 at the facility. “At about 4 p.m. yesterday afternoon Virginia Correctional Enterprise employees were conducting repairs on some of the commercial laundry equipment at Virginia Correctional Center for Women. An inmate was trapped underneath a piece of equipment that apparently fell accidentally,” said Department of Corrections Spokesman Larry Traylor. The inmate was identified as Amy Teresa Madsen, 43, serving a 21-year sentence for attempted capital murder, robbery, burglary and traffic offenses in Chesapeake and Portsmouth. Facility medical staff responded and fire and rescue units were called. Madsen was transported to VCU Medical Center where she was pronounced dead at 5:40 p.m., said Traylor. Offenders were evacuated from the laundry and the facil-
T H E
ity was locked down as a security precaution, said Traylor. Next of kin have been notified. An investigation is underway, said Traylor and a DOC crisis response team is on site. Several former prisoners at the 600-inmate facility who worked in the laundry with Madsen said last week that prisoners there have long complained about unsafe conditions including the piece of equipment that fell. Traylor would not comment on their allegations. But, he said, “indications are this was an accident and we are investigating this incident thoroughly to ensure we are providing a safe environment for our staff and inmates.” Traylor said the prison is certified by the Virginia Board of Corrections and “every area of the facility where inmates live and work is given a monthly health and safety inspection.” Reached by telephone, Jessica R. Davis, 29, of Hampton, said she worked in the washroom where the accident occurred and that the piece of equipment that see Madsen > page 3
L O C A L
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