Fourteen individuals, including two men accused of a daytime burglary and two other men implicated in a robbery, have been indicted by a New Kent Circuit Court grand jury. Convening on March 17, the grand jury indicted Eddie Lenard Akins, 19, of 3706 Vawter Ave. in Richmond, and Calvin Warren Knight, 21, of 2101 Beck Drive in Richmond, on one count each of burglary, grand larceny, and conspiracy to commit robbery in connection with a Jan. 18 break-in at a residence on Old River Road. The two men and a third suspect, Jessica Monique Mosley, 20, of 4204 Mylan Road…
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By a narrow 5-4 vote, New Kent’s Planning Commission is recommending that county supervisors turn thumbs down on a rezoning proposal that would pave the way for an equestrian-themed housing subdivision in Quinton. The commission’s March 17 decision came after the group defeated a motion by another 5-4 vote recommending supervisors take favorable action. At issue is an application to rezone from agriculture to single-family residential just over 95 acres owned by the Gooden family on the north side of Route 249, flanking Topeka Road. Developers Pete Sweet and Dennis Mouncastle propose to develop 16 lots with each having a…
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A New Kent County man indicted on two counts of aggravated sexual battery involving an underage girl has pleaded no contest to a lesser charge of felony child endangerment. Terry Lee Kramer, 51, of 11794 King’s Pond Road, Providence Forge, entered the plea as part of a plea deal reached on Monday in New Kent Circuit Court, averting a jury trial scheduled for the same day. One aggravated sexual battery charge was reduced to child endangerment while the second count was dropped. Following terms of the plea agreement, Judge Thomas B. Hoover suspended all of a three-year prison term. Kramer…
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Charles City’s School Board has denied a request from leaders of a yet to be built church to tap into the county school’s system’s water/sewer system. Last November, officials from Charles City Community Church approached board members concerning the proposal. Plans call for the church’s new home to be built on land directly across Route 155 from the school complex. During their March 18 meeting, board members voted 4-1 to reject the proposal. Henry Hollimon cast the lone dissenting vote. Board chairman Barbara Crawley said the board previously turned down two similar requests, citing anticipated growth at the school complex…
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A Charles City man, indicted on 15 felony sex charges involving underage girls, is scheduled to stand trial before a jury in county circuit court in June. Forrest Everett “Skeeter” Evans was scheduled for trial before Judge Thomas B. Hoover last Friday, but instead the defendant switched lawyers and requested a jury trial. Trial is now set for June 5. Evans, 74, of 5901 Courthouse Road, faces 10 counts of aggravated sexual battery and five counts of forcible sodomy. The charges stem from allegations in 2006 and 2007 involving two girls who were age seven and 10 at the time….
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A proposed fiscal 2009 budget of just under $54.2 million is under consideration by New Kent County’s Board of Supervisors. County Administrator John Budesky unveiled the figure, which is $2 million less than the current year’s $56.2 million budget, during a work session yesterday (Tuesday). The bottom line reflects belt-tightening that all state localities are experiencing. “This year we asked [county departments and agencies] for flat-funding and cut budgets,” he told supervisors, adding that more than $1.4 million in budget requests have already been trimmed. Budesky’s proposal includes a real estate tax rate of 72 cents per $100 of assessed…
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Computer images of children as young as toddlers engaging in sex acts with other children and adults are the basis of 34 felony child pornography charges leveled against a New Kent County man. Investigators have collected more than 3,700 images, most relating to child pornography, from computers seized at Michael J. Conyngham’s home. Also found were 17 movies depicting child porn. Conyngham, 56, of 5501 Ridgewood Drive, has been indicted on 30 counts of possession of child pornography and four counts of child pornography distribution by a New Kent Circuit Court grand jury. Sealed indictments were handed up by the…
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Thinking back to the end of last year, Chris Coleson confessed to being one miserable guy. At age 42, the New Kent County resident carried close to 300 pounds on his five-foot-eight frame. His cholesterol number pretty much equaled his weight, and his blood pressure had not yet reached a critical level but was dangerously close. Stressed out over 18- to 20-hour workdays, he appeared to be eating his way into oblivion. Not a rosy picture for someone with an athletic background in surfing, mountain biking, weightlifting, and soccer who now had difficulty tying his own shoes. Even the license…
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Digging themselves out of a 10-0 hole, Charles City’s host Panthers surged in front to stay in the second quarter on the way to turning back King & Queen’s Tigers 88-74 in the opening round of the Region A boys’ basketball tournament. The Panthers missed their first six shots from the floor as King & Queen’s Deante Holmes scored eight of his team’s points during the Tigers’ game opening run. “We came out lackadaisical,” Panther coach Brenner Carter said after the Feb. 25 contest. “We’ve got to play better than that in the first quarter.” And his team improved, closing…
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Despite a below par outing in the shooting category, Charles City’s host Lady Panthers held on for a 40-35 victory over West Point in the quarterfinal round of the Region A girls’ basketball tournament. The Feb. 26 decision thrust the fourth-seeded Lady Panthers into the semifinal round for a third meeting with Tri-Rivers District rival and top-ranked Franklin. It was also the third meeting of the season between the fifth-seeded Pointers and the Panthers who won both regular season encounters. Charles City led for most of the contest, but could never pull away from the Pointers thanks to shooting woes….
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