Garvey is running for the seat of Sen. Patsy Ticer, who announced her retirement last week. Two other Democrats, Del. Adam Ebbin and Alexandria Councilman Rob Krupicka, are expected to announce their candidacy soon.
Ticer’s state Senate seat is centered in Alexandria, but includes portions of Arlington and Fairfax.
The bill in the House of Delegates, HB 2191, was sponsored by Arlington’s Del. Adam Ebbin (D). It passed on Monday.
The bill in the state Senate, SB 975, was sponsored by Arlington’s Sen. Mary Margaret Whipple (D). It passed on Friday.
Ebbin created the bill in the wake of Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli’s lawsuit challenging the Constitutionality of last year’s sweeping federal health care reform act.
“Instead of focusing on enforcing consumer protection laws and making sure Virginia is the safest state in the country to raise a family, the Attorney General is devoting taxpayer dollars and scarce government resources to pursue symbolic lawsuits and other civil actions that serve only to promote his own agenda and political career,” Ebbin said in support of his bill, which is largely symbolic and stands little chance of passing in this year’s General Assembly session.
“Every child deserves to feel safe at school,” said Del. David Englin, a bill sponsor who represents parts of Arlington, Alexandria and Fairfax County. “A child who doesn’t feel safe can’t learn well and live up to his or her potential.”
Another bill sponsor, Del. Adam Ebbin, cited the suicide of a bullied York County, Va. teenager as evidence of why the legislation is necessary. According to Ebbin, who also represents parts of Arlington, Alexandria and Fairfax, the York County sheriff’s office refused to investigate the teen’s bullies because there’s no law on the books outlawing bullying.
Ebbin introduced the bill to the Virginia House of Delegates in 2009 and 2010, each time unsuccessful. He’s hoping for a different result in the upcoming 2011 legislative session.
If enacted into law, the bag fee would protect the environment, Ebbin said. Locally, he added, it would help make waterways like Four Mile Run cleaner.
State Sen. Patsy Ticer, a Democrat who represents a large chunk of south Arlington, as well as parts of Alexandria and Fairfax County, has so far shown no signs of interest in seeking another term.
Among the names of potential replacements being floated around, one is reportedly not interested, but another almost certainly is. Sources close to Del. Adam Ebbin tell us that he’s interested in seeking the Democratic nomination for Ticer’s seat. Ebbin, who also represents parts of Arlington, Alexandria and Fairfax, has held his current House of Delegates seat since January 2004.
Is the Virginia prison system failing those with mental illnesses? Does the state need to reform its re-entry program? Those were among the topics of discussion Thursday night at a town hall meeting on prison reform, held by local Arlington delegates Adam Ebbin and Patrick Hope.
Helen Trainer of the Legal Aid Justice Center pointed to a story of an inmate who wasn’t allowed to self-medicate in his prison cell. Told to wait in the daily line at the clinic, he ultimately suffered numerous seizures and left the prison as a quadriplegic. Trainer believes the story is not an isolated incident and is indicative of the reform needed throughout the nation’s criminal justice system.
Flickr pool photo by mennyj. See more photos from Saturday’s Columbia Pike Blues Festival here.
Aftermath of Fight Outside Clarendon Grill Caught on Video — A late night fight outside Clarendon Grill left a man battered and unconscious in the middle of North Highland Street early Sunday morning. The aftermath of the fight was captured on video. Metro Transit Police, who were the first on scene, could be seen handcuffing two men as a crowd gathered around the victim. The victim eventually regained consciousness and was loaded into an ambulance.
Del. Adam Ebbin (D), who represents part of Arlington and Falls Church, invited imam Johari Abdul-Malik of the Dar al-Hijrah Islamic Center to give today’s opening prayer.
Groups including the Virginia Anti-Shariah Task Force and the Traditional Values Coalition protested, citing Abdul-Malik’s comments about due process for Muslims arrested on terror charges, along with his mosque’s brief link to two of the 9/11 hijackers. In the past, Abdul-Malik has spoken out against violence and terrorism.
