This Week at a Glance
A Staunton police officer shot and killed a man in the Walmart parking lot on Richmond Avenue Tuesday evening, and state police have released his name but few other details. Downtown shifts gears by Friday afternoon, when streets close for Queen City Mischief & Magic, the volunteer-run festival that draws more than 20,000 people and this year adds a corner for the Oz crowd. Augusta County’s sheriff made his case for keeping Flock license plate cameras, a Waynesboro elementary student turned up with a knife in his desk, and Staunton’s finalist came home from the Virginia Cocktail Games in Richmond.
Lead Stories
A Man Is Dead After a Police Shooting at the Richmond Avenue Walmart
A Staunton police officer shot and killed a man in the parking lot of the Walmart on Richmond Avenue Tuesday evening.
The shooting happened around 7:15 p.m. on September 22 at the store at 1028-C Richmond Avenue, and the man died at the scene, according to Rocktown Now.
Staunton Police turned the case over to Virginia State Police that night, and troopers asked the public to avoid the area as they processed the scene, WHSV reported.
On Wednesday afternoon, Sgt. Christopher Ammons identified the man as 39-year-old Montique Treymayne Gaston of Portsmouth. The officer who fired was not hurt and has been placed on administrative leave under department policy for the length of the investigation, Rocktown Now reported. The department has not released the officer’s name.
Police have not said what brought the officer and Gaston together, whether a call for service came first, whether Gaston was armed, how many shots were fired, or whether a body camera recorded the encounter. State police say they will release more information when their investigation ends, according to The River 95.3.
Augusta Free Press, a regional outlet whose editor writes with an openly skeptical eye toward local officials, asked both departments Wednesday morning why so little had been released. Investigators told the outlet they were still notifying Gaston’s family, who live out of state. His name went public just after 2:30 that afternoon, per a follow-up from the same outlet. Police have not said why Gaston, who lived in Portsmouth, was in Staunton Tuesday night.
When a Virginia officer fires a weapon on duty, the local department asks state police to investigate. Troopers process the scene, notify the family, and build the case file. That file then goes to a special prosecutor, a commonwealth’s attorney from outside the area. Staunton’s own commonwealth’s attorney prosecutes cases brought by city officers every week, so the review goes to someone who doesn’t.
Two recent valley cases show how that review ends. Last week, Winchester’s commonwealth’s attorney, serving as special prosecutor, ruled that a Page County deputy was justified in a shooting in Stanley. The office reviewed evidence gathered by the State Police Bureau of Criminal Investigation, including witness statements, body-worn camera footage, and Ring camera footage that captured audio, WHSV reported. In March, the Shenandoah County sheriff announced that his county’s commonwealth’s attorney had reviewed a state police investigation into a fatal shooting by a deputy and found no criminal wrongdoing.
Neither agency has given a timeline for Staunton’s case, and these reviews vary widely in length. In Hopewell, a special prosecutor still had not announced a decision more than four years after a police detective shot and killed a woman in December 2018, and the woman’s mother asked a judge to appoint a new prosecutor.
Wizards, Witches and a Few Flying Monkeys Take Downtown This Weekend
Queen City Mischief & Magic returns Saturday and Sunday, September 26 and 27, for its eleventh year, with downtown street closures starting Friday afternoon. The festival began in 2016 as a modest one-day party for Harry Potter fans and has grown every year since, Visit Staunton notes. Admission is free, volunteers run it, and the crowd now tops 20,000 people a year.
This year’s biggest addition sits outside Hogwarts entirely. A new area caters to fans of Wicked and The Wizard of Oz, and several costumed characters will roam downtown, Elphaba and a squad of flying monkeys among them, according to Visit Staunton. The Hogwarts crew arrives by train at the Staunton station, rebranded Platform 9¾ for the weekend, on Saturday at 9:45 a.m. and 2:45 p.m., and on Sunday at 9:45 a.m. and 3:15 p.m.
The Polyjuice Parade steps off Saturday from noon to 12:30 p.m. at the corner of Beverley and Market streets, and anyone in costume is welcome to fall in behind the characters. Quad ball, the sport formerly called Quidditch, holds matches Saturday at 5 and 6 p.m. and its championship Sunday at 4 p.m., with training sessions for players 11 and older who bring a parent to sign a waiver. Do Good Alley on South New Street gives local charities a spot to explain their work, with free crafts for kids. Trinity Episcopal Church hosts the ticketed Hogwarts Reunion Banquet Saturday night in McCracken Hall and a pancake breakfast Sunday morning.
On stage, Silver Line Theatre Exchange runs Puffs, or Seven Increasingly Eventful Years at a Certain School of Magic and Magic across the weekend, starting Friday, according to its event calendar. The festival’s full lineup, from a snake show to glassblowing demonstrations, lives on the official QCMM schedule.
