Hampton judge backed for appeals court

Two local members of the Virginia Court of Appeals — Chief Judge Walter S. Felton Jr. of James City and Robert P. Frank of Newport News — are stepping aside at year's end. Felton, who's been on the Richmond-based court since 2002, and Frank, a member of the court since 1999, both recently reached 70 years old, the mandatory retirement age for state judges. Their departures means the 11-member court is losing two of its four members from the Hampton Roads area. Hampton Roads Transitions Family Violence Services Christopher Newport University Last week, the Hampton Bar Association endorsed Christopher W. Hutton, a longtime Hampton Circuit Court judge and the city's former top...