Secret execution tapes and more Virginia headlines

The State Capitol. (Ned Oliver/ Virginia Mercury)

• Disputing a Thursday story in the Richmond Times-Dispatch, Ford denied that it had chosen to build a new electric vehicle battery plant in Virginia before Gov. Glenn Youngkin took the state out of the running for the project. The Youngkin administration has said the state had not reached the stage of offering the company an incentive package.—Cardinal News

• In its first public statement, the family of a 6-year-old Newport News boy who shot his teacher in a classroom said the boy suffers from an “acute disability” and insisted the gun he used was secured prior to the incident. The statement did not go into detail on how the boy got the gun.—Daily Press

• “NPR uncovered secret execution tapes from Virginia. More remain hidden.”—NPR

• Chesterfield County’s top prosecutor said a case against a pastor linked to a child sex crimes sting might still move forward, despite the charges against the pastor being dropped last year.—NBC12

• U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Virginia, will make an announcement about his political future Friday morning in Richmond. Kaine’s seat will be up for election in 2024.—Washington Post

by Staff Report, Virginia Mercury

---

Virginia Mercury is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Virginia Mercury maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Sarah Vogelsong for questions: info@virginiamercury.com. Follow Virginia Mercury on Facebook and Twitter.