Portions of downtown close to through traffic from 5 p.m. Friday, September 25, through 5 p.m. Sunday, September 27, and parking restrictions start at the same hour, per the city’s traffic and parking alert. Cars left in a no-parking zone after 5 p.m. Friday will be towed. The Wharf lot closes for the festival. The New Street and Johnson Street garages stay open, though space is limited, and garage users should watch for spots reserved for hotel guests, the festival’s FAQ advises.
For Saturday, the festival steers visitors to free parking at the former Staunton Mall, with shuttles running downtown from 8 a.m. to 9:45 p.m. Organizers are specific about where to leave your car: only the back section of that lot is authorized, and the FAQ suggests routing your GPS to Pendleton Community Bank at 478 Frontier Drive, since the permitted lot sits across the street from it. Park in the wrong section and you risk a tow. The shuttles don’t run Sunday, which organizers describe as the quieter day, when downtown parking usually opens up. Accessible parking is available at City National Bank, 38 N. Central Ave., and Central United Methodist Church, 14 N. Lewis St., according to the city. Street closures also show up in Waze.
Downtown’s Shop and Dine Out promotion takes the weekend off and picks back up Friday, October 2, running through November 1.
IQAir’s forecast calls for sunshine and good air quality Saturday, with a high in the upper 70s, per its Staunton station page. Bring water. Official announcements come through queencitymagic.com and the festival’s Facebook page, and anyone who wants the whole weekend mapped on a phone can find more under From The Stauntonian This Week, below.
Event times are subject to change.
Quick Hits
Augusta County Sheriff Donald Smith went before the Board of Supervisors Monday to defend the two Flock license plate cameras his office runs on Jefferson Highway near the Preston Yancey Fire Department, crediting them with helping identify a suspect vehicle in the homicide of Andrew W. Mitts Jr. and with recovering stolen cars, WHSV reported. Smith said he is listening to privacy concerns and will keep reviewing the program. Supervisor Scott Seaton had earlier pointed out that the cameras logged eight hits from more than 65,000 reads in a 30-day stretch, according to Augusta Free Press, which has been openly critical of the cameras. Staunton ended its own Flock contract in January after public pushback over privacy, per the city.
A student at Berkeley Glenn Elementary in Waynesboro told an instructional assistant Wednesday that a classmate had a knife in his desk. Staff secured the knife, which had a 3½-inch blade, and a threat assessment found students and staff were not in danger, Rocktown Now reported. Police are investigating whether charges fit the case, and the division is asking parents to check bookbags every morning.
Breannah Carr of Maude and the Bear carried Staunton’s colors into the Virginia Cocktail Games finals in Richmond. The title went to MacKenzie Carter of The Omni Homestead Resort & Spa for an agave cocktail called “The Virtus,” according to Virginia Spirits. Carr’s finalist drink, a rye sour titled Golden Hour, is on the same page for anyone who wants to try it at home.
Staunton City Council holds a work session and regular meeting tonight, with the regular session starting at 7 p.m. Details on attending or watching are on the city’s public meetings page.
If stauntonian.com looks different this week, you’re not imagining it. We flipped the site from black text on a white page to white text on a black one to mark Queen City Mischief & Magic weekend.
Out & About
Thursday, September 24
City Council. Work session this evening and regular meeting at 7 p.m. at City Hall.
Friday, September 25
Downtown Closures Begin. Festival street closures and parking restrictions take effect at 5 p.m.
Puffs. Silver Line Theatre Exchange opens its festival weekend run of the Potter parody in the evening.
Saturday, September 26
Queen City Mischief & Magic. Day one downtown, with the Polyjuice Parade at noon and quad ball matches at 5 and 6 p.m. Shuttles run from the former Staunton Mall, 8 a.m. to 9:45 p.m.
Bark Park Day. The city lists a Bark Park Day from 9:30 a.m. to noon on its events calendar.
Hogfather Preview. Queen City Music Studios performs selected scenes from Terry Pratchett’s Hogfather at 12:45 p.m., per the QCMM.app schedule.
Sunday, September 27
Queen City Mischief & Magic. Day two opens with the Hogwarts Pancake Breakfast at Trinity Episcopal Church at 9 a.m. and the Official QCMM Sorting at Staunton Wharf at 9:30, per the QCMM.app schedule. The quad ball championship follows at 4 p.m., and streets reopen at 5 p.m.
Blackfriars Playhouse. The Tempest continues in repertory through November 13 for the playhouse’s 25th anniversary season; check the American Shakespeare Center calendar for showtimes.
