VB crime report, Langley scientists talk moon mission, partial shutdown ended: Sunrise Brief

TOP STORIES: VB crime report, Langley scientists talk moon mission, partial shutdown ended

1. Virginia Beach Police Chief Paul Neudigate reported significant drops across all major crime categories during a briefing held Tuesday.

   Virginia Beach sees significant crime reduction as police chief reports safest conditions in 5 years

   Violent crimes including murder, rape and robberies dropped nearly 7% in the last year and nearly 30% since 2023, Neudigate said. Residential burglaries plunged 40% since 2022. The most encouraging trend involves reducing gun violence among children. Police reported 50% fewer juvenile shooting victims and 45% fewer juvenile shooting suspects last year.

   The dramatic drop followed targeted investments focused on prevention, including the Parks After Dark program. The chief also credited technology including license plate readers and gunshot detection systems with creating a safer city despite staffing shortages that have left 100 vacancies unfilled. For the second straight year, police cleared every homicide case.

   However, not every trend showed improvement. Fatal traffic crashes jumped 7%, with pedestrians and people over 50 bearing the brunt of the increase, sparking new conversations about mobility and safety.
   

2. As NASA makes final preparations for the launch of the Artemis II moon mission, some of your neighbors — who work at NASA's Langley Research Center in Hampton — are talking about their roles in the mission.

   NASA Langley scientists playing important roles as part of Artemis II mission

   As of Feb. 3, The Artemis II moon rocket remained on the launch pad after a hydrogen leak was discovered during a pre-launch test on Feb. 1 and 2. Local aerospace engineer Dave Piatak says they "learned a lesson" after this setback. Piatak oversees transonic and supersonic wind tunnel testing.

   News 3 also spoke with aerospace engineer Shan Rufer, who discussed how they will monitor the rocket during launch and re-entry. She says video technology will document how their assets handle both procedures.

   Rufer and Piatak’s work won’t end when Artemis II’s mission is over. They’ll use what they learned to help with future missions, including the next Artemis III which, as of Feb. 3, was scheduled to put astronauts on the moon for the first time in over 50 years.
   

3. President Donald Trump on Tuesday signed a series of bills to fund the federal government and end the partial shutdown.

   House votes to reopen government after early drama

   The signing came just hours after the funding package was approved by the House of Representatives by a razor-thin margin of 217-214, with 21 Democrats voting in favor, but an equal number of Republicans voting against.

   A procedural vote to reopen the government advanced by the narrowest of margins as the entire Democratic caucus joined Republican Rep. Thomas Massie in voting against the test vote. Republican Rep. John Rose was also originally opposed to advancing the bill for final approval; but, after House Speaker Mike Johnson kept the vote open for nearly an hour, Rose flipped his vote.

   The legislation includes five spending bills to keep the government funded through the end of the fiscal year, while a sixth funding allocation will only fund the Department of Homeland Security for two weeks while legislators debate changes. Democrats have pushed for changes to immigration enforcement procedures, including the use of body-worn cameras on agents.

This morning's weather: Rain/snow showers tonight, Colder & windy tomorrow

Meteorologist Myles Henderson says to expect mostly cloudy skies today with temperatures climbing to near 40 by midday then falling back into the 30s.

Precipitation chances will be small during the day, but scattered rain/snow showers will build in this evening. The best chance for snow will be tonight to early Thursday morning. Snow accumulation is possible but minimal, between 0” and 1”.

Cold and windy on Thursday with mostly cloudy skies, highs in the mid 30s and a north wind at 10 to 20 mph.

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

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For the latest traffic updates, watch Conor live on News 3 This Morning here.

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