Local | I'm Surrounded By Idiots

Not guilty plea in 13 year-old cold case.

A Virginia man pleaded not guilty Wednesday to murder charges in connection with a 13-year-old cold case involving a woman who grew up in Atlantic City.Virginia State Police arrested Lawrence Gaudenzi, 44, of Timberville, Va., on Friday and charged him with the murder of his ex-wife, Lisa Gaudenzi, who went missing in Jan. 1995.

Lisa Gaudenzi, who was 31 at the time of her disappearance, grew up in Cinnaminson and Atlantic City, where her father, Joseph Marto, owns a cash-for-gold business. She graduated from Virginia Commonwealth University in 1994 and married Lawrence Gaudenzi the day before, according to reports. She enlisted in the Army and was scheduled to attend officer training school Jan. 27, 1995 – but she never showed up.

Lisa Gaudenzi’s body has not been recovered. She left behind two daughters – one from a previous marriage.

Virginia’s Caroline County Commonwealth Attorney Anthony Spencer presented the case to a special grand jury last week, which returned a murder indictment. Lawrence Gaudenzi is also charged with taking indecent liberties with children.

Hmm, didn’t know that.

Spencer said Lawrence Gaudenzi asked for a court appointed attorney at his arraignment Wednesday. Attorneys Kathy Hancock and Russell Booker will represent Gaudenzi, Spencer said. He is being held without bond at the Pamunkey Regional Jail in Hanover County and a three-day jury trial was scheduled for Sept. 17, Spencer said.

See Thursday’s edition of The Press for complete coverage.

County to contribute $1,200,000 to school system.

The Board of Supervisors agreed last night to contribute $1,200,000 in local funding to the school system.

$600,000 will come from the general fund.

The other $400,000 will be sent back to the schools from the school’s unencumbered balance (i.e., money that is left over from this closing fiscal year that would go back to the county normally).

And they [the Caroline BOS] have a Plan — oh wait, no they don’t.

(Pardon the vague reference to Battlestar Galactica.)

To recap:

Caroline County has requested and received $490,000 from the federal government in the form of a FY08 earmark for a “commuter rail station” (Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2008; p. 2465).*
Caroline County has received $100,000 from the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation in the form of a grant “to study building a passenger rail station in the Carmel Church area”. (The Free Lance–Star).
Caroline County has requested an additional $800,000 from Congressman Rob Wittman via a FY09 federal earmark (Appropriations Requests FY 2009).

When Gary Wilson was questioned if the county was negiotating with any organization to provide service to a “commuter rail station”, he provided the following response:

The County has been in contact with Amtrak regarding city to city service from a Caroline station to Washington, DC. Others who own or use the line have also been contacted to obtain a preliminary understanding of the needs those entities will have should there be additional traffic on the existing lines.

I sent a follow-up email with the following questions (slightly edited to be more concise):

“In contact”? Is that the same as a guarantee that the station will have service from Amtrak when/if it is built?
What routes by Amtrak will be offered at the station?
In addition, why is the county considering building a station with service from Amtrak when Amtrak ridership in Fredericksburg went down 6.82% last year (Ridership statistics fiscal year (FY)06, FY07)?

Gary Wilson’s response (I kid you not):

Staff is still in the early stages of studying this project.

We are not yet at a point to address the questions you have raised.

Oh, the staff isn’t at a point where they can answer a couple simple questions but they are at the point where they can request $1,400,000 in funding for a project when they don’t even know if service will be provided.

Other problems with the Board’s (and Gary Wilson’s) master-plan:

A) Ridership on Amtrak trains dropped 6.82% between Amtrak’s FY06 and FY07. This was not part of a general decrease in Amtrak ridership since ridership as a whole across Virginia went up 3.35% (Ibid).

B) Amtrak is not a commuter rail service: There are only two trains that are ran by Amtrak in the morning that can be used to commute to Washington, D.C. (Schedule).

One leaves the Fredericksburg station at 6:55 a.m. and arrives at Union Station (Washington, D.C.) at 8:15 a.m. This train does not stop at Leeland Road, Brooke, Rippon, Lorton, Franconia-Springfield (start of the Metro’s blue line), and Crystal City (Ibid).

The only other morning train leaves Frederickburg at 8:55 a.m. and arrives at Union Station at 10:06 a.m., making it useless for anyone working a 9-to-5 job. In addition, the 10:06 a.m. train does not stop at Leeland Road, Brooke, Rippon, Woodbridge, Lorton, Franconia-Springfield (start of the Metro’s blue line), Crystal City, and L’Enfant (the only station to be served by four Metro lines [Green, Yellow, Blue, and Orange]) (Ibid).

