RICHMOND — Republican state Sen. Siobhan S. Dunnavant, facing a tough reelection fight after redistricting turned her territory blue and the Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade, aims to get out front on the issue of abortion with a video launched early Monday morning.
Virginia
Post Roe, Va. doctor-state senator stakes out nuanced abortion stance
Her policy plan, introduced in the ad and fleshed out in an interview with The Washington Post last week, is significantly more restrictive than current Virginia law but defies easy comparisons to the antiabortion legislation that her fellow Republicans have recently proposed in the state — more permissive in some aspects, less so in others.
“This is a really hard subject,” Dunnavant told The Post. “I feel compelled based on my life experience to step forward and … find common ground.”
The ad — online only for now — is an early effort by Dunnavant to define herself on a critical topic before her Democratic challenger, Del. Schuyler T. VanValkenburg (D-Henrico), has a chance to do so. The move speaks to the prominent role abortion will play in the race, which is sure to draw tremendous national money and attention given Virginia’s status as the only state in the South that hasn’t tightened abortion restrictions in the year since the Supreme Court overturned Roe, the landmark ruling that for nearly 50 years guaranteed the right to abortion nationwide.
The ad comes as most Virginia politicians are focused on June 20 primaries for state Senate and House seats across the state. But Dunnavant and VanValkenburg are already in general election mode, having faced no competition for their parties’ nomination in the 16th Senate District, which covers part of Henrico County and leans blue under newly drawn maps.
The Dunnavant-VanValkenburg matchup is expected to be among the most hard-fought of the Nov. 7 elections, when all 40 seats in the Senate and 100 in the House of Delegates will be on the ballot.
“As an OB/GYN, I’ve cared for moms and babies and shared moments of great joy and heartache,” Dunnavant says at the start of the ad, speaking directly to the camera from her kitchen. “My own experience as a mother has informed my care and my patients’ experiences have shaped me. This is the perspective I bring to the conversation on abortion.”
The tone of the spot — from the soft music playing in the background to the use of “conversation” rather than “debate” — seems intended to cool the heated emotions the topic typically triggers. As Dunnavant goes on to spell out her position, she says nothing about “banning” the procedure but allowing it to “remain legal up to 15 weeks.”
Abortion is lawful in Virginia during the first and second trimesters of a pregnancy, through about 26 weeks. The procedure is allowed in the third trimester only if three doctors certify that continuing the pregnancy is “likely to result in the death of the woman or substantially and irremediably impair the mental or physical health of the woman,” state code says.
Dunnavant said she supports legal abortion for any reason up to 15 weeks — and after that in cases of rape and incest, when the mother’s life (but not her mental or physical health) is at risk, and in cases of severe fetal anomalies.
But she would put a time limit on those exceptions, supporting abortion in those cases only up to the point of viability, which she says ranges from 22 to 24 weeks of gestation. After that point, she said doctors, while prioritizing the mother’s life, should deliver the baby rather than abort. Delivery — typically by C-section in an emergency — would put the mother at no greater physical risk than abortion, she said.
“The life of the mother is always preeminent,” she told The Post. “It’s just an extraordinary situation that I’ve never seen that would require killing a baby to save a mother in the third trimester.”
Describing her position in the ad, she says: “After 15 weeks there should be reasonable exceptions for rape, incest, life of the mother and severe fetal anomalies. What I cannot accept is the current Virginia law that allows for abortion up to the moment of birth. As a physician, I know this is not reasonable. It is unnecessary, extreme and heartbreaking.”
Time limits on exceptions have not been a typical feature of abortion legislation in Virginia’s Capitol. The bill that Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) backed this year, for example, called for a ban after 15 weeks with certain exceptions but no cutoff.
Youngkin’s exceptions were rape and incest, and if continuing the pregnancy could result in the mother’s death or could “substantially and irreversibly impair … [her] major bodily functions, not including psychological or emotional conditions.” He did not support exceptions for severe fetal anomalies.
Dunnavant said she also would seek legislation, as she did without success earlier this year, to clarify that abortion restrictions do not apply to nonviable pregnancies. She said the measure is needed to ensure women can get access to lifesaving care for emergencies, such as incomplete miscarriages and ectopic pregnancies.
This is a developing story. It will be updated.
A Virginia woman has been arrested and charged in connection with a murder-for-hire plot, according to the Henry County Sheriff’s office.
Gennevieve McGhee, 44, was allegedly captured via audio and video evidence in the meticulous planning of a murder for hire, the sheriff’s office said.
McGhee is accused of meeting with a confidential source at her residence in Ridgeway, Virginia. The source was acting under law enforcement direction and utilizing a recording device to capture evidence.
TEXAS INFLUENCER SENTENCED TO 10 YEARS IN PRISON FOR MURDER-FOR-HIRE PLOT
Henry County Sheriff’s Office charged Gennevieve McGhee, 44, with criminal solicitation of murder following an investigation that revealed her alleged involvement in planning a murder for hire. (Henry County Sheriff’s Office)
She allegedly discussed detailed instructions on payment arrangements and instructions for carrying out a robbery and murder.
McGhee is charged with criminal solicitation of murder and conspiracy to commit a felony.
INDIAN INTELLIGENCE OFFICIAL CHARGED IN MURDER-FOR-HIRE PLOT ON SIKH SEPARATIST LEADER IN NEW YORK CITY
Gennevieve McGhee, 44, is charged with criminal solicitation of murder and conspiracy to commit a felony. (iStock)
McGhee was taken into custody by deputies from the Henry County Sheriff’s Office on Wednesday and is being held at the Henry County Adult Detention Center with no bond.
