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T he
King George
Volume 40, Number 31
Wednesday, August 3, 2016 50 Cents
helping you relate to your community
Way seems clear to tighten fracking rules Phyllis Cook
Photo by Richard Leggitt
A crabby crowd
A crowd of King George residents turned out for Saturday's crab fest fundraiser hosted by the King George Builders' Association. The popular event was held at the King George Family YMCA.
Victim becomes convict in robbery Cousin killed in 2014 incident; man gets prison for Sept. crime Richard Leggitt
Gregory Gaines, a 22-year-old King George man who was the victim in a robbery last year that took the life of his cousin, was himself convicted of robbery last week and sentenced to prison. King George Circuit Judge Patricia Kelly sentenced Gaines to five years in the penitentiary, but suspended all but one year and 10 months.
Prosecutors said Gaines was one of three people involved in a robbery last September at the Princess Anne Trailer Park. King George Commonwealth's Attorney Keri Gusmann said Gaines and two brothers. Deandre Reynolds, 19, and James Lee Reynolds, 15, approached a home of a 56-year-old trailer park resident. Gaines approached the victim and lured him outside his home. His two accomplices then attacked the resident, knocking him to the ground. The trio of robbers then stole the vic-
With its members leery of natural gas drilling in the county, the King George Board of Supervisors will hold public hearings Aug. 16 for tightening guidelines in its Comprehensive Plan for Land Use and to provide stricter rules in its zoning ordinance in regard to oil and gas drilling in the county. That was decided during a meeting on July 19 when the topic of fracking came up on the agenda. Gas drilling in shale deposits is nicknamed ‘fracking.’ It’s the current method of drilling for natural gas by high-pressure injection of chemicals and large amounts of water through a very long pipe into shale rock formations thousands of feet underground and through the aquifer, creating cracks in ancient shale beds to allow the extraction of natural gas. The topic was on the agenda as a discussion item, which drew comments by three members of the public, with resident Jim Lynch urging stricter rules to avoid deleterious effects on the quality of life in King George, and resident Citlali Niznik going a step further. “Please do not allow this menace to come to our county,” Niznik said, ticking off various concerns including contamination of the aquifer, which is the sole source of the county’s potable water. Stafford resident and conservation chairman for the Rappahannock Sierra Club, Bill Johnson, also suggested banning it. When the September 2015 hearings took place, which drew about 25 speakers with all but two against it, Supervisors Richard Granger and John Jenkins were not on the board, having been elected last November. Like the other board members, the two do not appear to be in favor of fracking in King George, with both making brief comments following public comment time. “I appreciate and I hold many of the concerns that you do about fracking,” Granger said. Jenkins said he agreed. “I certainly agree with a lot of the comments related to fracking. Our actions concerning fracking are cer-
African-American trail meeting set Bunche school site is under consideration for recognition Phyllis Cook
A discussion about gathering information for mapping an African-American Education Trail in the Northern Neck will take place 10 to 11:30 a.m. Aug. 18 in meeting room B at the Smoot Memorial Library in King George. Lisa Hull, economic development and tourism coordinator for the Northern Neck Planning District Commission, said this is the first of subsequent meetings to be held in other counties of the Northern Neck. The Northern Neck Tourism Commission is
See Sentence, page 8
See trail, page 8
Photo by Phyllis Cook
The Ralph Bunche High School building is one of the sites under consideration for a proposed Northern Neck African-American history trail.
Nice is new vice principal at Potomac ES Phyllis Cook
Photo by Phyllis Cook
Carey Nice is the new vice principal at Potomoac Elementary School
tainly a work in progress,” Jenkins said. “However we are certainly not standing pat as you will see as we move forward here this evening.” Later in the meeting, county attorney Eric Gregory provided an update about why the board had not taken action last September. “That was largely out of deference to the Commonwealth’s Department of Mines Minerals and Energy’s ongoing review of its gas and oil regulations,” Gregory said. He said he’d previously expected those regulations would be finalized in August or September. But now that has changed with the state engaging a third-party consultant, called STRONGER to perform another review of the state’s draft regulations for oil and gas drilling in this part of the state. STRONGER is an acronym for ‘State Review of Oil and Natural Gas Environmental Regulations.’ Its website says it was formed in 1999 as an independent organization existing to review oil and gas state regulations. Gregory said it’s not known how long this new review process will take, saying it will include some meetings in Abingdon next month. “We don’t know exactly how that’s going to work. Portions of that review will apparently be open to the public and portions will not. And we don’t know what impact that review will have on the current regulatory review process,” Gregory said. “With no end in sight to that process, I would strongly advise you go through the public hearing process again and readvertise the proposals.” Supervisors set the Aug. 16 date. Supervisors have said they want the county to have the proposed ordinance changes in place in case a driller files an application prior to the state completing its own regulatory process. Chairwoman Ruby Brabo agreed the planned adoption of the county’s current proposals would at least put some protections in place, with the potential for a further review following new regulations coming down from the state whenever that takes place.
Casey Nice is the new assistant principal of Potomac Elementary School. The action by the King George School Board became effective on July 1 at a salary of $78,617. The slower summer pace has given him the time to settle in and begin partnering with Principal Angie Harris and making plans for the upcoming school year. Nice has also repainted his office a calming shade of blue and done some decorating. Now he’s looking forward to teachers and other staff coming in, followed by students returning to school. “Although I am new to Potomac Elementary School, I have received such a warm welcome that I already feel like a part of the family,” Nice said.
“I am very excited for our teachers to return, but I can't wait to see our students’ smiling faces on Aug. 15. This is going to be another great year at Potomac and I'm so fortunate to have the opportunity to help our students learn and grow.” Nice is new to Potomac but not to the King George school division. He’s been the special education secondary program specialist for the division since 2013. Superintendent Rob Benson spoke about the appointment. “Mr. Nice is a very accomplished and caring professional who is a champion of quality learning and opportunity for all children,” Benson said. “His enthusiasm and extensive knowledge of teaching and learning, in particular his expertise in special education, will serve the students,
Bond for woman in OD case Manslaughter charge for selling fatal dose Richard Leggitt
Judge Herbert Hewitt denied efforts by the King George Commonwealth's Attorney's Office last week to revoke the bond for Mary Evelyn Trainum, arrested earlier this month hiding in a shed in Westmoreland County and charged with involuntary manslaughter in connection with the drug death of a King George man. Hewitt said he was uncomfortable with revoking the $10,000 bond since Trainum did not have an attorney present. Hewitt allowed Trainum to remain free, but ordered her to obtain an attorney and to return to court on Sept. 15 for an additional hearing on the bond issue. King George Deputy Common-
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wealth's Attorney Charlie Clark said prosecutors were seeking to revoke Trainum's bond because she "eluded police and lied to them about her whereabouts. She had family and friends lie about her whereabouts. And, when detectives found her hiding in a shed in Westmoreland County, she actively resisted arrest." Trainum, 53, was indicted by a King George County Grand Jury in connection with the death of a 26-year-old man who died of a fatal drug overdose. In addition to involuntary manslaughter, Trainum is charged with illegally distributing drugs.