<sh>Volunteer Pleads Guilty in Sexual Battery Case
<bt>A volunteer pastor at an assisted-living center who was arrested in January has pleaded guilty to aggravated sexual battery in Arlington County Circuit Court.
Richard P. O’Brian, 69, will be sentenced in July, and is being held without bond pending his hearing. He faces between one and 20 years in prison and a fine of not more than $100,000.
O’Brian was a volunteer at an assisted living facility in the Cherrydale neighborhood. Detectives with the Special Victims Unit of the Arlington County Police Department arrested O’Brian on Jan. 26. at his home in Annandale.
On Jan. 22, an employee of the facility, located in the 3700 block of Lee Highway, reported to police that she observed O’Brian having sexual contact with an adult female resident of the facility. After an investigation into the incident, detectives secured an arrest warrant for O’Brian.
<sh>County Signs Agreement with Justice Department
<bt>Arlington County signed an agreement with the Justice Department this past week that will bring the county into full compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act.
More than 130 jurisdictions across the country are participating in the DOJ’s Project Civic Access, which is designed to ensure that localities are providing proper access for persons with disabilities.
The DOJ toured county facilities and will continue to assess the status of its programs. Several facilities, including Central Library and Quincy Park, were found to need improvements to be fully accessible for the disabled.
"In signing this agreement, Arlington is underscoring our unwavering commitment to ensuring Arlington County's facilities, programs, and services are fully accessible to persons with disabilities," County Manager Ron Carlee said in a statement. "Since the enactment of the Americans with Disabilities Act in 1990, we have made tremendous strides and we are committed to continuing our progress."
<sh>Arlington Garners National Counties Award
<bt>The National Association of Counties is honoring Arlington as one of the winners of its 2005-2006 Center for Sustainable Communities Awards during its recent Legislative Conference in Washington, D.C.
The awards, presented by NACo's Center for Sustainable Communities, recognize the most effective and innovative county-led partnerships with private sector, faith-based or community groups in developing economically prosperous, environmentally safe, and socially equitable communities.
The county, the Rosslyn Renaissance, the Clarendon Alliance and the Ballston/Virginia Square Partnership were all recognized for their work to create the Rosslyn-Ballston Metro Corridor.
"I commend everyone involved in developing this outstanding community partnership," NACo President Bill Hansell said in a statement. "It is our hope that this national award will spotlight your community's great achievement and inspire others across the country to explore similar strategies to develop vibrant, sustainable communities."
The 12 communities honored were chosen by an expert panel of public and private sector leaders through a two-stage judging process.
Honorees will receive their awards during the 2005-2006 Sustainable Communities Awards Presentation Ceremony and Reception, 6-9 p.m., Thursday, April 27, at the Hyatt Regency Washington on Capitol Hill
<sh>Child Abuse Prevention Award Bestowed
<bt>Stop Child Abuse Now of Northern Virginia and the Allies in Prevention Coalition have announced that Louise Drucker is the winner of the annual Allies in Prevention Awards.
Drucker is a Child Welfare Supervisor for Arlington County Department of Human Services, where she has worked for seven years. As the lead supervisor for Child Protective Services, Drucker has become the driving force behind the development of a new Child Advocacy Center in Arlington.
It is one of the few public agencies that is not associated with a hospital or nonprofit agency, works to minimize trauma to the children being interviewed and get them services quickly.
Drucker was instrumental in establishing a Memorandum of Agreement between the multidisciplinary agencies involved, including the Special Victims Unit of the police, the Attorney's office and DHS programs.
For more than 20 years Drucker has been committed to helping children. She has also worked at the U.S. embassies in Brazil and the Dominican Republic, and the Peace Corps.
<sh>Marymount Receives $99,000 Science Grant
<bt>Marymount University received a $99,000 grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to enhance existing computer security educational materials with the development of a companion text and Web site that provide case studies and exercises to illuminate the social, legal, and ethical implications of technologies used in the field.
"Computer security professionals need to be aware of and able to assess the societal implications of the technological skills they’re using," said Dr. Cynthia Cicalese, associate professor of Computer Science at Marymount. "Traditional curricula assumes that if students are exposed separately to technical knowledge and contextual knowledge, they will automatically be able to combine what they’ve learned in both areas when facing a real-world situation. However, recent research shows that integrative learning helps people make those connections more effectively."
The new NSF grant will enable Marymount over the next two years to complete development of a companion textbook that marries real-world situations with the acquisition of technical skills covered in existing textbooks. A Web site will also make this integrative approach broadly available to other colleges and universities.