All results / Stories
Sort By
Date
Authors
- Everyone
- Fred Jeter (288)
- Jeremy M. Lazarus (121)
- Free Press wire reports (50)
- Darlene M. Johnson (36)
- Free Press staff report (29)
- Associated Press (21)
- Joey Matthews (19)
- Free Press staff, wire reports (18)
- George Copeland Jr. (18)
- Ronald E. Carrington (17)

VCU adjusting after Shaka Smart exit
Virginia Commonwealth University has a new basketball coaching staff and, so far, the roster of returning Rams has remained intact, albeit a scare. Here’s what has transpired since Coach Shaka Smart left VCU to become coach at the University of Texas, and Coach Will Wade, a former Smart assistant, was named his successor. Promising 6-foot-8 freshman Justin Tillman asked to be released for the purpose of transferring to another university, but has since changed his mind and remains a Ram. All three of Coach Smart’s high school recruits to VCU have asked for and been granted releases by VCU Athletic Director Ed McLaughlin.

City Council greenlights Maggie Walker statue at triangle
Forget Monument Avenue and Abner Clay Park. The future statue of Richmond’s great lady, Maggie L. Walker, will stand at the intersection of Brook Road and Broad and Adams streets, the gateway to historic Jackson Ward where Mrs. Walker lived and won acclaim for her entrepreneurial spirit. Richmond City Council voted 6-1, with two abstentions, Monday night to reconfirm that decision for the third time in 15 years, clearing the way for the project.

Fan Appreciation Day attracts 7,130 people
But numbers show interest in Washington camp declining
The Washington professional football team’s training camp in Richmond appears to be losing public interest as fast as a slow-footed quarterback loses ground behind a porous offensive line. The camp averaged about 5,800 fans each day, compared to more than 11,000 each day last summer. And Saturday’s Fan Appreciation Day attracted just 7,130 fans, down from last year’s 20,477.

Michigan officials face charges in Flint water crisis
Michigan prosecutors on Tuesday charged four former government officials in Flint, including two city emergency managers, with conspiring to violate safety rules in connection with the city’s water crisis that exposed residents to dangerous levels of lead.

John Ross sets record for 40-yard dash
Olympic icon Usain Bolt remains the fastest man on earth, but John Ross is the newest fastest man on turf — football turf that is.

VCU heads to Oklahoma City for NCAA despite A-10 loss
If you’re among the thousands of passionate Virginia Commonwealth University basketball fans, you’ve become accustomed to this time of year scrambling for last minute flight reservations. For the third straight year, the Rams are headed to the NCAA. So Rams fans who want to cheer on the team in person will be putting up considerable time, effort and expense. After losing to St. Joseph’s University 87-74 in the Atlantic 10 Tournament finale last Sunday in Brooklyn, N.Y., the Rams are headed to Oklahoma City, 1,293 miles from Richmond. Coach Will Wade’s 24-10 Rams are seeded No. 10 in the NCAA’s West Region and will face No. 7 Oregon State University, featuring Gary Payton II, on Friday, March 18. Tipoff is scheduled for 1:30 p.m., with the game slated to be televised on TNT.

VUU loses to LIU-Post; looking for victory in S.C.
Virginia Union University is an NCAA Division II football program with plenty of Division I talent. Some exciting Division I transfers made a positive impression but couldn’t produce a victory in VUU’s rainy opener last Saturday before 757 fans at Hovey Field in Richmond.

Usain Bolt dashes off with medal
Jamaica, homeland of the incomparable Usain Bolt, ranks 139th in the world in population but it’s No. 1 in terms of speed. The Caribbean island of some 2.95 million people deserves the title “World’s Fastest Country” based on its domination in 100-meter dash Olympic competition.

Manuel leading Huguenot’s football comeback
Huguenot High School junior Merlys Manuel looks forward to getting his Virginia driver’s license later this school year. Already as quarterback, he has been handed the keys to the Falcons’ offense.

VUU’s Jayda Luckie moves into the limelight
Jayda Luckie has evolved from a part-time to prime-time player at Virginia Union University. You may not have noticed her a season ago. But you can’t help but notice her this year. The fleet 5-foot-9 junior guard is one of several talented newcomers to the spotlight who has helped pace VUU to an 18-1 record overall and 9-1 CIAA record.

TJ’s new football coach trying to ‘translate talent into more wins’
Chad Hornik scored noteworthy victories, both on and off the field, as football coach at Richmond’s Thomas Jefferson High School from 2012 to 2015.

Keep politics out of vaccine approval process, by Marc H. Morial
“Maintaining the American public’s trust in the FDA is vital. If the agency’s credibility is lost because of real or perceived interference, people will not rely on the agency’s safety warnings. Erosion of public trust will leave consumers and patients doubt- ing our recommendations, less likely to enroll in clinical studies or to use FDA-regulated products when they should to maintain or improve their health. This is problematic under normal circumstances but especially if we are to ultimately overcome COVID-19.” — Senior FDA executives Patrizia Cavazzoni, Peter Marks, Susan Mayne, Judy McMeekin, Jeff Shuren, Steven Solomon, Janet Woodcock and Mitch Zeller
Confronting racism
There was a time not too long ago when businesses in Richmond and across the South would call the police to arrest black people who sat down at lunch counters because they wanted to order. So we found a sad irony in the April 12 arrest of two black men in Philadelphia because they sat down at a Starbucks and didn’t order anything.

Lady Panthers face heartbreaker in 1st round
On a scale of one to 10, it hurt like an 11. When the final curtain fell on the Virginia Union University Lady Panthers’ basketball season, it dropped with a bone-chilling thud, and long before anyone expected.

National NAACP board suspends Henrico Branch president for 2 years
Frank J. Thornton, former president of the Henrico Branch NAACP, has had his membership in the civil rights group suspended for two years. The national NAACP imposed the suspension on Feb. 16 during its quarterly board meeting in New York.

Football season ends for VUU without playoff invitation
Just when the Virginia Union University Panthers were ready to dance, it was like the music stopped and the band went home. The Panthers were a dominant football team for 10 games. But the Panthers won’t get a shot at an 11th game they so coveted.

Trump and violence
Is he serious? Does President Trump really think there will be “violence” from the left if Republicans lose control of Congress in the November midterm elections? Isn’t the whole point of winning an election to get what you want without turning to violence?

Smollett and real hate crimes
Last week, the Southern Poverty Law Center announced that the number of hate groups in the United States continued to rise for the fourth consecutive year in 2018.

Former NASA ‘hidden figure’ advises students to chart own course
Christine Darden was a student at Hampton University when she learned to chart her own path. She and her classmates would visit the school’s cafeteria together, and she decided that she needed to learn to go on her own.