Transparency News, 12/23/21

A rust-colored 1875 almanac, a cloth envelope and a silver coin were found Wednesday in a time capsule that lay hidden beneath a towering statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee in Virginia for more than 130 years. As intriguing as the water-damaged items were, they’re not what many were expecting to see after state conservators spent five hours gingerly prying the time capsule open. Even the mortar-encrusted lead box was a bit of a surprise. Historical records led many to believe the capsule held dozens of objects related to the Confederacy as well as a picture of deceased President Abraham Lincoln. But in just a few minutes, its contents were revealed and the items were few.
Richmond Times-Dispatch

Another Pound Town Council member resigned Tuesday, saying he wants to force the 30th Judicial Circuit into making appointments to fill three open council seats. Calling his resignation the “kamikaze option,” Clifton Cauthorne took that action after the fourth council meeting in two months barred from doing business by the absence of council members Glenn Cantrell and Danny Stanley. Stanley announced his surprise resignation during a Dec. 7 called meeting where Cantrell also left before the completion of a council agenda that had been delayed from two earlier November meetings where the two also walked out early.
Times News

Warrenton Town Councilman Sean Polster (At-large), resigned from his role as vice mayor Dec. 14, citing the fallout from misleading claims he made about the town government prior to the Warrenton Christmas Parade. Council members had appointed Polster to the vice mayoral role by a 6-1 vote in July 2020. First elected in 2014, Polster will continue to occupy one of the two at-large town council seats.
Fauquier Times

The former senior resident inspector at North Anna Nuclear Power Station pleaded guilty on Dec. 13 in federal court to making false statements on inspection reports. The Office of the Inspector General for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission said in a news release that Gregory Croon, 60, produced intentionally falsified reports while employed at the plant between 2016 and 2018. He retired from the NRC in 2020.
The Central Virginian

 

For a year and a half, the University of Michigan has refused to release information it provided to the Whitmer administration that contributed to Michigan’s strict COVID-19 lockdown orders. Today, in the latest victory for transparency and the Mackinac Center Legal Foundation, the Michigan Court of Claims ordered that the University of Michigan release previously redacted documents in full. The documents were requested by the Mackinac Center for Public Policy in May 2020 and contain information about the science and data used to support the state’s initial lockdown orders and reopening plan. The lawsuit was filed in December 2020.
Mackinac Center