Arlingtonians could have an update on the results of the Arlington County Board Democratic primary as soon as this afternoon, according to the local elections office.
“We will be accepting about 500 mail and provisional ballots today and results will be uploaded throughout the afternoon,” says spokeswoman Tania Griffin. “We’ll also have an update regarding the [ranked-choice voting] tabulation later this afternoon as well.”
Another Push to Remove Lee’s Name — “Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA) and Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA) today announced the introduction of bicameral legislation to redesignate the National Historic Site known as ‘Arlington House, The Robert E. Lee Memorial’ to its original name ‘Arlington House.'” [Press Release]
Record DCA Passenger Traffic — “Reagan National reported just under 1.15 million enplanements in May, up 3.1 percent from a year before and up 4.2 percent from May 2019, the last comparable month before the pandemic arrived. The 2023 figure is an all-time record for May passenger counts at the airport.” [Gazette Leader]
There is a brick, mid-century Catholic church that overlooks Arlington Blvd from a hill, adorned with three stained glass arches and a white cross.
Built to serve a parish, it was repurposed in the mid-1970s and christened the Cathedral of St. Thomas More. Its exterior today belies the building’s significance as the “mother church” for nearly a half-million Catholics across Northern Virginia and the seat of their bishop, Michael Burbidge.
While the results of the ranked-choice Arlington County Board election have yet to be determined, the voting method has a champion in Rep. Don Beyer.
Beyer tells ARLnow that voters are more likely to see someone they support reach the Board as a result of the voting method’s choice in the six-way Democratic primary for two open seats. He had another reason for supporting ranked-choice voting, too: it rewards candidates who build diverse coalitions, meaning candidates away from the partisan extremes are more likely to emerge triumphant.
(Updated at 2:10 p.m.) A new youth program could divert youth who commit misdemeanors and nonviolent felonies from the juvenile legal system.
Arlington police will be able to refer offending juveniles to local programs aimed at holding youth accountable outside of the court system, according to a press release from the Center for Youth and Family Advocacy (CYFA).
After taking the helm for longtime Arlington County Sheriff Beth Arthur, who retired at the end of 2022, Acting Sheriff Jose Quiroz is one step closer to taking charge permanently.
Quiroz — backed by four of five County Board members and several elected officials — won the Democratic primary Tuesday night. Following his victory, over former sheriff deputy Wanda Younger and Arlington County police corporal James Herring, Quiroz advances to the November general election.
Terrifying Lyft Ride — “An Arlington, Virginia, woman says she jumped out of a moving Lyft car after the driver refused to take her to her destination. When Katlyn got into a Lyft Saturday afternoon, she said she quickly realized something was wrong. ‘He actually almost hit the person in front of him, which, then I’m really on edge. Like, within a foot,’ she said. She said the driver then put a different destination in his GPS that was away from where she was headed and he refused to answer her questions.” [NBC 4]
Consolidated Bus Route Launching — “The public and media are invited to join Arlington County officials at a ribbon-cutting ceremony for WMATA’s Metrobus Route 16M Columbia Pike-National Landing. The ceremony will take place at the Arlington Mill Community Center. This new bus route will launch on Sunday, June 25, 2023, expanding connectivity from the Skyline neighborhood in Fairfax County through Columbia Pike and extending to the Crystal City Metrorail station. The route represents the growth of Columbia Pike as a Premium Transit Corridor.” [Arlington County]
(Updated at 5:30 p.m.) Arlington’s top prosecutor, Parisa Dehghani-Tafti, bested challenger Josh Katcher in yesterday’s Democratic primary.
Now, she says it is time to get back to work, building on reforms she made the first time around and forging a better relationship with the Arlington County police rank and file.
An enraged man shoved an innocent bystander, seriously injuring them, after an argument with someone else on a bus.
That’s according to the latest Arlington County Police Department crime report. The alleged incident happened around 8 p.m. Tuesday near the East Falls Church Metro station.
Cruiser Rammed in Pentagon City — “800 block of Army Navy Drive. At approximately 4:45 p.m. on June 16, police observed a stolen vehicle and attempted a traffic stop, during which the driver of the suspect vehicle reversed into an occupied police cruiser before fleeing the area. Officers then initiated a vehicle pursuit. The driver eluded police and the suspect vehicle was not located. No injuries were reported.” [ACPD]
Police Recruits Graduate — “Friday, June 16, 2023, marked a significant milestone in the careers of Arlington County Police Department’s eight newest officers as Session 148 graduated from the Northern Virginia Criminal Justice Training Academy. In front of family, friends and colleagues, the new officers took their solemn oath to serve and protect the Arlington community and safeguard the Constitutional rights of all.” [ACPD]
Virginia State Police, assisted by Arlington County police, are searching the area around the Air Force Memorial for a suspect who fled a pursuit and crash.
Initial reports suggest that state police gave chase to a suspect seen driving the wrong way in or near the Pentagon south parking lot. That suspect then crashed his vehicle at the intersection of Columbia Pike and S. Joyce Street, but fled on foot.
(Updated at 9:25 p.m.) Commonwealth’s Attorney incumbent Parisa Dehghani-Tafti has defeated challenger Josh Katcher in Tuesday’s Democratic primary.
Dehghani-Tafti has 56% of the vote to 44% for Katcher, her former deputy, in the heated race for the top prosecutor of Arlington and Falls Church. That’s as of 8:40 p.m., with all but a few hundred provisional and late-arriving mailed ballots counted in Arlington. Polls closed at 7 p.m.
