The following stories have been hand-selected by the Assignment Desk at News4:
DUMB ROBBERS
A Burger King manager who thought she'd given a bag of money to a robber early Sunday hadn't been robbed after all, police said. Sheriff's Maj. David Decatur said the manager and two employees went to the nearby Wachovia Bank at 290 Garrisonville Road about 2:20 a.m. to make a night deposit. As she went through the drive-through, a man approached the driver's window and pointed a small handgun at her. A second young man was seen standing near the back of the SUV, Decatur said. The startled manager threw the bank bag at the robber and sped away. She returned to the Burger King, where she and the others were met by Deputy J.R. Fouts. (Fredericksburg.com)
TREE OR NO TREE...
Loudoun County Supervisor Eugene Delgaudio (R-Sterling) and Leesburg Town Council members asked fellow supervisors Nov. 30 to consider overturning a decision made by a courthouse grounds committee to ban public displays on the courthouse lawn. Delgaudio said supervisors were bombarded with at least 100 e-mails in two days from county residents who are protesting the Nov. 9 decision by the Facilities and Grounds Task Force. The decision was not made public until last week. The supervisor proposed adding the item to the board's Dec. 1 meeting agenda for emergency consideration. Delgaudio said he believed the majority of supervisors would be willing to discuss the issue. (Loudoun Times)
8 Gs WORTH OF SMOKES?
A Fairmount Heights man was charged Friday with attempted theft and several counts of forgery after he tried to use a counterfeit check to buy more than $8,000 worth of Newport cigarettes from a Waldorf Sam's Club, police said. Sounds stupid, except that Nathaniel A. Stewart, 44, had tried the same scheme three times before and not been arrested, police said. Once, he successfully purchased more than $8,000 in smokes, they said. (Washington Post)
MONTGOMERY JAIL CELL PHONE JAMMING
Montgomery County officials will watch to see what happens with a state pilot program to jam cell phone calls at state prisons to possibly acquire the technology for the county's detention facilities."First and foremost, cell phones destroy the secure perimeter of a correctional environment," said Arthur M. Wallenstein, director of the Montgomery County Department of Correction and Rehabilitation. "Cell phone jamming is an issue for all correctional facilities." (Gazette)
GAS PRICES
Gas prices don't seem likely to fall in 2010. The Energy Information Administration is estimating higher crude oil prices next year. Up 45 cents a gallon from last year, prices are predicted to hit an average of $2.81 in the new year. As of mid-November, regular gas prices fell three cents to $2.65, still $1.46 below the record price of $4.11 in July 2008. "The driving factor in gas-price stability is crude oil," said Ragina Averella, AAA Mid-Atlantic manager of Public and Government Affairs, in a press release. (Frederick News Post)
