ALEXANDRIA, Va., Sept. 8 (UPI) -- A former fringe candidate for mayor of Alexandria, Va., was charged Monday with killing three people there between 2003 and last February.
A grand jury indicted Charles Severance, 53, on two counts of capital murder, one of first-degree murder and seven other charges. Severance is currently in jail in nearby Loudon County, where he is charged with possession of a gun by a convicted felon.
In 2003, Severance allegedly killed Nancy Dunning, wife of James Dunning, who was sheriff at the time. He is also charged with the 2013 killing of Ronald Kirby, a transportation planner, and that of Ruthanne Lodato, a music teacher, in February.
All three victims were well-known residents of Alexandria and all were shot in their homes. A caregiver witnessed the shooting of Lodato and gave police a description of her killer, which led them to Severance.
Severance, a Civil War buff, ran for mayor in 1996 and 2000, attracting attention by his bizarre behavior. He was in West Virginia when he was arrested in March on the weapons charge.
Commonwealth's Attorney Bryan Porter said in a statement he will not seek the death penalty in the case.
