he VPM Daily Newscast contains all your Central Virginia news in just 5 to 10 minutes. Episodes are recorded the night before.
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Here’s a recap of the top stories on the morning of May 12, 2025:
Fight at Bon Air JCC spotlights requests for independent review
Reported by VPM News’ Keyris Manzanares
On May 7 — one day after the Office of the State Inspector General announced the launch of a special review into Bon Air Juvenile Correctional Center — a fight broke out among youth inside the facility, resulting in two teachers being transported to a local hospital.
Virginia’s only state-run youth correctional facility, Bon Air JCC has come under scrutiny for operating under “critically low” staffing levels, with allegations of unsafe conditions for both staff and youth, inadequate rehabilitation programming, and increased levels of isolation.
Last month, it was the subject of “Idleness and boredom,” an investigative series in which VPM News explored the costs of understaffing at the facility. The series got its name from a 2024 independent investigation that found that increased levels of “idleness and boredom” among youth was resulting in an uptick in violence.
After an April meeting of Virginia’s Commission on Youth, in which DJJ Director Amy Floriano answered questions regarding safety and staffing at Bon Air, lawmakers unanimously voted in favor of requesting an independent inquiry into the state’s only youth correctional facility.
Gov. Glenn Youngkin has yet to authorize an independent audit, but State Inspector General Michael Westfall notified the commission earlier this month that his office would be reviewing operations at the facility, adequacy of staffing, and programming — including mental health services — provided to the residents.
City audit finds Richmond Retirement System paid $550K to dead people
Reported by VPM News’ Dean Mirshahi
The City of Richmond’s retirement system paid out more than $550,000 to 44 deceased retirees over nine years, a new audit found. Most of the money has not been recovered.
City Auditor Riad Ali on Friday released an audit of the Richmond Retirement System, which administers the benefits and pensions of former city employees. The audit found, among other issues, inadequate oversight of the retirement system, outdated operating procedures and incomplete death audit reports.
“RRS improperly paid $554,661.50 in benefits to 44 deceased retirees, with $415,660.76 unrecovered due to ineffective controls in preventing, detecting, and recovering payments to ineligible recipients,” the audit states.
The unrecovered money includes overpayments for taxes and insurance premiums paid directly to government agencies and health care providers between February 2015 and February 2024, auditors wrote. One retiree who died in 2015 still got payments for more than seven years before the system identified them as deceased in June 2022, leading to nearly $250,000 in overpayment.
In a statement Friday, RRS attributed most of the death-related overpayments to privacy law changes that made getting death information difficult and said the overpayments represented 0.06% of the pensions paid during the nine-year period.
News you might have missed from around the commonwealth:
- Youngkin’s signature sets stage for Virginia health insurance to cover IVF treatment in the future (Virginia Mercury)
- Inside the 50-year battle between Kings Dominion and Busch Gardens (Richmond Times-Dispatch)*
*This outlet utilizes a paywall.