News for New Kent County and Charles City County, Virginia | February 16, 2026
Local News
South Carolina man hit with 18-month jail sentence for eluding New Kent police
A South Carolina man will spend a year-and-a-half in jail after pleading guilty to a 2018 traffic offense. Jonathan C. Long, 39, of the 600 block of Muckerman Road, Bennettsville, entered a guilty plea to one count each of felony eluding of police and an amended charge of misdemeanor failure to appear (originally felony failure to appear) as part of an agreement reached Monday in New Kent Circuit Court. One charge of misdemeanor driving without a license was dropped as part of the plea deal. In a summary of evidence provided by Commonwealth Attorney Scott Renick, on July 27, 2018,…
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Providence Forge man receives six months in jail for failing to register as sex offender
A Providence Forge man will spend six months in jail for failing to register as a sex offender following Friday morning proceedings in Charles City Circuit Court. Adam Michael Sullivan, 36, of the 11000 block of Canora Lane, entered a no contest plea to one count of failing to register as a Tier III sex offender (second offense) during his Mar. 1 trial. A no contest plea means that evidence presented in the case would be enough to convict him of the crime. At that trial, information presented showed that Sullivan had failed to register with the national database in…
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Henrico man dies in New Kent motorcycle accident
A Henrico man has died as the result of a May 31 accident in New Kent County. Walter McCormick Jr., 77, died at the scene of the accident on New Kent Highway. According to a Virginia State Police report, a 2006 Harley-Davidson was traveling on Route 249 (New Kent Highway) when it ran off the road to the right and struck a fire hydrant and culvert just east of Dispatch Road. The driver was thrown from the motorcycle and died on the scene. McCormick was wearing a helmet at the time of the crash. The accident remains under investigation.
Charles City School Board adopts FY2022-23 budget with reduced county funding
Charles City County High School’s School Board adopted their 2022-23 budget during a special meeting Friday evening. School board officials voted 4-0 to adopt a local contribution of $5,486,095 for the upcoming fiscal year. Prior to the vote, school board members heard a presentation from Superintendent of Schools Dalphine Joppy about the change in local dollars. Charles City County’s Board of Supervisors chose to reduce their original recommended amount of $6,018,997 to the new amount at their May 24 regular meeting, citing the dwindling enrollment in school population. Both boards have commented publicly that the budgets may change due to…
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Charles City Volunteer Fire and EMS, on the precipice with county, may terminate services by Dec. 2022
Charles City County’s Volunteer Fire Department’s time to serving the county may be coming to an end. Charles City’s Volunteer Fire and EMS Department is expected to have their designation of providing services terminated by the end of December 2022. News on the revocation arrived by notification to the department prior to Tuesday’s board of supervisors meeting. That prompted a response from two individuals who represented the volunteer squad. Chris Carroll, the chief of Charles City County Volunteer’s Fire and EMS Department, approached county supervisors during the public comment period voicing concerns about information he had received from the county…
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Charles City Board of Supervisors approve budget; funding for schools reduced
Charles City County’s Board of Supervisors approved their budget for the FY2022-23 year, but one group was visibly upset after the revisions. Disgruntled looks on the faces of Charles City School Board members and staff revealed the displeasure of reducing their original local monetary budget of $6,018,997 to $5,486,095, a reduction of more than half-a-million dollars. The school originally requested $6,268,997 for operations. The decision to reduce the school’s budget came as the result of several work sessions. According to a presentation by District 2 Supervisor Bill Coada, the school’s funding for Capital Improvement Projects in the last seven years…
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Cocaine distribution nets Barhamsville woman four-year prison term
A Barhamsville woman will spend the next four years in prison for distributing cocaine in New Kent County. Shannon Inez Berkley, 45, of the 13000 block of Farmer’s Drive, entered guilty pleas to two amended charges of distributing a controlled substance (originally distributing a controlled substance- second offense) as part of a plea agreement during Monday morning proceedings in New Kent Circuit Court. One charge each of distributing a controlled substance (second offense), possession of a Schedule I/II drug, and misdemeanor possession of drug paraphernalia were dropped as part of the agreement. In a summary of evidence provided by Commonwealth…
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Yorktown teenager indicted on involuntary manslaughter charge by New Kent grand jury
A teenager who allegedly led a chase through New Kent County during the early morning hours on Oct. 24, 2021, has been formally indicted on an involuntary manslaughter charge. Jahreese Ray’sea Watson-Ricks, 19, of the 500 block of Arabian Circle, Yorktown, was indicted on one charge each of involuntary manslaughter, destruction of property, and felony eluding of police. In a Oct. 2021 press release, around 12:53 a.m. a trooper observed a white Infiniti sedan traveling 100 miles per hour in a posted 70 miles per hour zone at mile marker 211 eastbound on Interstate 64 in New Kent. After noticing…
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Proposal for drug rehabilitation center denied in New Kent
A proposal to bring up a drug rehabilitation center to New Kent has been denied by county leaders. New Kent supervisors voted 4-1 to prevent the construction of a faith recovery center at the former location of Mackemie Woods during Monday night’s meeting. News of the proposal came out early, with many locals objecting to the location, 3700 Ropers Church Road, and need of the facility within county boundaries. Many feared that the center would bring more drugs into the county and expose more of the population. At New Kent’s Planning Commission meeting, commissioners voted 8-1 with a non-favorable recommendation….
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Charles City School Board has reservations about regional wastewater treatment plant
With wastewater treatment plants needing replacement at both the Charles City County Administration Building Complex and Charles City County Public Schools Complex, a proposal during an April joint session between the county’s board of supervisors and school board would see a regional wastewater facility be constructed on school property. But during a May 5 meeting with school leaders, there were more questions than answers that needed concrete solutions before making such a commitment. Charles City school’s Director of Operations Jerome Tyler provided information regarding the operations of the school’s wastewater facility. He expressed concerns to the school board about making…
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