Police and the family members of a missing Virginia man are searching for him after he last made contact with a roommate on December 30. Ian Burnet, a 22-year-old engineering student, traveled to New York City to stay with two friends at their Hamilton Heights apartment on December 26. He sent a text message to his parents on December 28, and sent a text message to his roommate on December 30th before his disappearance that afternoon. more ›

Though the sun is shining here in the Commonwealth of Virginia, it shines not for Newt Gingrich, as he failed to submit the 10,000 signatures necessary to appear on the GOP primary ballot in March. Gingrich had promised that he would deliver the signatures himself by Thursday's deadline, but he now joins every candidate besides Mitt Romney and Ron Paul, in failing to appear on the ballot. "Winning campaigns have to be able to execute on the fundamentals," senior Romney advisor Eric Fehernstrom gloated to the Times. "This is like watching a hitter in the World Series failing to lay down a bunt." Or like buying the Scottie tag charm without the dog bone charm. more ›

Besides Mississippi voters rejecting a controversial anti-abortion measure, and upstate NY voters rejecting candidates with artsy nude photos, there were other big elections around the nation which gave a glimpse into the country's current mood. Ohio voters rejected an anti-labor law, Arizona voters recalled the extremist Tea Party-friendly state senator, and as a result, Democrats are starting to feel confidant again. more ›

Mayor Bloomberg is donating $25,000 apiece to six Democratic Virginia State Senate candidates to ensure that the party maintains control of the Senate and opposes weakening Virginia's already-lax gun laws. Five of them are from Northern Virginia (or "NoVa," for those who have survived it) and the sixth is in the Hampton Roads area. Virginia Republicans are pushing to loosen gun regulations, including the one gun per month restriction currently on the books. Virginia is New York's number one source of illegal handguns. more ›

Whether or not you believe that the danger from Hurricane Irene is being over-hyped, Mayor Bloomberg is correct to stress in a press conference earlier today that, "in the wrong place at the wrong time, [hurricanes] can be fatal." Six deaths have been attributed to Hurricane Irene so far. more ›

Now that we've all got a soothing cup of coffee in hand, let's take a closer look at the 5.8 magnitude earthquake that rocked the East Coast yesterday. Beginning at 1:51 p.m., the quake lasted between 20 and 30 seconds. The USGS reported two aftershocks of magnitude 2.8 and 2.2 within 90 minutes of the initial quake. People felt the quake from Ontario all the way down to Alabama, because "it was a shallow earthquake, and geological conditions in the eastern U.S." make for a widely shared experience. Why? "Western rock is relatively young" ("impudent," lets say?) and absorbs the violent shaking near the epicenter, while eastern rock is "far older, and so earthquakes can have a much larger and more widespread impact." more ›

A nuclear power plant located 27 miles from the epicenter of today's earthquake in Mineral, Virginia has been shut down. Reuters reports that the Nuclear Regulatory Commission pulled the plug after the 5.8 magnitude earthquake, but another nuclear plant in Surry, Virginia, 103 miles from Mineral, remains operational. Indian Point, the nuclear power plant located 35 miles from New York City, "is operating normally" following today's earthquake, Entergy spokesman Jim Steets tells us. more ›

The FDNY and the US Geological Survey has confirmed a 5.9 magnitude earthquake in central Virginia. Residents of Manhattan and Brooklyn have reported feeling the earthquake as well. Gothamist HQ was rocking like a hurricane just minutes ago. Updates to follow. more ›

After one of its Chinatown-bound buses overturned on I-95 in Central Virginia, killing four passengers, Sky Express was shut down by the U.S. Department of Transportation. But apparently that couldn't keep Sky Express from trying to make some money: The Richmond Times-Dispatch reports, "The DOT's Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration issued a cease and desist order against Sky Express, saying that the company is now trying to operate under the names 108 Tours and 108 Bus." Yes, there are even websites. more ›

A bus headed to New York City overturned on I-95 in central Virginia today, killing four people and injuring dozens others. The accident occurred near the amusement park King's Dominion, just outside of Richmond, and the Virginia State Police believe the crash was due to driver fatigue and charges are pending. In March, a Chinatown bus crashed on I-95 in the Bronx, killing 15 passengers. more ›

Five-time Newark mayor Sharpe James is leaving Petersburg Correctional Complex in Virginia this morning and hopping a bus back to New Jersey. He'll finish out his 27 month sentence—for arranging the sale of state property to his girlfriend, who flipped it for a huge profit—from a halfway house in the city he helped run for 20 years. The unrepentant former official recently spoke with the Star Ledger, claiming wrongful conviction and bad-mouthing current Mayor Cory Booker. more ›

Which Williamsburg should get the first, much coveted access to Google's new ultra high-speed broadband internet service: Williamsburg, Brooklyn or Colonial Williamsburg? more ›

Investigators believe that the gun used by a rapper and CD peddler who was killed after opening fire at police in Times Square might be tied to an interstate smuggling ring. more ›

The gun used in a brazen Times Square shootout was stolen from its owner in Virginia last month. The knock-off MAC-10 pistol was sold at Dale's Guns on Oct. 18 in Powhatan, Virginia before being reported stolen from a car 10 days later in Richmond, Virginia, according to the Daily News. more ›

