Top 18: Leaving a Baby in a Hot Car, Kayaker Drowns, Taxi Driver Declared Incompetent to Stand Trial, and a World of Beer

Written by Beth Lawton

Patch has 31 sites in Virginia and Washington. Here are some of the top stories from around the region from last week.

• Infant Death Case: Court Orders Home Review Before Considering Bond for Mother — The Alexandria woman accused of leaving her 8-month-old baby boy in a hot car, causing the child's death, may be released on bond next week. In the meantime, Arlington County Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court Chief Judge Esther Wiggins on Wednesday appointed a legal advocate to help ensure the well-being of the woman's other four children.

• 2 Babies Dead: How Does a Parent Forget a Child in a Hot Car? (And How to Prevent It) — The details connected to the deaths of two babies over the holiday weekend -- in separate incidents but under similar circumstances and only a short drive from each other in Virginia and Maryland -- could hardly be more tragic: In both cases, police say, a relative forgot the babies in a car with outside temperatures hovering around 90 degrees. Unfortunately, such cases are not rare. According to KidsandCars.org, babies dying in hot cars happens about 38 times per year across the United States.

• Despite Wal-Mart Threats, Living Wage Bill Passes — The District Council passed the Large Retailer Accountability Act by a vote of 8 to 5 Wednesday, just hours after Wal-Mart said doing so would mean the cancellation of three planned DC stores. The Large Retailer Accountability Act of 2013 requires business occupying more than 75,000 square feet and whose parent company makes more than $1 billion a year to pay workers a living wage of no less than $12.50 an hour, rather that the minimum wage of $8.25.

• Kayaker Drowns in Potomac River near Great Falls — Rescue workers who had been searching for two kayakers in the Potomac River Thursday afternoon near Great Falls were able to rescue one of those kayakers. The second kayaker's body was found around 7 p.m.—that person had apparently drowned, according to the fire and rescue services officials.

• Fairfax Zoning Amendment Clashes With Abortion Rights Advocates — A split Fairfax City Council amended its zoning code related to medical facilities Tuesday, dismissing arguments from pro-choice advocates that the move would further limit access to legal abortions. The move could lump clinics that provide abortions with hospitals and surgical centers, rather than with doctors' offices, making it more costly to obtain required special use permits.

• Sold: Kroger Buys Harris Teeter — Kroger has purchased Harris Teeter in a $2.5 billion deal announced Tuesday, but don’t worry — our local store won't close or change any time soon. Harris Teeter’s 29 stores in Virginia will continue to operate under the same brand name as a subsidiary of Kroger Co., according to a statement released by the company.

• App Brings World of Beer to Your Fingertips — Can't remember that great beer you had last week? Don't worry — there's an app for that. The World of Beer 2.0 app launched in late spring and has everything you need to go from casual beer drinker to connoisseur.

• Cops Break One of Three Reston Robbery Cases — Based on tips from the public, Fairfax County Police were able to make arrests in one of three robbery and assaults on the Reston paths. Police charged one adult and three juveniles in connection with the June 7 robbery and assault near Pinecrest Road. The adult, Ali Lewis, 19 of Freetown Court, Reston was charged with robbery on June 21, Fairfax County Police said. Detectives linked the four suspects to the incident based on a tip they received from the public.

• Taxi Driver Declared Incompetent to Stand Trial — The taxi driver charged with shooting Alexandria police officer Peter Laboy has been found incompetent to stand trial, according to a Thursday ruling by an Alexandria Circuit Court judge. Alleged shooter Kashif Bashir, 27, will undergo mental health treatment.

• Terry McAuliffe: Expanding Medicaid ‘The Right Thing To Do’ in Virginia —  Expanding medicaid and making Virginia's health care system more efficient would improve the health of Commonwealth residents and create thousands of jobs in Virginia, Democratic gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe said during a campaign stop Monday.

• Police: Woman Reported Missing — The Fairfax County Police Department is requesting the public's assistance in finding Anna Ruth Mazurek, 38, last seen near the 7000 block of Marlan Drive in the Alexandria area of Fairfax County.

• King Street Safeway to Close Saturday - The Safeway at Bradlee Center on King Street closed its doors on Saturday, July 13. It will reopen at some point in 2014 after an extensive renovation that will expand the grocery store in size and offerings. This is the fourth grocery store in Alexandria’s West End to close in the past six months, leaving shoppers with few options.  

• Gun Activist Adam Kokesh Arrested in Herndon — Anti-government, pro-gun activist Adam Kokesh was arrested at his home in Herndon Tuesday night after officers from U.S. Parks, with the assistance of Herndon police, served a search warrant on his home and found stashes of weapons and drugs. The search came on the heels of Kokesh posting a video of himself on YouTube loading a shotgun in broad daylight in the middle of Freedom Plaza in D.C., which is U.S. Parks territory.

• $106 Million Rased for George Washington Presidential Library — The Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association announced Thursday that it has raised more than $106 million for the construction and support of The Fred W. Smith National Library for the Study of George Washington at Mount Vernon. “No president in American history deserves the honor of an official library more than our first chief executive,” said Curt Viebranz, Mount Vernon president. The 45,000-square-foot library will hold original books and manuscripts from the president, as well as serving as a center for scholarly research and educational outreach.

• Vienna’s Church Street Parking Garage Development Falls Through —After months of discussing a potential mixed-use parking garage in the Church Street corridor, the Town of Vienna and a private developer have abandoned the project, citing issues with the project's general contractor.

• 73-Year-Old Woman Assaulted and Robbed Near Ossian Hall Park in Annandale — A 73-year-old woman was robbed and assaulted Tuesday night in Annandale, according to Fairfax County police. The woman was walking from a bus stop in the 7900 block of Heritage Drive around 8 p.m. Tuesday when she was approached by four men.

• West Springfield High School Places First in Biotechnology Design at National Technology Student Conference — A team of students from West Springfield High School placed first in the Biotechnology Design category and sixth place in Manufacturing Prototype category for high school students at the 2013 National Technology Student Association (TSA) Conference last week.

• Shoplifter Pepper-Sprayed Saks’ OFF 5TH Staff — A DC man pepper sprayed two Saks Fifth Avenue OFF 5TH workers after they confronted him about shoplifting in the store, Prince William County Police said. Derrick Kiwan Brown, 27, of Kenilworth Avenue, is wanted for two counts of malicious injury by caustic substance and one count of grand larceny.