Federal agents take two men from downtown Charlottesville courthouse, sparking protests

Teodoro Dominguez Rodriguez and another man who has not yet been identified were detained by federal agents on Tuesday in the Albemarle County Courthouse located in downtown Charlottesville, leading to a protest from residents.

From Virginia Public Media: 2 men detained at Albemarle courthouse in alleged ICE raid

In an April 22 report of the incident, The Daily Progress included a video, which 29 News later identified as being shot by “public defenders,” showing three men in plain clothes — one wearing a balaclava — approaching a man in the courthouse lobby, handcuffing him after a brief struggle, and taking him outside. In the video, witnesses ask to see a warrant for his arrest, which the men do not produce. They eventually verbally identify themselves as being agents of the Department of Homeland Security. (Subscribers can view The Progress article here).

Virginia Public Media on April 23 identified one of the men who was detained as Dominguez Rodriguez, citing Nicholas Reppucci, public defender for Charlottesville and Albemarle County, whose office was representing Dominguez Rodriguez, but the second man has not yet been identified.

According to The Progress, Dominguez Rodriguez was appearing in court for a charge of assaulting a roommate. Those charges were dropped, and he was taken while exiting the courthouse. The other man was detained while attempting to pay a fine for driving under the influence, The Progress reported, citing a source “with knowledge of the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity.”

Reppucci told The Progress that the incident was alarming because the men claiming to be Homeland Security officers did not show badges, identification or warrants when detaining Dominguez Rodriguez. 

Reppucci also told VPM News that his office has not been able to speak to Dominguez Rodriguez since the incident, and they do not know where he was taken. 

Albemarle County Sheriff Chan Bryant later confirmed that the men who took the two men were federal agents, saying in an April 23 statement that the “federal agents identified themselves with their badges and federal credentials with the bailiff before proceeding through the screening area” at the courthouse. 

VPM News reported that several dozen protesters stood outside the courthouse and in Court Square the afternoon of Wednesday, April 23. Protesters told Cville Right Now they were concerned about what they saw as a lack of due process and told VPM news that the incident could make residents afraid to go to the courthouse for fear of being detained. Newsweek also published a report on the incident and protests.

From the Daily Progress: Charlottesville school division makes bid for Federal Executive Institute shuttered by Trump (subscription required)

Charlottesville City Schools has applied to acquire the now-empty 14-acre campus of the Federal Executive Institute (FEI) on Emmet St., which was closed by an executive order from President Trump in February. If successful, City Schools plans to use the space for a centralized preschool and administrative offices, according to a public statement from Superintendent Royal Gurley released April 23.

According to The Progress, the property went up for sale in March through the Federal Real Property Assistance Program, which oversees the transfer of “surplus” federal property to nonprofits or state or local governments. 

City Schools could acquire the property at little to no cost under a Public Benefit Allowance discount due to the plans to use it for educational purposes, the statement said. The federal government bought the property in 1982 for just under $2 million. Charlottesville City Manager Sam Sanders described it as “a generational opportunity for the schools to advance and expand programming serving students and families” in a news release.

If the bid is successful, the FEI campus would be used for a consolidated preschool, which was previously planned for what is now Walker Upper Elementary. (If you’re interested in the background on why City Schools plans to reconfigure Walker and Buford Middle School, here’s a report we published about it in 2021.) Walker would be used for the Lugo-McGinness Academy, an alternative high school for students who might be at risk, have behavioral issues, or elect to join themselves.

The offices at the Charlottesville High School Annex could be repurposed to expand career and technical education for students. The acquisition would also allow for a dedicated space for middle school alternative programming at what is now the City School Central Offices next to Walker, and additional space for students with special needs at what is now Lugo-McGinness Academy.

First Person: To Trump, the Federal Executive Institute was ‘serving the Federal bureaucracy.’ Here’s what it was to someone who helped run it

The FEI, which provided leadership training for federal government employees, was headquartered in Charlottesville and had operated since 1968 when it was established under the Lyndon Johnson administration. 

As Charley Burton, who managed the janitorial and custodial team at the FEI, said in his First Person Cville article following the closure, his team was laid off, some of whom had been working there for 25 years.

“We are not just a number or a budget line. We have lives and our lives connected with each other at FEI,” Burton wrote.

Charlottesville’s police oversight board wants your input

The Charlottesville Police Civilian Oversight Board (PCOB) is hosting a community town hall on Apr. 29 to hear questions, concerns and suggestions on ways to improve relationships between the police and the community. Read more about the town hall here.

If you missed it last month, here’s some background on the PCOB before you go. Reporter Anastasiia Carrier’s article, published March 6, explores the limitations the board is facing — and some of the confusion its members have over what function the city wishes it to fulfill.

Stay safe and take care of each other,
Akash Sinha, Managing Editor

Take Action

The Charlottesville Police Civilian Oversight Board (PCOB) is hosting a community town hall on Apr. 29 from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at the Carver Recreation Center, 233 4th St. NW, Charlottesville, to hear questions, concerns and suggestions on ways to improve relationships between the police and the community.

Read more about the town hall here.