C) The cost of an one-way ticket between Fredericksburg and Union State in Washington, D.C. is $21. For both ways it will be $42. $42 a day to use Amtrak to commute to D.C.

D) During the last Board of Supervisors meeting the Board was complaining that the county doesn’t have any money to pay for road improvements; how about this: Instead of asking for $1,400,000 for a “commuter rail station”, why not ask for that much for road improvements in the county like Stafford and Prince William Counties did (Appropriations Requests FY 2009)? How about asking for money to improve radio communications between emergency services like Stafford County did (Ibid)?

Up next: Why is the county moving county services out of (essentially) the county seat to the Hanover County border?

*I had previously stated the amount received was $500,000, however I did not note that all earmark requests were reduced by 2%, therefore making the amount received $490,000 (Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2008; p. 2464).

More Alleged Drug Dealers Arrested

On May 15, 2008, the Caroline County Sheriff’s Office SERT (Sheriff’s Emergency Response Team) Team deputies executed a search warrant at the Ruther Glen, Howard Johnson’s Hotel. The investigation continued which led the Caroline County Sheriff’s Office Deputies and Investigators to a second hotel. As a result, multiple arrests were made.

According to Sheriff A. A. “Tony” Lippa, Jr., “This investigation started when we received information from concerned citizens about illegal drugs being sold from a room located at the Howard Johnson’s. Investigators and Deputies simultaneously executed a search warrant at the Howard Johnson’s, later conducted a traffic stop of a second suspect and made contact with a third suspect in the Ruther Glen Super 8 Motel.”

As a result of the search of the Howard Johnson’s Hotel room, Investigators found a baggie containing what appeared to be powdered cocaine lying on top of a container of baby formula which was meant for a ten month old child that was also living in the room. The occupants of the room were identified as Corey Tillman, 39, and Iisha Crichlow, 24, both of Ruther Glen. Tillman was charged with distribution of cocaine and possession of cocaine. Crichlow was charged with felony child neglect.

The third suspect, identified as Tyrone Baylor, 38, of Dawn was charged with possession of cocaine after the Caroline Deputies conducted a traffic stop of his vehicle.

The fourth suspect in the investigation was identified as Adam Butler, 23, of Dawn. During a search of Butler’s vehicle and hotel room at the Super 8 Motel, Investigators recovered a semi-automatic handgun and suspected cocaine. Butler was charged with distribution of cocaine, possession of cocaine, possessing a firearm while possessing cocaine and child neglect.

Sheriff Lippa further stated “This investigation was a success because of the citizens of Caroline County who provide information and assistance to the Caroline Sheriff’s Office. I want to thank those who call us with information and encourage all citizens to continue to help their Sheriff’s Office in our fight against crime.”

Tyrone Baylor

Adam Butler

Iisha Crichlow

Corey Tillman

Weekly News Media Briefs – Week Ending May 17, 2008

From the Caroline County Sheriff’s Office: Weekly News Media Briefs – Week Ending May 17, 2008:

On May 10, 2008, Deputy C. S. Wooldridge responded to an assault call at a business in Ladysmith. After investigating, Jesus R. Rodriguez, 55, of Providence, RI was charged with domestic assault. He was ordered held under a $2500 bond and a court date of May 15, 2008 was set.

On May 11, 2008, Deputy W. D. Lipscomb stopped a vehicle for a traffic infraction. After investigating, Michael L. Call, 18, of Ruther glen was charged with driving under the influence. He was released on a personal recognizance bond and a court date of June 13, 2008 was set.

On May 12, 2008, Deputy T. J. Ketchem responded to a domestic in Rappahannock Academy. After investigating, David A. Brooks, 34, of Rappahannock Academy was charged with domestic assault. He was ordered held on a $1500 bond and a court date of May 13, 2008 was set.

On May 12, 2008, Deputy C. S. Wooldridge encountered a motorist on I-95. After investigating, Kathleen M. Spalding, 36, of Villas, NJ was charged with driving under the influence. She was ordered held under a $1500 bond and a court date of May 14, 2008 was set.

On May 13, 2008, Deputy C. M. Hall encountered a subject on the grounds of the high school. After investigating, a juvenile was charged with destruction of property and underage possession of alcohol. He was released to his parents.

On May 13, 2008, Deputy J. K. Miller responded to a domestic in Bowling Green. After investigating, Jerry L. Smith, 48, of Bowling Green was charged with being drunk in public. He was released when sober and a court date of July 25, 2008 was set.

On May 13, 2008, Sergeant R. L. Hixson responded to a report of an assault. After investigating, Michael V. White, 26, of Woodford was charged with domestic assault and resisting arrest. White was ordered held for psychiatric evaluation and court information was unavailable.

