Crime & Safety

Look Back, Look Ahead: Fairfax County News to Know

Body of missing teenager found in Thaiss Park, a man is hit by a VRE train and the VP debate gets heated. Here are some of the local headlines you may have missed and some upcoming events and news for the week.

Police: No Predator on the Loose After Bryan Glenn Death

Just more than a week after Bryan Glenn went missing after dropping his younger brother off at school, Glenn was found dead Monday near his car in Thaiss Park.

Police had recovered the 17-year-old's car at the park Oct. 2, but volunteers did not discover the body until the following Monday when they gathered wearing waterproof boots, long pants and clothing with vibrant colors to search for the varsity football player.

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Fairfax County police said Monday afternoon a male body was discovered about three-fourths of a mile past the tree line at Thaiss Park.

The Glenn family released a statement confirming that the body found in Thaiss Park was that of Bryan Glenn, a Woodson High School senior who had been missing since Oct. 1.

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Man Stepped on Tracks with Back to VRE Train

A man was struck and killed by a passing commuter train Wednesday apparently stepped onto the tracks with his back turned after the conductor sounded the horn, Fairfax County Police reports show.

The identity of the man hasn't yet been released by the Virginia Medical Examiner's Office, police said. 

It happened just after 2 p.m. when VRE Train 325 was traveling south on the Manassas Line just passed the Burke station. 

The train conductor spotted a man standing along the tracks near the intersection of Fairfax Station Road and the Fairfax County Parkway and sounded the train horn, police said.

Minors Brought Marijuana to Leadership Conference

Three 16-year-old girls were arrested last week in Springfield for allegedly being in possession of marijuana at an off-campus event.

Officer Bud Walker, a spokesman for Fairfax County Police, say the teenagers were arrested at Waterford Receptions, an event venue that was hosting a regional high school leadership conference at the time of their arrests on Oct. 2.

They were each charged with possession of marijuana, a misdemeanor.

Walmart Strike Supporters Speak Out at Kingstowne Store

Wednesday afternoon, a group of community leaders supported the ongoing Walmart workers’ strike by passing out leaflets to customers and employees at the Walmart at 5885 Kingstowne Blvd. in Kingstowne.

Beth Pointer, an organizer for Making Change at Walmart, led a small group who entered the Kingstowne store to raise awareness of the retaliation some Walmart associates say they have received for speaking out about better wages and benefits.

“We’ve done this at eight stores today,” Pointer said. “This is happening at about 250 stores and there are just as many workers who have walked off their jobs.”

Although a dozen cities have been affected by the first-ever retail workers’ strike from Walmart, Northern Virginia area stores have yet to have associates walk off the job.

Joe Biden and Paul Ryan Clash in Fiery VP Debate

Vice President Joe Biden and Republican VP candidate U.S. Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin faced off Thursday night in a heated debate that covered foreign wars, tax reform, healthcare, abortion, and their shared faith in the Catholic Church. 

During the debate, broadcast live from Centre College in Danville, Ky., Biden flexed his experience with foreign policy when answering questions about ending the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, nuclear arms in Iran and whether to send troops to Syria.

“The last thing America needs is to get in a ground war in the Middle East,” Biden said.

Ryan called the Obama administration’s foreign policy “chaotic,” criticizing the lack of security present during the September attack on the consulate in Benghazi, Libya, that killed four people, including U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens. He also took Biden to task for not immediately calling the tragic incident a terrorist attack.

The candidates also touched on defense funding and the looming $1 trillion in cuts on the horizon due to sequestration.

Pick A Pumpkin for a Good Cause

Visit St. Peter's in the Woods' pumpkin patch for a selection ranging from cute minis and "spookies" to giant and designer pumpkins. All proceeds from the sale benefit the Native American Farm Cooperative and the Secondary School of the Diocese of Kiteto in Tanzania.

Second Presidential Debate to Air Tuesday

President Barack Obama and Mitt Romney will participate in a second debate Tuesday, Oct. 16 at Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York. The debate will broadcast live on multipled channels — including CNN, CBS and ABC — at 9 p.m.

This debate will take the form of a town meeting in which citizens will be allowed to ask questions about foreign and domestic policy.


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