Members of the U.S. Armed Forces, veterans and their families often qualify for special tax benefits. An IRS news release describes some of the most common deductions and exclusions and tells where to get more information.

The Manassas City Police Department arrested two brothers for murder last night in connection with the death of Antonio Ricardo Bailey, 44, of 12011 Smithfield Road, Manassas (20112). Mr. Bailey’s body was discovered in a vacant parking lot in the 9000 block of Church Street, near the Olde Towne Inn, shortly after 7:30AM Tuesday, October 30, 2012.

orthern Virginia Electric Cooperative has most of its customers connected to the power grid as the region recovers after Hurricane Sandy’s winds and rain caused widespread power outages this week. At the height of the storm, 32,000 NOVEC customers lost power. As of 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday, all but about 1,400 had electric service restored. Crews will work through the night to get most of these customers reconnected by Thursday night.

Prince William County Bar Foundation, Inc., George Mason University’s School of Music and Fairfax Law Foundation will team up to present two Jazz 4 Justice© concerts. These music events will support vital community and legal services in Prince William and Fairfax Counties and music scholarships for students at George Mason University.

Scammers-or "storm chasers"-will likely try to take advantage of vulnerable storm victims as well as those who want to donate money to help them because Hurricane Sandy left behind power outages, downed trees, and property damage, Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli warned about danger from scammers & what to look for.

Virginia Department of Corrections (VADOC) will monitor sex offenders on probation and parole supervision throughout Virginia tonight, Halloween night, while children are trick-or-treating.

The Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) and 495 Express Lanes today announced that the 14-mile corridor of new high occupancy toll (HOT) lanes on the Virginia side of the Capital Beltway will open as early as Nov. 17. Drivers are encouraged to prepare to use the Express Lanes now to be able to use them when they open. 495 Express Lanes travelers will need an E-ZPass® and an understanding of how the lanes work before they can take advantage of the lanes.

Dominion Virginia Power has restored electric service to more than 75 percent of the 322,000 customers affected by Hurricane Sandy and expects to have power restored to virtually all customers by Thursday night, according to a news release.

Manassas City government and Manassas City Public Schools are changing the date for the next citizen engagement opportunity, previously scheduled for Nov. 7. The next opportunity for residents to offer their suggestions and comments regarding City and School Capital Improvement needs will be held on Tuesday, Dec. 4 at 6:30 p.m. at Mayfield Intermediate School.