On May 13, 2008, Deputy F. L. Brennan responded to a domestic in Ruther Glen. After investigating, Konyar D. Coates, 29, of Ruther Glen was charged with domestic assault. He was released on a personal recognizance bond and a court date of May 20, 2008 was set.

On May 15, 2008, Deputy R. J. Anderson responded to a fight call in Ruther Glen. After investigating, Bobby R. Wright, 18, of Ruther glen was charged with malicious wounding. He was ordered held without bond and a court date of May 16, 2008 was set.

On May 15, 2008, Deputy J. K. Miller and Sergeant S. L. Cary responded to a domestic in Woodford. After investigating, Christopher G. Simpson, 23, of Woodford was charged with domestic assault. He was released on a personal recognizance bond and a court date of May 20, 2008 was set.

On May 16, 2008, Deputy P. E. Ford stopped a vehicle for a traffic infraction. After investigating, George A. Sampson, 50, of Ruther Glen was charged with driving under the influence of drugs. He was ordered held under a $3500 bond and a court date of May 21, 2008 was set.

On May 17, 2008, Deputy C. A. Heywood received a report of a larceny. After investigating, Carrie Sue Duke, 30, of Bowling Green was charged with 3 counts of forgery, 3 counts of uttering, 3 counts of identity theft, and 4 counts of larceny. She was released on a personal recognizance bond and a court date of May 27, 2008 was set.

On May 17, 2008, Deputy C. M. Polliard stopped a vehicle for a traffic infraction. After investigating, Mekel L. Grant, 29, of Milford was charged with driving under the influence and failing to submit to a breath test. He was released on a personal recognizance bond and a court date of May 23, 2008 was set.

On May 17, 2008, Deputy P.E. Ford Miller responded to a domestic in Ruther Glen. After investigating, Cheri Sullivan, 26, of Ruther Glen was charged with domestic assault. She was released on a personal recognizance bond and a court date of July 23, 2008 was set.

Caroline County Sheriff’s Office Wrap Up

According to Sheriff Tony Lippa, Caroline Deputies made 9 drug arrests, 4 driving under the influence arrests, 12 domestic violence arrests, and 126 other criminal arrests during the past week. The deputies served 177 civil papers, issued 147 traffic summonses, handled 6 motor vehicle crashes, responded to 45 alarm calls, and dealt with 8 juvenile offenders. The Sheriff’s Office Communications Center dispatched 553 calls for service and handled 1,212 telephone inquiries. The CCSO also logged 32 calls assisting outside agencies and had 158 self initiated calls.

The Sheriff’s Office will continue to operate Selective Enforcement in the following areas, Belmont subdivision, Carmel Church intersection Rogers Clark with Ruther Glen Rd. (Rt. 207 & Rt. 652), Ladysmith Village, Lake Caroline, Lake Land Or, Port Royal, Rt. 30

Cleaning up Caroline County one ten POSs at a time.

Richmond Times-Dispatch:

Authorities in Caroline County arrested a ninth suspect yesterday on a charge of murder by mob.

He is the fifth male juvenile to be charged in the Nov. 10 shooting of Raquel Hunter, 16. Four adults were charged, too.

Until this week, only Lashawn Montque Monroe, 23, of Ruther Glen had been arrested in Hunter’s death. He was charged soon after the killing with murder and use of a firearm in a felony.

This week, authorities charged Monroe, along with three other adults and five minors, with murder by mob, or lynching.

A law addressing lynching has been on the books in Virginia since 1928. Under Virginia law, lynching means any act of violence by a mob on another person that results in the death of that person.

Virginia law defines a mob as a group of people “assembled for the purpose and with the intention of committing an assault or a battery upon any person or an act of violence . . . without authority of law.”

Caroline Commonwealth’s Attorney Anthony G. “Tony” Spencer said yesterday that he plans to drop the first two charges against Monroe and focus prosecution on the mob charge.

Hunter was shot in the head as a birthday party was ending for another 16-year-old. His body was found on the ground outside the Madison Ruritan Club in Ladysmith.

Spencer said yesterday that a person does not have to physically harm someone to be guilty of murder by mob.

[…]

Along with Monroe, the following three adults were charged with murder by mob: Antoine Johnson, 18; Dwight Leo Smith II, 19; and Deon Alexander Terrell, 19.

All nine defendants are from Caroline.

And from the AP:

Virginia State Police say they have arrested a man accused of murdering his wife in 1995.

Police say 44-year-old Lawrence Peter Gaudenzi of Timberville was arrested without incident during a traffic stop Friday afternoon in Shenandoah County.

