Week In Review: Grandmother Found Guilty Of First Degree Murder, Police Investigate Infant Death

A 51-year-old grandmother

 The jury gave dela Rosa 35 years in prison.There will be a sentencing hearing on Jan. 6, 2012, when a judge can decrease that sentence if he or she chooses but cannot increase it.

Carmela dela Rosa was arrested Nov. 29, 2010, after she tossed her 2-year-old granddaughter, Angelyn Ogdoc, off a 44-foot pedestrian bridge at the Tysons Corner Center mall. The child died from her injuries in Fairfax Hospital less than 12 hours after the fall. Her grandmother was charged with the murder and incarcerated.

On Sept. 26,. Her defense team, led by public defender Dawn Butorac, attempted to paint dela Rosa as a loving, caring and thoughtful woman who suffered from an increasingly severe mental illness. Several friends and family members , specifically how it drastically changed during her bouts of major depressive disorder. A number of psychologists and psychiatrists who have treated dela Rosa during the past 10 years also took the stand.

Commonwealth Attorney Ray Morrogh said the verdict given to Carmela dela Rosa was a "just result," but said trying the case was "grueling" and there were "no winners in a case like this."

"[There's] no joy," Morrogh said. "This is a scar that’s not going to go away.”

“We’ve all lost a little piece of our hearts in this thing,” he said.

A look back at our trial coverage last week:

MONDAY

Trial for grandmother accused of throwing her 2-year-old granddaughter over a Tysons Corner Center walkway continues

Dela Rosa drove car off Skyline Drive two months before she threw her granddaughter from footbridge.

TUESDAY

Defense witness says grandmother could not distinguish between right and wrong when she lifted her granddaughter over a railing at Tysons Corner Center

WEDNESDAY

Grandmother was not insane, final prosecution witness says; did not use available resources to control her anger.

THURSDAY

A jury found Carmela dela Rosa, 51, guilty of first-degree murder Thursday for throwing her granddaughter over a Tysons Corner Center walkway last November

Infant Dies, Police Launch Suspicious Death Case

An 11-month-old boy who became unresponsive during a car ride from Vienna to Reston on Wednesday

The incident is now being investigated as a suspicious death case.

The boy's caregiver put him into a car on Lakewood Drive in Vienna on Wednesday and drove him to meet his mother in Reston.

Fairfax County EMS brought the child to Reston Hospital Center, where he was treated before being flown to Children’s National Medical Center in Washington, D.C.

The boy died there at 11:50 p.m. Thursday.

Vienna Officer Bill Murray said Vienna detectives are interviewing several people involved in the incident. He said it's not clear where the child resided.

Study Gives Insight Into Tysons Transportation, Prioritizes Projects

Fairfax County took one step forward Tuesday night in mapping the transportation network surrounding Tysons Corner's four planned metro stations, unveiling the results of a nearly 2,000-resident study which prioritized sidewalk, bike and bus projects and offered more insight into how people plan to use them.

The meeting at Freedom Hill Elementary School gave residents their first look at the results of the Tysons Metrorail Station Access Management Study (TMSAMS), approved by the Board of Supervisors in 2009 to educate residents about ongoing Fairfax County Department of Transportation studies involving pedestrian, bicycle and bus service networks in a 3-mile radius of the Tysons area. It also aimed to get resident feedback about those recommendations and identify what parts of Tysons need additional analysis and planning.

The study will ultimately be a tool for the Board of Supervisors as it makes funding decisions for Tysons transportation projects, said Kris Morley-Nikfar, a member of FCDOT and the TMSAMS project manager.

But residents who reviewed the project Tuesday said the timeline for those projects — many of which need funding and all of which must be prioritized and approved by the Board of Supervisors — wouldn't be realized by the time metro opened in 2013.

A closer look at the study findings:

Tysons Metrorail Station Access Management Study asks residents to weigh in on proposed projects

Tysons Metrorail Station Access Management Study reveals how those in three mile radius will access and travel between planned stations

NEWS

A weekly list of incidents taken from the Fairfax County arrest log. An arrest does not indicate a conviction.

One Vienna family and their neighbors look for solutions from the town after their basement floods twice; Vienna Town Council schedules worksession for discussion

Vienna man accused of assault

The following arrest information was supplied by the Vienna Police Department. It does not indicate a conviction.

Repairs complete after September storm damage, says VDOT.

Tysons store one of the two original Apple stores.

ELECTIONS

One in a series of at-large school board candidates responses to reader questions

One in a series of at-large school board candidates responses to reader questions

One in a series of at-large school board candidates responses to reader questions

Reston Republican mounts second challenge to Del. Ken Plum.

County Attorney has approved Barry's participation in the program

Candidates for Virginia delegate talk Dulles Rail, public schools at forum.

Vienna, Fairfax County residents invited to public meeting Oct. 11 in Falls Church

SCHOOLS/SPORTS

Join us at 10 a.m. Friday to discuss an online survey about Fairfax County Public School priorities with Barbara Hunter, an assistant superintendent, and a county PTA representative.

Joel Choi leads Warhawks in two-day event, Shannon Brooks qualifies for girls' tournament; Marshall's Scott Henning misses state cut by three strokes

The search for a new superintendent must be open and inclusive, school board candidate says

Funds raised benefit the Side-Out Foundation

Hundreds of students turn out for international awareness day

Thursday night win puts Warhawks at 4-2 overall, 3-0 in Liberty District

COMMUNITY/ARTS

Mid-Atlantic Police Rodeo builds bonds among local motorcycle squads

Our columnist offers tips for making riding in wet conditions more enjoyable

The Green Room is a series previewing, reviewing and featuring the bands and artists that play in Vienna. Rich Robinson of the Black Crowes plays Saturday at Jammin' Java

A weekly listing of deals in and around Vienna