VB closes schools on April election, Norfolk break-ins, Meta and YouTube lawsuit: Sunrise Brief

TOP STORIES: VB closes schools on April election, Norfolk break-ins, Meta and YouTube lawsuit

1. The Virginia Beach School Board voted to close schools for an upcoming Democrat-backed referendum that would allow mid-decade redistricting.

   VB schools to close April 21 for redistricting vote; school day extended 10 mins

   The referendum is scheduled for April 21. During a previous school board meeting, board member Melinda Rogers said 58 school buildings across the division are used as polling precincts during elections. To make up for the closure, 10 minutes will be added to the school day from April 13 through June 8.

   “Having the voting population come into our schools during arrival and dismissal throughout the day is logistically challenging,” Thomas Shattuck, with the office of security & emergency management, said during a previous meeting.

   Norfolk is among the Hampton Roads cities considering school closures on April 21. On Monday, Norfolk Superintendent Dr. Jeff Rose recommended to the school board that schools be closed for the referendum. In Chesapeake, the school board voted to make classes asynchronous on April 21. Board members also cited security concerns in this decision. 17 Chesapeake schools will serve as polling locations.

2. It was business as usual Wednesday inside Three Ships Coffee Roasters on Granby Street in downtown Norfolk — but the aftermath of a break-in is still visible.

   Break-ins leave Norfolk businesses on edge

   “It shakes the staff up… it just kind of ruins the feeling of safety…” said Elise Kolmer, manager at the shop. Norfolk police say they are investigating a string of commercial burglaries reported across several neighborhoods over the past month. Since March 6, multiple businesses have reported being broken into during the early morning hours, with most incidents happening between midnight and 6 a.m., according to police. Two businesses were also impacted by burglaries that occurred around 9:30 p.m. on March 16.

   Kolmer said the damage at Three Ships was discovered early Friday after someone kicked in the shop’s front door. Police say similar incidents have been reported from downtown to Berkley and toward the Military Circle area. Several businesses in the downtown area impacted include Domino’s Pizza, The Locker Room and Three Ships Coffee Roasters in the 400 block of Granby Street. Other businesses in the 700 block of Granby Street — including LowKey and Sacq Run X Bags to Riches — also reported break-ins. Business owners say they are doing what they can — replacing windows and leaning on each other as police continue the investigation.

   But for Kolmer, the biggest hope is simple. “I want people to feel comfortable opening their doors,” she said. “We just want to make sure that this continues to be a place where people feel safe to like, hang on, hang out at any time of day, during business hours, not during business hours.”

3. A jury found both Meta and YouTube liable in a first-of-its-kind lawsuit that aimed to hold social media platforms responsible for harm to children using their services, awarding the plaintiff $3 million in damages.

   Jury finds Meta and YouTube liable in landmark social media addiction trial

   After more than 40 hours of deliberation across nine days, California jurors decided Meta and YouTube were negligent in the design or operation of their platforms. The jury also decided each company’s negligence was a substantial factor in causing harm to the plaintiff, a 20-year-old woman who says her use of social media as a child addicted her to the technology and exacerbated her mental health struggles. Kaley says she began using YouTube at age 6 and Instagram at age 9 and told the jury she was on social media “all day long” as a child.

   The multimillion-dollar verdict will grow, as the jury decided the companies acted with malice, or highly egregious conduct, meaning they will hear new evidence shortly and head back into the deliberation room to decide on punitive damages. Meta and Google-owned YouTube were the two remaining defendants in the case after TikTok and Snap each settled before the trial began. Google spokesperson Jose Castaneda said the company plans to appeal the verdict.

   Lawyers representing Kaley, led by Mark Lanier, were tasked with proving that the respective defendants’ negligence was a substantial factor in causing Kaley’s harm. They pointed to specific design features they said were designed to “hook” young users, like the “infinite” nature of feeds that allowed for an endless supply of content, autoplay features, and even notifications.

This morning's weather: Warming to the 70s today, Rain to end the week

Meteorologist Myles Henderson says much warmer this morning with temperatures in the 50s. We will warm to the mid and upper 70s this afternoon, almost 20 degrees warmer than yesterday. Look for a mix of mostly sunny to partly cloudy skies.

For the latest weather updates, watch Myles live on News 3 This Morning here.

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