News for New Kent County and Charles City County, Virginia | October 4, 2025
Local News
Fire destroys home in Charles City
A fire engulfed a home in Charles City Monday afternoon. Flames broke out at the residence at the 8200 block of Little Elam Road in Charles City. The structure and personal items inside were destroyed. No one was hurt as a result of the fire. Charles City and Henrico Fire Departments responded to the call. Cause of the fire remains under investigation.
Farms of New Kent PUD amendment passed by supervisors 4-1
A Planned Unit Development (PUD) amendment for the Farms of New Kent that underwent nearly three years of work, negotiations, and meetings received approval from county supervisors after additional conditions and terms were agreed upon. New Kent leaders voted 4-1 to approve the submitted PUD amendment after deferring the item for 90 days back in Dec. 2017. Only District 5 representative Ray Davis voted against the approval as part of Tuesday’s regularly scheduled board meeting. At the Dec. 2017 meeting, Director of Community Development Matthew Smolnik presented the proposal that divided 2,230 acres into five land bays. The original PUD…
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Bodies of lost men recovered from James River
The bodies of two men, including a Charles City man, have been recovered from the James River. The remains of Kyle Englehart, 29, of Charles City, was located on the shores of the James River in Surry County on Mar. 9. The body of Brian Austin Savage, 20, of Henrico, was recovered on Mar. 4 in the James River in Isle of Wight. Both men disappeared on Jan. 3 in James City County as they were using a boat to get a duck blind on Jamestown Island. Virginia’s Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, federal, state, and local authorities combed…
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Henrico Jail East escapee sentenced to 15-year prison term
A New Kent man who escaped from Henrico Jail East received a 15-year prison sentence as part of afternoon proceedings in New Kent Circuit Court. Howard Allen Groffel, 52, received formal sentencing after being convicted on 15 charges during a Dec. 21, 2017 trial. During that trial, proceedings revealed that after being transported to Henrico Jail East and held on charges, Groffel walked down a corridor to the magistrate’s office waiting area. The defendant hit a buzzer and was granted access into the office area. The defendant pressed another button and access was gained to the main lobby. From there,…
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Providence Forge woman admits guilt to stealing power tools
A Providence Forge woman admitted guilt to grand larceny as part of a Mar. 9 plea agreement in Charles City Circuit Court. Kittie Ann Curtiss, 36, entered a guilty plea to one count of grand larceny as part of the case. One count each of obtaining money by false pretenses and intent to sell stolen property were dropped as part of the agreement. In a summary of evidence provided by Commonwealth’s Attorney Rob Tyler, on May 25, 2017, Robert Woodall noticed several items missing form his construction company’s shop. A few months passed before authorities located a person who had…
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Charles City leaders search for ways to address emergency needs
With fire and EMS being a priority in its upcoming budget, Charles City’s Board of Supervisors looked for ways to address the critical need. But in order to know what they are working with, they received feedback during a Mar. 7 work session. Steve Wood of Emergency Transport Services (ETS) provided county leaders with insight of the difficulties that both firefighters and EMS workers face in Charles City. In his 15-minute presentation, Wood presented statistics that showed the difficulty for county emergency services received last year. According to his presentation, Charles City placed 79 calls for mutual aid to assist…
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Additional charges lodged against Charles City man for sex crimes
More allegations of sex crimes by a Charles City man were certified by a grand jury during Tuesday morning proceedings in Charles City Circuit Court. Rodney Johnson, 52, of the 9500 block of Lewis Tyler Lane, was indicted on six counts each of forcible sodomy and aggravated sexual battery. The events allegedly took place between 1996-2002. In December, Johnson was indicted on eight counts of sexual batter with a minor under the age of 13, six counts of sodomy with a minor under the age of 13, and two counts of sexual penetration with an object. Johnson’s trial from the…
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Two convicted for attempting to smuggle drugs inside Henrico Jail East in New Kent
Two individuals who attempted to smuggle drugs into Henrico Jail East in New Kent accepted the terms of separate plea agreements during Monday afternoon proceedings in New Kent Circuit Court. Otis Jeffrey Fleming, 52, currently of Henrico Jail East, and Cristina Marie Taliaferro, 29, of Richmond, each entered guilty pleas to charges stemming from the same incident. Fleming plead guilty to one county of attempting to deliver drugs to a prisoner, with a conspiracy charge of attempting to deliver drugs to a prisoner was dropped as part of the plea deal. Taliaferro entered guilty pleas to amended misdemeanor charges of…
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County decal on verge of elimination in New Kent
New Kent’s Board of Supervisors is discussing the possibility of eliminating the county decal. New Kent County Administrator Rodney Hathaway presented the proposal at Wednesday’s morning work session. With new state law requiring inspection stickers to be moved to the left side of the windshield, Hathaway said that under county code, the county decal would have to be placed adjacent to it. “The result of moving the decal would require a lot of people to come in and get a new one and for us to place orders for them,” the county administrator said. New Kent is one of two…
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Charles City school board pitches proposed budget to county supervisors
After approving its $10.8 million budget at its Feb. 20 meeting, Charles City school board presented the figure to county leaders as part of Tuesday night’s regular board meeting. Led by superintendent of schools David Gaston and school board chairwoman Helen Payne-Jones, the Powerpoint presentation highlighted a budget of need by the schools. Gaston spoke about the ongoing struggles of providing an accurate budget and having to request more money at the local level as state and federal funding continues to dwindle. When it came to county funding, the superintendent presented an ask of $6,018,471 in local money. That request…
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