Renewing the spirit
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Richmond Free Press
VOL. 24 NO. 22
© 2015 Paradigm Communications, Inc. All rights reserved.
RICHMOND, VIRGINIA
www.richmondfreepress.com
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Former NFL pro head coach at George Wythe A8
MAY 28-30, 2015
The road back Stroke survivor counts blessings
Franklin P. Hall, former Richmond delegate, succumbs at 76
By Joey Matthews
DeTrease Harrison never considered herself to be a candidate for stroke. “I thought only old people had strokes,” the 45-year-old South Side resident said. Ms. Harrison suffered a debilitating stroke on May 15, 2014, in her home. “It happened during my sleep,” she recalled. “I was not aware of it.” “I got up to take a shower the next morning before work and fell. My mom called. I told her I had fallen and couldn’t get up. She said, ‘Don’t move. I’ll be right there.’ Instead, she dialed 911 and the paramedics broke into my house to save me.” Ms. Harrison spoke with a Free Press reporter last week Sandra Sellars/Richmond Free Press about her experience and recovery as National Stroke Stroke survivor DeTrease Harrison enjoys being back at work at Virginia Commonwealth University, where she has been assistant athletic director for business since 1994. Awareness Month winds down. The interview was held in her Ms. Harrison was rushed by ambulance to VCU Medical office at the Department of Athletics at Virginia Commonwealth University, where she has worked as assistant athletic director Center in Downtown, where she underwent surgery to remove a blood clot in her brain. for business since 1994. “My stroke was from a congenital heart defect that I didn’t Her workspace has been adapted to mitigate the paralysis that affects her left arm and hand. She also suffers from short-term know I had,” Ms. Harrison said she later learned. Dr. Yvette Johnson-Threat, chief medical officer at Bon Secours memory loss and struggles to maintain her focus. “I’ve learned it can happen to anyone at any age,” Ms. Har- Richmond Community Hospital in Church Hill and Memorial rison said of her stroke. “I had none of the usual risk factors.” Please turn to A4
Justice Dept. forces Cleveland police reform Free Press wire report
Can a police officer fire 15 shots into a car with two unarmed people inside and then be acquitted of criminal charges after their deaths? The answer is yes. Can another police officer get out of his vehicle and, two seconds later, fatally shoot a 12-year-old boy who has a pellet gun in his waistband — and not face swift arrest and prosecution? The answer again is yes. Both lethal incidents involved white Cleveland police officers involved in the fatal shootings of African-Americans. Crit-
ics point to both incidents as evidence of an out-of-control Cleveland police department that is targeting black citizens with excessive use of force. On Tuesday, the city of Cleveland and the U.S. Department of Justice announced an agreement on reforming the city’s troubled 1,500-member police department that includes improved training and policies on use of force and more sensitivity in dealing with the mentally ill. The agreement, which must be approved by a federal court judge, also calls for creation of a community police commission that is to Please turn to A5
By Jeremy M. Lazarus
He was considered the “happy warrior” of Richmond politics. Franklin Perkins “Frank” Hall, a silver-haired man with a ready smile and warm handshake, made friends with everyone he met — a trait that stood him in good stead during his 33 years in the Virginia General Assembly. The lifelong Democrat fought for Richmond and left his fingerprints on legislation and funding affecting public schools, affordable housing, higher education and a host of other issues — all while earning the respect of lawmakers on both sides of the aisle. Mr. Hall He was perhaps best known for pushing for the upgrade of community services for the mentally ill and reducing dependence on mental hospitals. He also was at the forefront in gaining funding to reduce high school dropout rates and in pushing to restore the voting and civil rights of released felons. During Mr. Hall’s tenure from 1976 to 2009 in the House, he rose to minority leader and also served as the ranking Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee, where he helped write the state’s budget. An expert on family law in his legal practice, he also was the founder of a savings and loan and a community Please turn to A4
GRTC adding unlimited rides By Jeremy M. Lazarus
Pay one fare and get unlimited bus rides for a day, a week or a month. That’s an option that cash-strapped GRTC expects to begin offering by the fall in a bid to pump up ridership. GRTC won a 9-0 vote Tuesday from Richmond City Council to inaugurate what is regarded as the biggest change in fare pricing since the start of public transit in the city. Once the system is in place, the charge for passes is to be $3.50 for unlimited rides for a day, $17.50 for unlimited rides for a week and $60 for unlimited rides each 30 days, according to the ordinance approved by the council. There also would be separate fare passes for commuters who take express buses, ride the Henrico 19 Pemberton bus or use the bus to attend special events. However, GRTC would not offer the unlimited ride option to those who use the door-to-door CARE van and CVan services. The purpose of the fare pass is to make the price of bus travel more attractive and induce more people to park their cars in favor of using the area’s public transportation system, according to GRTC. Riders could still pay the current base fare, $1.50 for a single, one-way ride and $2 for a single one-way express ride, according to the
ordinance. Qualifying senior citizens and disabled people would still pay half price, or 75 cents, for each one-way ride. The new fare pass system is to be launched in early October, according to GRTC spokeswoman Carrie Rose Pace. The pass approach will be tested during the world bike races coming to the city in September. People will be able buy an event pass and take unlimited GRTC bus rides for 11 days for just $35, the ordinance states. GRTC expects a majority of passengers, particularly regular riders, to quickly shift to buying the new passes because of the savings. Currently, riders must pay for each one-way trip on a bus, a practice that dates back to the streetcar era. Here’s why GRTC thinks the change will be embraced. Right now, a regular city rider pays a $1.50 fare, plus 25 cents for a transfer to catch a second bus, to complete a one-way trip. Thus, one roundtrip costs $3.50, including two transfers. One daily fare pass would equal the cost of one roundtrip. Anyone taking a second roundtrip would save money on a one-day pass if they don’t qualify for half-price tickets. Even better, riders could go elsewhere on the system without additional charge, allowing more freedom and Please turn to A4
Children’s hospital plan evaporates By Jeremy M. Lazarus
Paying homage
Pablo Martinez Monsivais/Associated Press
President Obama recognizes American service members who gave their lives for the nation during a Memorial Day ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery in Northern Virginia. The president places a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknowns with the assistance of Sgt. 1st Class John C. Wirth. Please see local coverage of Memorial Day events, Page B3.
Richmond will not be gaining an independent, free-standing children’s hospital — at least not in the near future. Two of the area’s largest hospital systems, Bon Secours and VCU, have pulled out of the huge project — just seven months after signing an agreement to participate in creating the projected $600 million children’s health center. The participation of the two systems, which handle about 75 percent of all pediatric hospitalizations in the region, was seen as key. Both nonprofit systems
would have had to agree to close most of their pediatric services and send patients to the new hospital for it to have a chance at success, consultants and others involved with the project indicated. In the end, neither nonprofit system was willing to mothball any of the children’s health services on which each had spent heavily to build up. Both ultimately agreed with Richmond’s third big hospital system, for-profit HCA, that centralizing services in one place is the wrong way to go. HCA, which operates six hospitals in the region, never supported the creation of such
a hospital and refused to participate in the planning. Whether Richmond needs such a hospital always has been a question, despite advocates’ certainty that the hospital project would allow the region to end its status as a place that sends young patients with complex problems out of town. All three hospital systems have poured more than $300 million during the past decade into hiring dozens of specialists and sub-specialists to improve the capacity to serve children’s needs and in beefing up facilities. Please turn to A4