Fariss was charged following a traffic incident that injured a pedestrian, according to Virginia State Police.

Markus Schmidt
Markus Schmidt is a reporter for Cardinal News. Reach him at markus@cardinalnews.org.
General Assembly took some steps toward backing small nuclear reactor, didn’t take others
Gov. Glenn Youngkin has pushed for a small nuclear reactor to be built in Southwest Virginia. The legislature passed two bills to back nuclear energy but defeated two others.
Youngkin’s approval rating up by 5 points, new Roanoke College poll finds
The poll says 57% of Virginians approve of the job he’s doing, his highest ranking ever in the survey.
Sen. John Edwards is retiring
He’s served for 28 years. His retirement avoids a reelection campaign against state Sen. David Suetterlein, R-Roanoke County, who had been drawn into the same district.
General Assembly adjourns without a budget deal
The state already has a two-year budget but attempts to amend it have stalled. Instead, the legislature adopted some stopgap amendments and adjourned for now.
House Republicans block attempt to force a vote on abortion-rights measure
The effort to force a floor vote was a strategic move by Democrats to get their colleagues from across the aisle on the record in an election year when all 140 seats of the legislature are on the ballot.
House Republicans didn’t want to vote on abortion. A Democrat is forcing them to anyway.
Republican leaders say they didn’t bring their measures up for a vote because they knew Democrats would kill them. A political scientist said it’s more likely Republicans didn’t want a controversial vote on the record during an election year.
Senate panel votes to exclude nuclear research from new Virginia Power Innovation Fund
The vote is a blow to Gov. Glenn Youngkin, who has pushed for state research into small modular reactors with a goal of locating one in Southwest Virginia. A Democrat on the panel said he would rather put money towards more environmentally friendly options.
House panel advances Stanley bill to fund school robotics teams
Also Tuesday in Richmond: House panel advances Suetterlein’s bill on special elections. Senate committee rejects O’Quinn bill to create nuclear reactor revenue-sharing agreement, advances Morefield effort to add coal mine methane to alternative energy list.
Virginia Senate kills Williams’ bill that would have made it harder to get bail
Also from this week at the capital: Senate panel backs O’Quinn bill to create energy innovation fund. House committee kills Edwards’ measure to study whether to make the Virginia Museum of Transportation in Roanoke a state agency.