Latest news with #WestPotomacHighSchool
Yahoo
25-04-2025
- Yahoo
Fairfax County school community shares safety concerns after West Potomac High School stabbing
FALLS CHURCH, Va. () — Parents and students at a Fairfax County school board meeting Thursday said more needs to be done to keep schools safe after a teen was stabbed by another classmate at West Potomac High School in Belle Haven. Thursday was the first day , in place less than 24 hours after on Wednesday. Police: 2 officers shot during traffic stop in Fairfax County; suspect dead Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) parent Vanessa Hall said the news of the stabbing left her shaken up, and it compelled her to testify about school safety and the school system's budget on Thursday. 'I'm a parent who's actually had that call that something's happened to their child. I've had the worst call and had to suffer through that,' Hall said. 'It was dramatically horrible, terrible for all the parents standing outside.' Hall believes students are smart enough to circumvent those weapons detectors, and that a lot of the violence between students at school happens outside the building's walls. She and a student testified before the board Thursday in favor of finding new safety measures following the addition of new Open Gate weapons detectors at West Potomac and several other schools in Fairfax County. 'Students are panicking, afraid of being treated like a suspect for the crime of potentially being a victim of school violence. My peers and I don't believe the Open Gate system is capable of keeping our schools safe,' student Alexander Mather said. Fairfax County school board members call for increase in safety measures after stabbing at high school Pamela Revels is the president of the National Association of School Resource Officers. She said those systems can help, but they aren't a solution on their own. 'When you do add things like a weapons detection system, it is an enhanced feature, but you can't just rely on that alone to stop weapons,' Revels said. The board's student representative, Megan Sawant, said those detectors are an important step toward safety. 'This is the reality that we live in, and we always need to be prepared,' Sawant said. It's not clear how long the new weapons detectors are going to be in place at West Potomac High School. The program is still in its pilot phase. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
24-04-2025
- Yahoo
Former CIA official admits to mishandling information, working as foreign agent
ALEXANDRIA, Va. () — A former CIA official faces multiple years in prison for mishandling classified materials and acting as a foreign agent over the course of multiple years. Dale Britt Bendler, 68, of Miami, Fla., started working as a full-time contractor with the CIA back in 2014. As part of his job, he had Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information (TS/SCI) security clearance. From July 2017 through at least July 2020, Bendler secretly worked with a U.S. lobbying firm to engage in 'unauthorized and hidden lobbying and public relations activities' on behalf of foreign principals — all while still being a full-time contractor at the CIA, the U.S. Attorney's Office () detailed in court documents. West Potomac High School students return to new security measures after teen stabbed Foreign and domestic clients would hire the lobbying firm to help resolve specific issues, often involving the U.S. government or a foreign government. Typically, the foreign client would hire the firm, and then the firm would, in turn, hire Bendler as a consultant. His rate for some clients was as much as $20,000 per month. '[Bendler] concealed the true nature of his work from his CIA colleagues, often misleading and manipulating them to further his foreign [clients'] interests,' court documents read. One of his clients, for example, was under investigation by a foreign country regarding allegations of embezzlement of that country's state funds. The client hired Bendler to respond to the investigation by mounting a public relations campaign to rebut the allegations and lobby government officials. Another one of his clients was concerned about allegations that he was involved in laundering money for a foreign terrorist organization. He believed those allegations prevented him from obtaining a U.S. visa. That client hired Bendler to investigate the origin of the terrorism financing allegations, rebut them, repair any damage caused and help him obtain a visa. Police: 2 officers shot during traffic stop in Fairfax County; suspect dead While working with these clients, Bendler abused his access to CIA resources and personnel by searching classified systems for any information related to his clients, improperly storing and disclosing classified information and lying to the CIA and FBI about his status as a foreign agent, the USAO detailed. His contract was officially terminated and his security clearance and access were revoked by the CIA in September 2020, after officials learned about his work for foreign clients. In total, between July 2017 and September 2020, Bendler was paid about $360,000 for his undisclosed work. He pleaded guilty to acting as a foreign agent required to register under the Foreign Agents Registration Act and removing classified material from authorized locations without authority and with the intent to retain such material at an unauthorized location. In addition to pleading guilty, Bendler consented to the forfeiture of $85,000. He faces up to seven years in prison and is scheduled to be sentenced on July 16. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
24-04-2025
- Yahoo
Fairfax County school board members call for increase in safety measures after stabbing at high school
FAIRFAX COUNTY, Va. () — Fairfax County School Board members are calling for new security and safety measures after a 16-year-old student was stabbed at a high school Wednesday. In a statement from school board members, officials noted that the school division is 'one of the safest public school systems in the United States.' However, they added that unacceptable violence took place at West Potomac High School, and it is necessary to invest in new measures to ensure the safety and security of students. RELATED STORY | Police: 16-year-old seriously hurt in stabbing at West Potomac High School; teen charged On April 23, the undersigned School Board Members shined the light on the Fairfax County School Board of Supervisors to prioritize increasing the number of School Resource Officers (SROs) to match the national recommendation of a ratio of 1:1,0000 to students at middle and high schools, ensure one or more SROs are present every day and fully fund Middle School After-School programs. The Board Members also urged Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) to increase security assistants to 1 to 1,750 students at all middle and high schools to ensure appropriate enforcement of student discipline. In the statement, members said the school district should secure entry doors to prevent unauthorized access, install video cameras inside and outside every school in the district and construct security vestibules at every school. Members are also encouraging the installation of Open Gate weapons detection technology at every middle and high school. Fairfax County Public Schools to deploy 15 new detection scanners at high schools after spring break The stabbing comes weeks after the school district announced on April 10 that it would begin testing 15 weapons detection scanners at high schools. The pilot program involves the deployment of Open Gate devices at a randomly selected high school. Each week, at least one school will be chosen for several days. The program started on the week of April 21 School officials told DC News Now that Edison High School tested the detectors earlier this week. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
23-04-2025
- Yahoo
Police: 2 officers shot during traffic stop in Fairfax County, suspect in custody
FAIRFAX COUNTY, Va. () — Two officers were taken to the hospital Wednesday afternoon after someone shot them during a traffic stop. The Fairfax County Police Department (FCPD) just after 3:15 p.m. that police were in the 4000 block of Majestic Ln., near Greenbriar, after two officers were shot while they conducted a traffic stop. Police: 16-year-old seriously hurt in stabbing at West Potomac High School; teen charged The officers were taken to the hospital. Police expected them to survive. FCPD added that somebody was in custody for the the shooting. Because of the heavy police presence, Majestic Lane was closed between Route 50 and Meadow Hill Lane. FCPD encouraged drivers to take alternative routes. Check for updates. To keep up with the latest news and weather updates, download our Mobile App on iPhone or Android. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
23-04-2025
- Yahoo
Police: Teen seriously hurt after stabbing at West Potomac High School
FAIRFAX COUNTY, Va. (DC News Now) — Officers responded to a report of a stabbing at West Potomac High School in Belle Haven on Wednesday morning, police said. Purcellville town council votes to fully fund police department after previous voting to move forward with elimination A teenage boy was hurt and taken to the hospital with life-threatening injuries, according to the Fairfax County Police Department. Officers have the suspect, a teenage boy, in custody. The investigation is ongoing. DC News Now is heading to the scene to get more information. Check for updates. To keep up with the latest news and weather updates, download our Mobile App on iPhone or Android. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