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The case remains under review by the Henry County Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office.
Additional information on the case is not available at this time, officials said.
The West Virginia Mountaineers (4-2) will meet the No. 24 Arizona Wildcats in the third place game of the Battle 4 Atlantis midseason tournament for the sixth meeting between the two programs.
West Virginia vs. Arizona Series History
Arizona leads 2-3
Last Meeting: March 28, 2008 (NCAA Tournament) WVU 75-65
When: Friday, November 29
Location: Paradise Island, Bahamas, Imperial Arena (3,900)
Tip-off: 3:00 p.m. EST
Stream: ESPN2
Announcers: Beth Mowins and Debbie Antonelli
Radio: Tony Caridi (PBP), Brad Howe (analyst) Mountaineer Sports Network from Learfield IMG College(Radio affiliates)
WVU Game Notes
– West Virginia was scheduled to play in the 2020 Battle 4 Atlantis. The tournament was moved to Sioux Falls, S.D., due to COVID, and the Mountaineers won the renamed Bad Boy Mowers Crossover Classic.
– WVU is 45-16 in in-season tournaments since 2007.
– With a win over No. 3 Gonzaga, WVU defeated a Top 5 AP team for the second consecutive season. Last season, the Mountaineers downed No. 3 Kansas in Morgantown, 91-85.
– Prior to the overtime win over No. 3 Gonzaga, WVU had lost six straight overtime games.
– This is WVU’s fourth trip outside the United States and Puerto Rico to play a regular season game. WVU played in Cancun in 2013 and 2019 and opened the season in Germany in the 2017 Armed Forces Classic.
– West Virginia is the only team in the country that has two players on the same team who averaged more than 20 points per game from last season — Tucker DeVries (21.6 ppg) and Jayden Stone (20.8 ppg)
– West Virginia is 201-55 against nonconference teams in regular season games in the last 21 seasons.
– The Mountaineers have posted a winning nonconference record in 31 of the last 32 seasons.
– WVU is 265-99 in its last 362 games against unranked teams, including winners of 148 of its last 180 at the WVU Coliseum.
– This is the 116th season and 122nd year overall for WVU basketball, which began in 1903.
– Darian DeVries, who led Drake to six consecutive 20-win seasons and has a career .731 winning percentage as a head coach, was named the 23rd head men’s basketball coach at West Virginia University on March 24, 2024.
– DeVries has a record of 154-57 (.731) in seven seasons as a head coach, including a 59-16 (.787) mark in the last two-plus seasons.
– This past August, the men’s basketball team went to Italy for a 10-day tour and won all three of its games against international competition.
– West Virginia returns just 2.8 percent of its scoring from last season’s team (Ofri Naveh).
– The Mountaineers are led by a pair of transfers in Tucker DeVries (Drake) and Javon Small (Oklahoma State). Last season, DeVries was named an Associated Press All-American Honorable Mention selection, while Small earned All-Big 12 Honorable Mention honors.
– In addition, Eduardo Andre (Fresno State), Joseph Yesufu (Washington State), Sencire Harris (Illinois), Amani Hansberry (Illinois) and Jayden Stone (Detroit Mercy) will all see considerable action this season.
– Tucker DeVries was named to the 20-member Julius Erving Preseason Watch List, giving annually to the nation’s top small forward.
– Tucker DeVries was named to the preseason Naismith Trophy Men’s College Player of the Year Watch List.
– Tucker DeVries was named to the John R. Wooden Award Top 50 Preseason Watch List.
West Virginia got off to a hot start at the Bad Boy Mowers Battle 4 Atlantis by knocking off undefeated Gonzaga 86-78 in overtime in their first-round matchup. The Mountaineers have received strong performances to begin the season from two upperclassman transfers: Javon Small and Tucker DeVries.
With each player delivering standout performances, it’s time to start considering them seriously as draft prospects.
Let’s take a closer look at their outings in this big win and dive into their seasons as a whole up to this point.
Tucker DeVries finished this game with a stuffed stat line of 16 points, six rebounds, four assists, two steals and four blocks. This level of versatility clearly illustrates the type of player he is, as he looked solid in nearly every aspect of the game. He has good positional size at 6-foot-7 and plays with a very high IQ on both ends of the floor. His defensive impact was especially noticeable, as he consistently made impactful plays, including a steal that led to free throws to tie the game at the end of regulation. DeVries finished the second half on a 5-0 run, which gave West Virginia momentum to capture the game in overtime.
DeVries has had a solid all-around season leading up to this performance, averaging 13.5 points, 4.8 rebounds, two assists, 2.5 steals and 1.3 blocks, with shooting splits of 36.6%/40.7%/81.3%. If he were to be drafted following this season, it would likely be in the second round, but his versatile play style is very promising.
Javon Small led the Mountaineers in scoring during this upset victory, contributing 31 points on impressive shooting splits of 50%/40%/81.8%. In addition to his scoring, he also grabbed seven rebounds, dished out two assists and added one steal and one block. Small is a quick and slippery guard who stayed in attack mode throughout the game, translating well into fast-break opportunities. Rarely staying in one spot on offense, Small kept the floor spaced and forced his defender to fight through traffic to keep up with him. His offensive approach was patient as he waited for his defender to get off balance before attacking.
Before this game, Small had averaged 15.5 points, 3.3 rebounds, four assists and three steals. He leads the Mountaineers in points, assists, and steals, while providing a noticeable spark on a nightly basis. Small is now at his third school in four years, with similar statistics in each of his previous two seasons. As an older guard, it is not guaranteed that he will be drafted, but if this level of productivity continues throughout the season, he may receive an opportunity to prove himself at the next level.
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