TOP STORIES: Stabbing charges dropped, future of VA gambling, ceasefire deal progress

1. A husband and wife were arrested and charged following the stabbing of a MOD Pizza employee, recent court documents say their charges were dropped Tuesday. The Norfolk Commonwealth’s Attorney’s office determined the couple was acting in self-defense.

   Police say a MOD Pizza employee and a customer, Catherine Harper, got into an argument. After it escalated, court documents say Catherine called her husband, Corey, to “handle the situation.”

   Court documents say Corey Harper stabbed the employee multiple times in the front and back and cut them across their torso so bad the employee’s intestines could be seen. The employee survived the stabbing.

   Both Corey and Catherine Harper were arrested and charged with malicious wounding—Corey got an additional charge for brandishing a firearm.

   According to court documents, a video showing the altercation led to the Harpers’ charges being dropped.

2. Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin told News 3 why he wants to create a gaming commission in the commonwealth. He said until his oversight committee is established, bills aimed at loosening restrictions for gambling will not move forward.

   “I am not interested in progressing any of those kinds of bills,” Youngkin told News 3 in an interview Tuesday morning.

   Recent efforts to bring back skill gaming have caught the governor’s attention.

   Skilled gaming machines are similar to slot machines, but they require the players to implement a “skill” to play (e.g., memory, logistical thinking); they cannot be solely based on chance.

   Youngkin ordered the unplugging of all skilled gaming machines in October 2023. They gained popularity around the time of the COVID-19 pandemic.

   Youngkin said he wants a “robust set of safeguards” to be in place before allowing skilled gaming machines—this is where his proposed gaming commission would come in handy.

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3. A ceasefire deal in the Israel-Hamas war makes significant progress. U.S. and Arab mediators are negotiating a proposed reduction in the IDF’s presence in the Gaza Strip in exchange for the release of the hostages held by Hamas.

   Four officials acknowledged that progress has been made, they said the coming days would be critical.

   The provisional deal between Israel and Hamas would propose a 42 day truce. Hamas would release 33 hostages in exchange for Israel pulling their troops back to the inside perimeter of the Gaza Strip.

   Those involved said mediators from Qatar had put renewed pressure on Hamas to accept the agreement, while U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s envoy, Steve Witkoff, was pressing the Israelis. Witkoff recently joined the negotiations and has been in the region in recent days.

   An Egyptian official said there had been good progress so far, but it would likely take a few more days, and the sides were aiming for a deal before Trump’s inauguration on Jan. 20.

This morning’s weather: Frigid winds today, warmer weather tomorrow

Meteorologist Myles Henderson says you should bundle up! Temperatures in the 20s this morning with a wind chill in the teens. Highs will only reach the mid 30s today, but it will feel more like the 20s with a strong NW wind.

We will warm back into the low to mid 40s to end the workweek. Expect partly cloudy skies on Thursday and mostly sunny skies on Friday.

Wednesday Morning Weather Webcast

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

This morning’s traffic:

So far this morning, there haven’t been any major traffic incidents in our area.

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

We Follow Through: Boar’s Head investigation reveals more sites with potential contamination

• New documents from a USDA investigation into Boar’s Head have revealed that several of its plants had unsanitary conditions.

  The Virginia plant was tied to a listeria outbreak that killed 10, including a Newport News man. That plant in Jarrat closed down last year, but the Department of Agriculture’s report says other facilities in Indiana, Arkansas, and one in Petersburg also had mold, insects, and meat residue on the walls.

  The problems documented at the three factories echo some of the violations found at the Jarratt plant linked to the food poisoning outbreak.

  Some of those reports go back six years.

  Boar’s Head leaders reiterated that the violations documented in the three factories “do not meet our high standards.”

  Their remaining facilities are still operating under normal USDA oversight.

Watch the full story on News 3 This Morning here.