New 90-Day Halt To Richmond Lee Statue Removal, Department Of Health To Launch COVID-19 Alert App, Isaias Sweeps Up Coast; More

From the Virginia Mercury:

By Ned Oliver
August 4, 2020

NEWS TO KNOW
Our daily roundup of headlines from Virginia and elsewhere.

• A Richmond judge imposed a new 90-day injunction blocking Gov. Ralph Northam from removing a statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee in Richmond. In a hearing Monday, the judge dismissed a claim filed by an heir to the family that donated the property for the memorial but said a suit filed by nearby property owners should proceed.—Associated Press

• Richmond City Council signed off on the permanent removal of all city-owned Confederate statues, most of which were already taken down last month by Mayor Levar Stoney. The council plans to vote next month on what to do with the memorials, with one member proposing selling them at auction.—Richmond Times-Dispatch

• Former House Speaker Kirk Cox, R-Colonial Heights, announced he’s weighing a run for governor next year.—The Washington Post

• The Virginia Department of Health is preparing to release an app that will use Bluetooth to alert people if they’ve been in close contact with another app user who later tests positive for COVID-19.—VPM

• “A coalition of Virginia hospitals and physicians is suing the state’s Medicaid program over emergency budget cuts that they say will cost them $55 million in reduced payments for emergency room visits this year during a public health emergency when they can least afford it.”—Richmond Times-Dispatch

• A Winchester judge approved the temporary seizure of three guns from a man who made suicidal comments, the first time Virginia’s new “red flag” law has been used in the area.—The Winchester Star

• “The chairman of the Arlington GOP has been booted from the ‘Arlington Neighbors Helping Each Other Through COVID-19’ Facebook group for threatening to expose those who file complaints about local businesses.”—ARLnow

• The mayor of Luray is facing calls for his resignation in response to a racist Facebook post. “It was just inappropriate and disappointing. We are trying to get in touch with him,” said one council member. “It’s been a sleepless night for me.”—The Washington Post

• “The heaviest rains from Tropical Storm Isaias are now falling across central and eastern Virginia, with several hours of flood risk still to go this morning.” Dominion Energy says it could take a few days to restore power to all its customers.—Richmond Times-Dispatch, Daily Press

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