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City police officer convicted for vehicle fatalities
Richmond Police Officer Richard Johnson was responding to a burglary call on April 7, 2022, when he ran a red light and slammed into a car advancing on the green light at Bells and Castlewood roads in South Side. The crash resulted in the deaths of the two teenage occupants, Jeremiah Ruffin, 18, and Tracey Williams, 19, and left the officer with a traumatic brain injury. Now Officer Johnson is facing prison time as a result of those deaths.

WWI soldiers receive long overdue honors
President Obama on Tuesday awarded posthumous Medals of Honor to two soldiers from World War I, one an African-American and the other a Jew, who arguably were denied the honor earlier because of discrimination. The medals, the United States’ highest military honor for valor, went to Pvt. Henry Johnson, of Albany, N.Y., and Sgt. William Shemin of Bayonne, N.J., 97 years after they saved comrades on French battlefields.

VUU’s ‘Windy City Wonder’ breaks records, dazzles fans at regional finale
Kiana Johnson is so fast, so agile, so dynamic. She navigates a basketball floor like a sleek sports car, reducing foes to clunker status.

Triple World Series champion Vida Blue dies
Vida Blue, a pitching star on the Oakland A’s three straight World Series titles (1972, ’73, ’74), died Saturday, May 6, 2023, in Tracy, Calif. He was 73.

Cook, Johnson lead VSU to big win over Johnson C. Smith
Trying to find just one man to replace quarterback Tarian Ayres would be difficult. So Virginia State University has located two for the assignment. Cordelral Cook and Niko Johnson have taken turns directing the Trojans to a 2-0 start heading into its Saturday, Sept. 16, bye week.

VUU’s Kiana Johnson leads CIAA all around the ball
Fueled by transfer Kiana Johnson, the Virginia Union University women’s basketball team has taken off like a rocket. The 5-foot-7 dynamo leads the CIAA in scoring (24.8 points per game), assists (8.2 per game) and steals (4.2 per game) while steering the Lady Panthers to an 8-1 takeoff under first-year Coach AnnMarie Gilbert. Inheriting a squad coming off a 9-18 season, Coach Gilbert felt she needed a quality point guard to jump start her inaugural season on Lombardy Street.

Former VUU standout signs with Finland team
Kiana Johnson is heading for Finland. The former Virginia Union University basketball sensation has signed a contract with the Forssan Alku team in Forssa, Finland.

‘Walk Through Fire’
Sheila Johnson’s memoir explores love, loss and triumph
For four days and three nights in mid-August, Sheila Crump Johnson, cofounder of Black Entertainment Television and CEO of Salamander Hotels & Resorts, hosted hundreds of guests at her 340-acre Salamander Resort and Spa near Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains.

Iconic West End gym courts Christo Rey’s hoop dreams
One of the area’s oldest and most historic gymnasiums has a new tenant that’s excited about branding a reputation of its own.

Second grand jury to probe fatal police shooting in Virginia
A prosecutor has requested a special grand jury to investigate the fatal police shooting of an unarmed shoplifting suspect outside a Northern Virginia shopping mall after an earlier grand jury refused to issue an indictment.

Lady Panthers’ Brittany Jackson making her mark
Brittany Jackson has not only inherited Kiana Johnson’s jersey number — No. 3 — but also her role as dominating guard at Virginia Union University.

VCU’s Melvin Johnson mirroring former Rams star Calvin Duncan
Melvin Johnson grew up in New York, first signed a scholarship offer with a Florida program and then changed his mind and came to Virginia Commonwealth University. Sound familiar?

Ready for our ‘Earth shot’, by Ben Jealous
As we greet 2023, I’m feeling more than the typical seasonal optimism. America is primed once again for a historic achievement. Call it our “Earth shot.”

Dr. William R. ‘Randy’ Johnson Jr., retired research chemist and public servant, succumbs at 87
Dr. William Randolph “Randy” Johnson Jr. was a pioneering research chemist for Philip Morris who was better known outside the laboratory. He was involved in securing 10 patents for the cigarette manufacturing firm for filters and other related items and co-authored 15 technical papers. He also was a popular figure who was committed to public service and teaching.

Richmond Police officer charged in April 7 traffic deaths of 2 teens
A Richmond Police officer, who ran a red light in South Side while racing to respond to a burglary-in-progress call, is now facing the prospect of prison time for killing two teens when he collided with their car.

$3M civil suit filed against ABC agents
How much is Martese Johnson’s pain, suffering and bleeding worth? Mr. Johnson, now a fourth-year honors student at the University of Virginia, was slammed onto the pavement outside a Charlottesville pub last March by three agents from the Virginia Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control who suspected him of trying to use a fake ID to enter.