News for New Kent County and Charles City County, Virginia | September 18, 2026
Local News
Discarded location for NK tennis courts returns as new favorite of school board members
An option that was once discarded as a new location for placement of new tennis courts for New Kent High School has returned. And now, that option is becoming a heavy favorite among New Kent School Board members after the board’s May 7 regular meeting. Superintendent of schools David Myers brought attention to the possibility of placing tennis courts behind the current high school towards the back of the field. While the superintendent didn’t favor the move at first, a recent visit on a Saturday afternoon has caused a change of heart. “Tim [Pollock-Director of Maintenance] and I went to…
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Felony charges incurred during 85-mile high-speed chase certified to New Kent grand jury
Five felony charges, lodged against a man who led police on an 85-mile chase at speeds often in excess of 100 miles per hour over roads in New Kent and Charles City counties, are being forwarded to a New Kent Circuit Court grand jury for possible indictments. Carl Byron Viar Jr., 25, of Amherst County, faced 18 charges in all (six each of felonies, misdemeanors, and traffic violations) in connection with the Jan. 2 incident when he appeared Tuesday for a preliminary hearing before Judge Stephanie E. Merritt in New Kent General District Court. At the conclusion, Merritt certified five…
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Hanover man facing felony sex charges in New Kent found competent to stand trial
A Hanover County man facing three felony sex crimes in New Kent allegedly involving an underage boy has been found competent to stand trial in county circuit court. Results of a psychiatric evaluation of the suspect, Darwin K. Noble, 73, of the 8100 block of Mechanicsville Turnpike in Mechanicsville, were revealed during Monday court proceedings. Noble is charged with two counts of taking indecent liberties with a child and one count of forcible sodomy. The charges stem from alleged incidents on June 6 and 7, 2014 involving an 11-year-old boy, who local authorities say is not a New Kent resident….
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Fire alarm hastens crowd’s exit following chorus concert at New Kent High School
Tuesday night’s combined middle school/high school chorus concert at New Kent High School may have brought down the house, but a fire alarm served to clear out the house. Shortly after 8 p.m. and just after the curtain came down on the concert inside the high school auditorium, the building’s fire alarm system activated, sounding an audible alarm and igniting strobe lights in every room and hallway throughout the school. The crowd of more than 200 along with dozens of student performers promptly left the building in an orderly manner and without incident. Most headed for their vehicles in the…
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Habitual offender receives one year in jail after accepting plea in Charles City
A Richmond man who was pulled over for failing to stop at a stop sign in Charles City will serve a year in jail after accepting a plea agreement. James Edward Williams Jr., 55, of the 1300 block of Bull Run Drive, entered a guilty plea to one count of driving as a habitual offender (fourth offense) during May 5 proceedings in Charles City Circuit Court. In a summary of evidence, a Charles City deputy observed a vehicle failing to come to a halt at the intersection of Wayside and Roxbury Road on Feb. 4. After a traffic stop, the…
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Victim in fatal semi-truck wreck on Interstate 64 identified
Virginia State Police have released the name of the driver of a 2005 Freightliner tractor-trailer that resulted in a fatality during an Apr. 22 accident on Interstate 64 in New Kent. Investigators identified Mark B. Stone, 51, of Garland, Texas as the driver of the vehicle. Stone was operating a truck westbound on Interstate 64 near Exit 220 (West Point) just before 8 p.m. when it veered off the left side of the road, striking a tree and partially overturning. The accident resulted in diesel fuel spilled and fiberglass on the highway, closing the left lane. Stone was pronounced dead…
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Headbutt to New Kent deputy lands Charles City man 40-month prison sentence
A Charles City man whose actions resulted in the injury of a New Kent deputy will now serve the next 40 months behind prison bars. Michael Leeton Moore, 29, of the 4500 block of Barnetts Road, was found guilty on one count of assault and battery on a law enforcement officer during a May 4 trial in New Kent Circuit Court. Last December 4, New Kent officers responded to a domestic dispute at a house in the Chickahominy Shores subdivision, located in the Lanexa part of New Kent. Deputies Wyatt Johnston and Brandon Jenkins responded around 6 p.m., locating Moore…
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Iowa suspects arrested in New Kent for kidnapping accept plea deal in federal court
Two Iowa residents who were involved in a kidnapping case that resulted in their arrest in New Kent accepted a plea deal during federal court proceedings on May 1. Aldair Hodza, 36, and Laura Evelene Sorenson, 31, both entered guilty pleas to one count each of interstate transportation of a person for prostitution, and sex trafficking by force, fraud/or coercion in Richmond. On Jan. 6, an alert truck driver noticed suspicious activity in the parking lot of the Pilot truck stop on Route 106 near the Interstate 64 Talleysville Interchange around 3 p.m. New Kent sheriff’s dispatchers said the truck…
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Down payment of $800,000 to support New Kent emergency radio system; county hires firm for attorney purposes
New Kent supervisors have opted for an $800,000 buy-in as a down payment to the Harris Corporation to help with start-up of an emergency communications system. Using money from the Fund 7 account (reserved account for capital improvement), supervisors chose the plan over two other options to support construction of the radio grid during Wednesday morning’s work session. The county is expected to borrow no more than $4.85 million from C&F Bank to support the project. At the March work session, county leaders elected to negotiate with Harris Corporation to help construct an emergency grid after talks to join the…
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Cards not in favor for duo convicted in New Kent for smuggling drugs in jail
Sometimes in a game of poker, a person has to learn how to play with the cards that are dealt to them. Unfortunately for a former girlfriend and boyfriend, it was playing cards that led to multiple convictions in New Kent Circuit Court. Reginald Jarone Carter, 43, and Lori Kay Moore, 41, both who currently reside in Henrico Jail East, received guilty verdicts in a contested joint trial during Monday proceedings. Last October, officers at Henrico Jail East received information that drugs were being brought into the jail from outside sources. Carter, who was an inmate, became a target of…
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