Dogwood Daily: Former Norfolk sheriff indicted on corruption charges

Welcome to today’s edition of the Dogwood Daily. We’ve got a round-up of all of today’s Virginia news coming right up. And if you’re a fan, please forward to three friends who need to know what’s going on in the Commonwealth and tell them to subscribe here. 

But first …

Fresh water mussels are nature’s water filter. But for the past three years there’s been a “mass die off” of the species in Virginia’s Clinch River. Biologists are desperately trying to figure out why.

Five things you need to know today …

1. Former sheriff indicted on corruption charges– Former Norfolk Sheriff Robert McCabe was indicted on public corruption charges in federal court on Thursday. The indictment alleges that McCabe defrauded Norfolk citizens through a bribery scheme with Gerard Boyle, the former CEO of Correct Care Solutions. Boyle allegedly gave McCabe money, gifts and campaign contributions in exchange for contracts for his company to provide medical services in Norfolk’s jail. The indictment also accused McCabe of engaging in a similar relationship with an unnamed food services management company based in Louisiana. -WAVY
   
2. Sen. Kamala Harris campaigning for Virginia Democrats– California Sen. Kamala Harris, a candidate in the Democratic presidential primary, will be stumping for Virginia Democrats at three events this Sunday. Harris will speak at a fundraiser for the House Democratic Caucus and the canvas launches for Dan Helmer and Del. Kathy Tran. -Blue Virginia
   
3. NRA appears to waffle on Sturtevant grade– The NRA put up, took down and then once again put up its “A-” rating for state Sen. Glen Sturtevant. After Blue Virginia reported that the NRA had removed the grade from their website, the post went back up. The back-and-forth might be due to the fact that Sturtevant’s district leans left, voting overwhelmingly for Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine and Gov. Ralph Northam. Sturtevant is running again Democratic challenger Ghazala Hashmi, who has made gun safety a central element of her campaign. -The Dogwood
   
4. Norfolk casino petition fails to garner enough votes– Norfolk councilwoman Andria McClellan’s petition to reverse approval of a waterfront casino failed to receive enough votes. The city council in September approved a land deal with the Pamunkey Indian Tribe with the understanding that they will develop a casino resort near Harbor Park. The petition needed 4,000 signatures to go before voters in a referendum, but organizers fell 320 signatures short. McClellan and her supporters argued that the city council didn’t do its due diligence and failed to present information to the public before making the agreement. – The Virginian-Pilot
   
5. Republican General Assembly candidate sends out “racist” mailer– Shannon Kane, a Republican candidate for the General Assembly, sent out mailers depicting incumbent Del. Kelly Fowler (D – 21) photoshopped next to MS-13 gang members. The ad criticizes Fowler as being “weak on immigration” and also depicts Fowler holding a photoshopped sign that says “Illegal immigrants welcome here.” Fowler, whose grandfather is from Mexico, criticized the ad as racist, saying that her 7-year-old daughter discovered the ad in the mailbox. “It is a very hard thing to explain why they put me up there with (the gang members),” she said. -The Virginian-Pilot