Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, September 17, 1993 TAG: 9309170209
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE:
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
ABINGDON - One day after his wife had pleaded guilty to conspiring to promote prostitution in several states, a coalfields businessman was convicted by a jury on the same charge.
A jury deliberated about 80 minutes Wednesday before convicting Jerry Rash of Beckley, W.Va. He also was convicted on two other charges regarding federal commerce violations.
Sharon Rash pleaded guilty to the conspiracy charge before her husband's trial began Tuesday in U.S. District Court. Two other charges against her were dropped.
Several coalfields salesmen testified that a call to the Rashes would bring a prostitute - sometimes Sharon Rash - whose services might help clinch a business deal with a coal company. Authorities said the Rashes ran their operation throughout the region during most of the 1980s.
Rash faces up to 15 years in prison and a $750,000 fine. His wife could be sentenced to five years in prison and fined $250,000.
- Associated Press
Harrisonburg ticket good for $9.4 million
RICHMOND - One ticket correctly matched all six numbers to win a $9.4 million jackpot, a Virginia Lottery spokeswoman said Thursday.
The winning numbers in Wednesday night's drawing were 1, 7, 8, 17, 19 and 23.
The winning ticket was purchased in Harrisonburg through a Lotto-By-Mail subscription, lottery spokeswoman Paula Otto said.
According to Otto, 182 tickets matched five numbers to win $664, and 7,636 tickets matched four numbers to win $33. Otto said 108,087 tickets matched three numbers to win a free play.
The estimated lottery jackpot for Saturday's drawing is $1 million.
- Associated Press
D.C. man arrested in Manassas carjacking
MANASSAS - A District of Columbia man has been charged with carjacking and abducting a woman and her two children, city police said Thursday.
The carjacking occurred about 7 a.m. Wednesday, police spokeswoman Claudia Conklin said. The victims, who have not been identified, were not injured. No weapon was involved.
A 24-year-old Manassas woman was loading her children, ages 2 and 3, into the family van when she was approached from behind by a man, Conklin said. The man forced the woman into the van and ordered her to drive him to Washington, she said.
A neighbor witnessed the incident and called police. About 15 minutes later, the woman jumped from the van carrying her two children at a traffic light in Centreville, Conklin said.
The man fled the scene on foot and a suspect later was picked up by Fairfax County police.
Ephriam Burroughs, 21, has been charged with one count of carjacking and three counts of abduction, she said. He was being held on $50,000 bond in the Prince William County-Manassas Detention Center.
A preliminary hearing is set for Oct. 28.
- Associated Press
Gordonsville officer dies in truck wreck
ORANGE - A Gordonsville police officer was found dead in a ravine following a wreck in Orange County, police said.
The body of David Ralph Slade, 32, of Unionville, was found by children playing near the ravine about 3:15 p.m. Wednesday, state police said. Slade had been an officer with Gordonsville for three years.
State police estimated the time of the accident at 4:20 a.m. Slade, who had just gotten off work, apparently was heading home in the northbound lane of Virginia 20 when his pickup truck ran off the left side of the road, went down an embankment and struck a tree, according to a state police report.
- Associated Press
Norfolk jail records taken to courthouse
NORFOLK - A federal grand jury is believed to be reviewing financial records maintained by the Norfolk Sheriff's Department.
Two dozen boxes stuffed with canceled checks, receipts, bank statements and other documents were carted into U.S. District Court on Wednesday as a result of a subpoena.
A grand jury also was sitting that day, but such proceedings are confidential and neither the FBI nor the U.S. attorney's office would comment on any link between the 24 boxes - which were labeled "jail canteen funds" and "inmate trust funds" - and the grand jury.
Andrew Sacks, the attorney for Sheriff David K. Mapp, said Mapp is not the target of any federal criminal investigation.
The canteen funds have been the subject of controversy since a newspaper report in July said city financial officials were surprised by the canteen's existence. There had been no record of canteen revenues filed with the city or state.
In documents submitted to the city after the newspaper report, Mapp said the canteen - which sells such things as cigarettes and toiletries - has sales of $450,000 a year.
- Associated Press
Jury awards $60,000 to harassed officer
NORFOLK - A federal jury deliberated less than two hours before deciding a Virginia Beach police officer should be paid $60,000 by the city because she was sexually harassed by her co-workers.
The U.S. District Court jury on Wednesday returned the verdict in favor of Lisa G. Lawrence. The panel said her fellow officers had harassed her by creating a hostile work environment.
Lawrence, 32, sued the city in February, alleging she was the target of lewd jokes and sexually explicit language while she was assigned to the Police Department's horse patrol from November 1991 until July 1992.
Lawrence and her attorney, Neil C. Bonney, would not comment because the city's attorneys asked for time to consider filing a motion to set aside the verdict.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Tommy E. Miller told the parties not to discuss the case until that issue is resolved.
All five officers have since transferred out of the horse patrol. Lawrence now works in the department's services division.
- Associated Press
Keywords:
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