A Virginia farmer is making a special delivery to NYC this month: 420 pounds of Ancient White Park steer, an extremely rare breed considered so delicious that for centuries only British nobility ate it. According to the Post, a mere 612 registered Ancient White Park cows reside in America, with another 1,000 worldwide. Intrigued by the pedigree, farmer Alec Bradford bought a herd of Ancient White Park five years ago, but he admits, "I didn't even realize the beef tasted so good until I slaughtered the first steer." Bradford's NYC friend, Graham Johnson, announced the sale on his Facebook page on July 30th, and the whole steer sold out in two days! But fear not—Bradford will bring two more dead steers to town in September and October. For according to his reasoning, "The only way to save it from extinction is to eat it." Before any animal rights agitators get their feathers ruffled, let's just remember the carnivorous wisdom of Troy McClure: "Don't kid yourself Jimmy, if a cow ever got the chance he'd eat you and everyone you care about." more ›

A lawyer for Vito Fossella explained the former Congressman's decision to plead guilty to a May 2008 DUI, "He wanted to accept responsibility for what had occurred and he wanted to end this. He wants this behind him. He realizes it was wrong to be drinking and driving that night. He's going to get on with his life." more ›

Former Representative Vito Fossella has pleaded guilty to drunk driving charges. Fossella, who was arrested for the DUI in Alexandria, VA last year, was originally going to appeal his conviction, but instead will face the mandatory sentence of five days in jail. more ›

Gunshots fired at a Civil War re-enactment may have reopened centuries of festering tensions after a New York native was shot last weekend--with a real bullet. 73-year-old Thomas Lord, a corporal in the Seventh New York Volunteer Cavalry fighting as part of the Union cause, had to be taken off the Sumner, VA battlefield in a helicopter after a marble-sized bulled hit him in the back and passed though his shoulder. Guns are usually inspected before re-enactors go into battle and no one from the Confederates has admitted that they fired the weapon in question. John Jobe, a fellow re-enactor portraying a sergeant alongside Lord, says that he is eager to find out just who shot him and wants to press charges, telling the NY Times that "some yahoos are still fighting the war." Mr. Lord sounded equally disappointed that his injury forced a temporary truce, just when the Union soldiers had arrived in a trench where "the rebels were dug in and we had taken their earthworks." more ›

Ah, there's nothing like tabloid sleuthing. The NY Post assigned a reporter and photographer to follow Representative Vito Fossella's girlfriend in Alexandria, VA and they hit the jackpot: They spotted her meeting up with Fossella and taking off on a "pre-Memorial Day rendez-vous." more ›

After his DWI arrest led to admitting an affair and a 3-year-old love child in Virginia, Representative Vito Fossella returned to Staten Island to rampant speculation of his imminent resignation. more ›

One Ring Zero is an unusual Brooklyn band headed up by Michael Hearst and Joshua Camp, with a troupe of musicians and lyricists filling out their ever-morphing sonic tribe. Their lyrics have been written by some familiar names: Jonathan Lethem, Margaret Atwood, Paul Auster and Dave Eggers are amongst them. This year they enter their 10th year of making music, and this Friday they'll be at Joe's Pub celebrating on stage. Join in on the party, you can buy tickets here. more ›

Thank you, NY Times, for updating us on the activities of George Elmer Pataki. Although Pataki has been out of politics, he still spent $1.4 million from his political action committee on "Broadway theater tickets, gatherings at the Yale Club and payments to political loyalists and advisers." more ›

After a 16-year absence from the beauty pageant circuit, Miss Brooklyn returned this year -- which meant that maybe, just maybe, a Brooklynite would become Miss New York, or even Miss America. more ›

After losing by considerable margins in D.C., Maryland, and Virginia primaries to Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton unveiled an ad attacking her rival yesterday. The voiceover says:

Both Democratic candidates were invited to a televised debate here in Wisconsin. Hillary Clinton has said yes. Barack Obama hasn’t. Maybe he’d prefer to give speeches than have to answer questions. more ›

Hillary Clinton's February flop continued today as voters in Virginia, Maryland and D.C. turned out for Barack Obama by nearly two-to-one margins (in D.C. he won by 75% to 24%). According to exit polls, Obama not only did well with young voters, blacks and independents but, surprisingly, with certain demographics Clinton's been counting on: senior citizens, women and blue collar voters. Polls suggest 49% of those who voted for Obama were white and voters over sixty backed Obama by 52%. more ›

It's another Tuesday test of candidates' appeal as D.C., Maryland and Virginia have primaries today. Both the Republicans and Democrats have primaries those three states, but most attention is being focused on the battle between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, who are just about neck-and-neck in terms in delegate totals. more ›

Barack Obama won yesterday's Maine caucus, with about 57-60% of the vote to Hillary Clinton's approximate 40-42%. This makes Obama's fourth win in a row, after sweeping the Democratic contests in Louisiana, Nebraska, and Washington yesterday. more ›

As of 11:45 p.m., Hillary Clinton and John McCain are projected to win their New York primaries. The Democratic primary distributes NY delegates proportionally, so the final total will be important in determining how many will go to Clinton and how many to Barack Obama. more ›

Last November, Natavia Lowery's friends and family were screaming her innocence, but recently some pretty damning evidence came out about her relationship with Linda Stein, the woman she is accused of (and confessed to) murdering. more ›