River Watch. The South River near Waynesboro has spent the late summer in its typical range, and The Stauntonian doesn’t print a stage reading it can’t verify the same day. For current conditions at USGS Station 01626000, check the USGS live dashboard the morning of any wading, fishing, or floating trip, since levels can move fast after regional rain.
The Sneeze Index. Air quality in Staunton read Good early Thursday, with a US AQI of 17 and PM2.5 at 3.1 micrograms per cubic meter as the main pollutant, according to IQAir’s live station data. The pollen index reads Low: tree and grass pollen register none, and weed pollen sits low, a real break from the ragweed spike earlier this month. The forecast keeps Saturday in the Good range, so festival crowds should have clean air to go with the sunshine.
The Weekly Pump. Virginia’s average for regular gas reached $4.23 a gallon this week, up about 9 cents from the week before, and diesel keeps setting records at $6.38, according to WSLS. Premium averages $5.09. A year ago, regular cost about $2.97. Roanoke and Lynchburg drivers are paying a few cents under the state average, and GasBuddy tracks station-by-station prices for anyone hunting a cheaper fill-up before the weekend.
Real Estate Watch. Staunton’s median sale price came in at $314,742 for the three months ending in August, up 7.5 percent from the same stretch last year, according to Redfin. That lands below the $324,837 figure we reported earlier this month, which covered an earlier three-month window. Homes now take a median 11 days to sell, two days longer than a year ago, and 93 homes sold in August compared with 105 last August. Redfin still rates the market very competitive.
Specific sales and current listings require a local agent with direct MLS access; aggregate figures lag what’s happening street to street.
Who’s Hiring
Cafe Barista, Broad Porch Coffee Co., Staunton, paying $16 to $22 an hour. Listed on Indeed.
Part-Time Student Team Member, Kline’s Dairy Bar, Staunton, paying $16 an hour. Listed on Indeed.
Package Handler, part-time, FedEx, Staunton, paying $18.00 to $18.25 an hour. Listed on Indeed.
Director of Medical, Middle River Regional Jail, Staunton, paying $130,904 to $153,812 a year. Listed on Indeed.
Salary figures above are listed only when explicitly stated by the employer. Full listings and current openings can be found on Indeed and through the city and schools’ shared jobs portal.
Ongoing Threads
The Northrop Grumman DEQ air permit held its second public hearing September 15, and DEQ has said it will decide by October 22, WMRA reported. One new wrinkle surfaced after the hearing: DEQ said it expects the plant to send wastewater into Waynesboro’s treatment system, but the company has not applied for a water discharge permit, according to The News Leader.
JLARC’s recommendation to close the Commonwealth Center for Children and Adolescents remains a recommendation. DBHDS says it has no current plans to act on it. No update this week.
I-81 widening remains on pace for northbound lanes to open late this fall, with full completion targeted for summer 2027. Drivers should expect overnight lane closures between mile markers 240 and 251 on weeknights through January 2027, per VDOT’s latest traffic alert.
Downtown tunnel repairs continue, with Byers Street reopened and New Street work underway. West Johnson Street still isn’t expected to reopen until 2027. No update this week.
The Beverley Street and Johnson Street intersection project remains in 30 percent design review with VDOT, with construction targeted for fall 2027, according to the city’s project page. No update this week.
The man who fired shots in the Orchard Hill Shopping Center lot on September 2 remains unidentified and at large as far as we can confirm. We’ll update this if the Augusta County Sheriff’s Office announces an arrest.
Freddi Chigo Mil, charged with second-degree murder and aggravated malicious wounding in the August 30 Orchard Avenue stabbing, remains held without bond at Middle River Regional Jail. No court date has been reported.
Local Palate’s Best Culinary Town in the South winner won’t be announced until the December 15 print issue. Staunton remains a finalist.
From The Stauntonian This Week
Death Takes the Sleigh: Staunton High Puts Pratchett’s Hogfather on Stage. The Hogfather has gone missing, and Death is sliding down chimneys to cover his rounds. Staunton High School’s theater students stage Stephen Briggs’s adaptation of Terry Pratchett’s Discworld holiday comedy October 2 through 4, and eight of them talked with us about assassins, tooth fairies, rewritten carols and a set that spins city streets into a castle mid-scene. Tickets are on sale now through GoFan.
The Whole QCMM, Mapped and in Your Pocket. Queen City Mischief & Magic takes over downtown this Saturday and Sunday, and this year it comes with QCMM.app, a free companion site that maps all 119 festival stops, keeps the weekend schedule a tap away and sends visitors hunting for 67 roaming costumed characters. I built it.
New annual subscriptions to The Stauntonian are 25% off through September 30 as a festival special.
Got a tip, a correction, or an event we should know about? Use the news tip form, submit your event, or pitch your business, all under the Community menu at stauntonian.com.