Sergeant Thomas A. Cunningham Junior said Gaudenzi initially reported his 31-year-old wife, Lisa Kathy Gaudenzi, missing to authorities in Caroline County, where the couple lived. State police became involved in the case in 1997 and recently discovered crucial information that was presented to a grand jury in Caroline, which returned a murder indictment.

Somewhat funny: Peumansend Creek Regional Jail highway sign defaced with “0420”

In no way am I promoting vandalism and/or graffiti.

Poor quality cell phone picture with a 3x computer enlargement:

Full picture can be seen here.

420 means (Phish.net):

420 is a favorite number for a variety of reasons, but colloquially the number says pot — “let’s smoke pot”, or “someone’s smoking pot“, or “gee, i really like pot“, or “time to smoke pot”. It is celebrated and noted by time (4:20 a.m. or p.m.), date (April 20th), or in any other instance (e.g. State Route 420). April 20th at 4:20 is marked by annual events in Mount Tamalpais, CA (an informal gathering); Marin Conty, CA (the 420 Hemp Fest); Ann Arbor, MI (the Hash Bash); and Washington, D.C. (buildup towards the July 4th Smoke-In).

I’m sure there’s a cell available at Peumansend for whoever did this, by the way. :)

New Caroline BOS motto: “We don’t need no stinkin’ openness in government!”

Also considered: “There’s nothing wrong with planning budget cuts behind closed doors!”

The first one never gets old, by the way.

At the January 8, 2008 Board of Supervisors meeting several subcommittees were created by Floyd Thomas to handle certain issues (2008-01-08 BOS Minutes):

3. APPOINTMENTS

Chairman Thomas stated that he wanted to take the Chairman’s prerogative and make some appointments of his own. He said that the School Board Superintendent, Chairman of the Board and the County Administrator meet on a regular basis and he would like to create some subcommittees, one being on education. Chairman Thomas asked Supervisor Popowicz to be a part of a utilities subcommittee where he could meet with Mr. Ramsay on a regular basis. He asked Supervisor Rozell to serve on a sub-committee for public safety, Fire and Rescue, and the Sheriff. Chairman Thomas asked that Supervisor Acors be in charge of a Finance subcommittee. He asked Supervisor Sili to be in charge of and serve as Chair of the education subcommittee.

Chairman Thomas said that these subcommittees will cover five major areas [the minutes don’t specifically mention the Economic Development Subcommittee but I believe Floyd Thomas was heading it up -ed.] of the County in a little more detail from a Board perspective and hopefully be able to report to each other on a regular basis.

Why the excessive use of underlining and bolding? The Virginia Freedom of Information Act, § 2.2-3707(C), requires the following [emphasis mine]:

Every public body shall give notice of the date, time, and location of its meetings by placing the notice in a prominent public location at which notices are regularly posted and in the office of the clerk of the public body, or in the case of a public body that has no clerk, in the office of the chief administrator.

§ 2.2-3701 defines a “public body” as the following [emphasis mine]:

“Public body” means any legislative body, authority, board, bureau, commission, district or agency of the Commonwealth or of any political subdivision of the Commonwealth, including cities, towns and counties, municipal councils, governing bodies of counties, school boards and planning commissions; boards of visitors of public institutions of higher education; and other organizations, corporations or agencies in the Commonwealth supported wholly or principally by public funds. It shall include […] (ii) any committee, subcommittee, or other entity however designated, of the public body created to perform delegated functions of the public body or to advise the public body. It shall not exclude any such committee, subcommittee or entity because it has private sector or citizen members.

Are we all clear that these (sub)committees are in fact (sub)committees, and are considered a “public body” under the Virginia Freedom of Information Act? Yes? Good, let’s continue.

When I first contacted Percy Ashcraft asking when said subcommittees meet I received the following response:

At this time, no formal meetings have been called by any of the supervisors, but instead they have been briefed by department heads informally. Administratively, I have committees for all of these departments that supervisors have attended from time to time. And Mr. Thomas and I meet regularly with the superintendent and chairman of the school board to discuss education matters.

Oh, really? Then explain the Board Summary (the minutes for this meeting haven’t been approved [or posted] yet) for the April 8, 2008 meeting (link):

The Board authorized Supervisor Acors to work with Mr. Ashcraft and Financial Advisor Courtney Rogers at the Finance Committee meeting on April 15th on possible areas to make the necessary budget cuts to compensate for the difference in the tax rate.

After I quoted that portion to Ashcraft, he stated the following:

These are not subcommittees they are overseeing as no members have been appointed to any committee. I have turned the matter over to our County Attorney for him to render an opinion and direct the Board from this point forward.

