BRIEFS: NEWS NEAR YOU

By Staff Reports

Published: December 16, 2008

NEWS NEAR YOU

Powhatan The Powhatan County School Board's last meeting of the year ended with a warning that economic difficulties could

Petersburg Police are searching for a man who abducted a 14-year-old girl Sunday from her home on County Drive and attempted to rape her. Authorities said a man grabbed the girl after she answered the door about 11:30 p.m. The girl fought with the man and managed to escape, hiding in a storage shed until he left. The man is described as white, 40 to 50 years old and about 6 feet tall with a heavy build. He had a 3-inch-long gray beard and wore a gray sweatshirt and blue jeans. Anyone with information is asked to call Petersburg police at (804) 732-4222 or Petersburg/Dinwiddie County Crime Solvers at (804) 861-1212.

Richmond Nine people were displaced by a fire that damaged an apartment building in North Richmond yesterday morning. There were no injuries in the fire, which was reported before 5 a.m. in the 4200 block of Old Brook Road, southwest of John Marshall High School. Authorities called the Greater Richmond Chapter of the American Red Cross to help provide housing assistance for six adults and three children who were forced from their apartments by smoke, fire and water damage.

Dinwiddie The Dinwiddie County Board of Supervisors is scheduled to meet today at 3 p.m. at the Dinwiddie Government Center, 14016 Boydton Plank Road. A public hearing will follow at 7 p.m.

Chesterfield The Chesterfield County Department of Parks and Recreation is planning a holiday dance for seniors Friday from 7 to 9 p.m., at the Bensley Community Building, 2900 Drewry's Bluff Road. Music will be provided by the Dixieland Marmalade band. Admission is $7, and advance registration is required. Call Dave Potter at (804) 275-5321 to register.

Richmond Police are looking for a man in a robbery Saturday evening at the Family Dollar store at 7 E. 16th St. The robber was described as a 6-foot-tall black male, 20 to 30 years old, with a thin build and light complexion. He was last seen wearing stonewash jeans, a dark-colored hoodie with a Nike logo on the front, black shoes, and a blue scarf covering his face. Employees said the man entered the store about 8 p.m., brandished a gun and demanded money from the register. The employees complied, and the man left the store. No one was injured. Anyone with information about the robbery is asked to call Crime Stoppers at (804) 780-1000.

AROUND THE STATE

Culpeper A Remington man who pleaded guilty to charges stemming from a wreck that killed an 8-year-old boy will spend nine years in prison. Judge John G. Berry of Culpeper County Circuit Court sentenced 38-year-old Fielding Taylor Kines yesterday to nearly three times the sentencing guidelines. Kines pleaded guilty in September to felony charges of involuntary DUI manslaughter and DUI third offense, and a misdemeanor count of driving on a suspended license. Police and prosecutors said Kines lost control of his car in northern Culpeper County on May 16. The vehicle crashed through a fence and rolled. The victim, Orion Bickings, was tossed from the car and died at the scene. A warrant said Kines put the child's body in the vehicle's trunk after the crash.