<sh>Bank Robbery Charges Dropped
<bt>On May 24, Fairfax County police charged Christopher J. Jackson, 40, of Alexandria with two counts of robbery. They accused him of the July 8, 2006 robbery of the Chevy Chase Bank inside the Giant Foods store in the Colonnade at Union Mill Shopping Center.
They also believed he was responsible for a similar robbery in Springfield. However, Jackson is now out from under that cloud. On July 31 in General District Count, before Judge Mitchell Mutnick, both charges against him were dropped.
<36hd>DWI Charge Against Local Woman Dropped
<bt>On April 13, Fairfax County police charged a Fairfax woman with DWI in connection with a crash in which a Pennsylvania man was killed. The incident occurred that morning, just north of the Fairfax Towne Center.
According to police, while the man, 23, was standing outside his vehicle exchanging information with a Herndon woman, 41 — with whom he'd just been involved in a minor crash on West Ox Road — Penderwood's Corbin Flynn, 27, allegedly struck both drivers with her SUV.
The man, Stephen D. Santoso, was Medivaced to Inova Fairfax Hospital, where he died of his injuries, two days later. Meanwhile, police charged Flynn with DWI. Last Thursday, Aug. 9, she appeared in General District Court before Judge Stewart Davis, and her charge was dropped.
<sh>Three Charged with DWI
<bt>Fairfax County police officers from around the county conducted a sobriety checkpoint last weekend to deter and apprehend intoxicated drivers. From Friday, Aug. 10 at midnight until Saturday, Aug. 11 at 3 a.m., motorists were stopped and drivers were checked to make sure their abilities to drive had not been impaired by drugs or alcohol.
Approximately 510 motorists were stopped in the westbound lanes of Route 50 near the Rugby Road intersection. Police charged three people with DWI (driving while intoxicated) and two with possession of marijuana.
They also issued six traffic summonses: One for driving on a revoked license (DUI related), three for not having a driver's license with them, one for not having a license at all, and one for having an expired inspection sticker. Eight officers and four auxiliary police officers participated in the checkpoint.
<sh>WFCCA Land-Use Meeting
<bt>A bank and a land swap are on the upcoming agenda of the West Fairfax County Citizens Association (WFCCA) Land-Use Committee. The members will meet Tuesday, Aug. 21, at 7 p.m. in the Sully District Governmental Center, 4900 Stonecroft Blvd. in Chantilly.
* They'll receive an update on Commerce Bank's plan to build a new branch in Chantilly. Proposed is a 3,400-square-foot building at Walney Road and Route 50 on the site of the existing Anita's restaurant.
* The panelists will also hear details about an acre-for-acre, land swap being proposed between a developer and the county Park Authority. The land is along Old Centreville Road, and the developer wants to construct an office building on it.
<sh>Sully District Council Mtg.
<bt>The Sully District Council of Citizens Associations and its Land-Use and Transportation Committee will meet Wednesday, Aug. 22 at 7:30 p.m. The meeting will be in the Sully District Governmental Center, 4900 Stonecroft Blvd. in Chantilly. Call Jeff Parnes, evenings, at 703-904-0131.
<sh>Park Authority to Meet
<bt>The next meeting of the Fairfax County Park Authority will be Wednesday, Aug. 22, at 7:30 p.m., at the Herrity Building, 12055 Government Center Parkway, Suite 900, in Fairfax. Call Judy Pedersen at 703-324-8662.
<sh>Free Carseat Inspections
<bt>Certified technicians from the Sully District Police Station will perform free, child safety carseat inspections, Thursday, Aug. 23, and Tuesday, Aug. 28, from 5-8:30 p.m. each day, at the station, 4900 Stonecroft Blvd. in Chantilly. They’ll make sure the carseat is correct for the child’s age, height and weight, the child is securely placed in the seat, and the seat is properly installed in the vehicle.
No appointment is necessary. But residents should install the child safety seats themselves, so the technicians may properly inspect and make adjustments, as necessary. Call the Sully District Child Seat Information line (703-814-7000, ext. 5140) to confirm dates and times. For additional child seat inspection times throughout Fairfax County, call the Fairfax County Operations Support Bureau at 703-280-0559.
Note: The new, Virginia child-passenger law requires all children under 8 to be properly restrained in a child safety seat or booster seat. However, those 8 or older should continue using booster seats if they're shorter than 4 feet 9 inches.
<sh>Blood Donations are Sought
<bt>The Inova Blood Donor Center in the Centremed I Building on Route 29 in Centreville (across from the Centreville Multiplex Cinemas) is in urgent need of blood donations — especially O positive or negative, as well as A and B. They're accepted Tuesday-Friday, noon-8 p.m., and Saturday, 8 a.m.-2 p.m. For an appointment to give blood, call 703-322-1970, or drop in at your own convenience.
<sh>Role Models for Children
<bt>Volunteers are needed throughout Northern Virginia to be positive role models for children who currently have an incarcerated parent. Mentors meet with children two hours per week. Weekly meetings are supplemented by monthly group recreational activities. The only qualification required is a desire to help a child in need.
To sign up for the mentor training session at the Center for Multicultural Human Services in Falls Church, call Ellen Klene, Volunteer Program manager, at 703-533-3302, ext. 107, or see www.cmhs.org.
<sh>Meals on Wheels Needs Drivers
<bt>The Fairfax Area Agency on Aging "Meals on Wheels" program is in immediate need of drivers to deliver meals, Monday through Friday, to senior adults living in Fairfax County. Volunteers who speak Vietnamese are also needed.
The job involves picking up meals at specified sites between 10:30 a.m.-noon and delivering them to seniors by 1 p.m. Drivers may choose to deliver meals on a daily, weekly, biweekly, monthly or substitute basis. Call the Fairfax AAA Volunteer Intake Line at 703-324-5406 or e-mail melanie.mitchell@fairfaxcounty.gov.