So, I guess it’s alright for the Finance Committee to meet behind closed doors and plan budget cuts. Comforting…

Again, after pointing out that Mr. Thomas appointed a member to each of the committees, he stated the following:

I appreciate you providing the background and again I am having our County Attorney review this. The term “subcommittee” is what needs to be defined here. As I stated earlier, we have not formally appointed subcommittees which would include members of staff and possibly the public. If it is the desire of the Board to formalize this process, they can certainly do that. But at this point in time, it is not set up that way.

Uh-huh.

“[A]ny committee, subcommittee, or other entity however designated, of the public body created to perform delegated functions of the public body or to advise the public body” is a public body. These bodies clearly meet the definition of a “public body” purseant to § 2.2-3701 but the county refuses to disclose when these bodies meet and what they discuss during the meetings.

The Free Lance–Star offers free editing assistance to I’m Surrounded By Idiots.

The following comment was left on my post “It’s official: Stafford County is ran by morons.“:

Interested reader Says:

Speaking of morons, I think you mean “run by.”

Tis true, I stand corrected.

However, check out the IP used to leave the comment:

63.169.19.222

63.169.19.222 goes back to “Free Lance-Star” (service provided by SPRINTLINK).

That’s pretty funny coming from someone at an organization that issued the following correction for the story on which my post was based:

The task force studying illegal immigration in Stafford County said in its report that it recognized the need to provide emergency medical care to persons in need, regardless of immigration status. The report also said it should provide those public health and preventive medical services that ensure the general health of the population, including immunizations, outbreak investigations, TB investigation and case management, STD/HIV clinical services, communicable disease management and treatment, and other public health services as required by federal or state law. A story yesterday incorrectly reported the recommendations of the task force dealing with these medical services.

Among other (recent) editorial blunders made by The Free Lance–Star:

Inability to properly map out the location of a triple murder/one suicide. (May 7, 2008)
Falsely stating that Tasers require a concealed handgun permit and falsely stating that a concealed handgun permit would allow someone to carry a concealed Taser (no permit is required). They refused to issue a correction even after I repeatedly sent e-mails to their staff regarding the issue. (April 12, 2008)
Acting as the sympathetic mouthpiece for a convicted terrorist while calling him an “activist”. (March 25, 2008)
Falsely accusing a former Lake of the Woods assistant manager of incompetence and having a relationship that was “too close” with a contractor (and all they could say is “Oops, my bad”). (March 22, 2008)
Incorrectly stating that all of the 99th House of Delegates District is part of the 28th Senate District when it isn’t. No correction. (February 21, 2008)
Inability to distinguish who Albert Pollard is: Using a picture of Richard Stuart (his former opponent) and convicted spy Jonathan Pollard instead of a picture of Albert Pollard. (February 20, 2008)
Numerous errors were reported regarding the legal battle between Patricia Mancini and Price Jett Jr. over a Stafford County School Board seat. Only a partial correction was issued. (December 28, 2007)

It’s official: Stafford County is ran by morons.

The Free Lance–Star:

A group studying illegal immigration in Stafford County suggests Stafford seek the right to sanction businesses that hire undocumented workers, and to deny illegal immigrants a public education and emergency medical services.

My Lord, where to being?

A) Wow, that’s compassionate.

B) So, will this be the county’s response to someone having a heart attack?: “Let’s see, you’re not illegal, so get in this wheelchair and we’ll admit you.” Or: “Let’s see, you’re an illegal, go out in the street and die. Next!”

C) Last I checked Stafford County doesn’t run a hospital. Yes, MediCorp is planning on building one in Stafford County, but the county won’t be running it (thank God). MediCorp would laugh these people out of the building if the county came with this proposal.

D) Since the only “emergency medical services” the county provides would be EMTs/Paramedics, are they going to be ordered to play 20 questions (in addition to the work they have to do) and find out if someone is an illegal?: “Yo necesito tu papeles.” (I need your papers.) If the person is an illegal, are they going to deny them transport to a hospital and kick them out of the ambulance?

E) See A.

[…]

The report does not quantify the financial and social impact of illegal immigration in Stafford.

[…]

The report concluded that “Although we cannot quantify that impact, anecdotal evidence, as well as common sense, would dictate that it exists.”

Of course, we have no evidence to support what we’re saying, but it’s true. Trust us, we’re the government.

Scharpenberg said it’s unclear how many employers hire illegal immigrants but that “there’s a lot of winking and nodding in Stafford businesses.”

Another one of those “we have no evidence, but it happens; trust us” comments.

That’s evidence (no pun intended) of crack governing.