Top 16 of Virginia, DC: Teen Dies from Cancer, Cab Driver Assault, Internet Predator, Ellen Degeneres

Patch has 31 community sites in Virginia and D.C. Here are some of the top stories from around the region over the past week.

16. 10 Manassas Park Residents Displaced By Fire — Six adults and four children were displaced after their home caught fire Tuesday evening, according to Manassas Park Fire Marshal Mark Joyner.

15. Fairfax County Police Bike Units Important Part of Patrols — When night falls, lurking in the shadows of the fluorescent lights from a variety of ethnic restaurants in Falls Church are sometimes drug deals, prostitution and drunks. That’s where you’ll find the Fairfax County Police Department’s Mason District Police Station Neighborhood Patrol Unit, on their bicycles.

14. Police: Woman Bit Officer After Calling 911 — A woman who called 911 after a disagreement with a family member assaulted an officer who responded to the call, and bit another, Prince William County Police said.

13. ICE Investigating Possible Human Trafficking Case in McLean — Agents from U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement/Homeland Security Investigations are investigating a case of possible human trafficking. 

12.  — The National Science Foundation is keeping its headquarters in Ballston for the next five years after a search for alternate, less expensive locations in the Washington area.

11.  — A man attempting to escape a home he had broken into Tuesday ran through a glass door, shattering the glass, after the homeowner confronted him in the kitchen of the home.

10. 'Suspicious Package' Brings Police Bomb Squad to Centreville Area — A small package caused a big commotion in a quiet Chantilly neighborhood Monday. Fairfax County Police Officers were called to the 14100 block of Newbrook Drive, near Centreville, at 5:50 p.m. for a report of a suspicious package. After a visit from the department's Explosive Ordnance Disposal team, officers found that the package was safe. Two DVDs were inside. 

9. Low Enrollment Prompts School TV Cuts — Fairfax County Public Schools says the decision to cut professional television production classes from four schools in the county — and three teachers along with them — is not due to budget cuts, but instead to declining enrollment. FCPS spokesperson John Torre told Patch that TV production programs at West Potomac High School in Alexandria, South County High School in Lorton and JEB Stuart High School in Falls Church will also be canceled.

8. 7 Indicted on Internet Predator Charges — Seven people have been indicted on various charges related to their actions on the internet aimed at who they believed were underage children in Spotsylvania County, Capt. Jeff Pearce, Spotsylvania Sheriff's Office spokesperson, said.

7. Multi-Car Crash Blocks Major Intersection Near Burke — A multi-car crash tied up traffic Tuesday morning on westbound Braddock Road and Wakefield Chapel. 

6.  — Weems Elementary School in Manassas is the proud recipient of a $50,000 check, compliments of the Ellen Degeneres Show and Shutterfly. Angela Burnett, principal of Weems, was flown to Los Angeles to appear on an episode of the show, which aired Tuesday at 3 p.m. on NBC.

5. Costco Hiring for Positions; No Opening Date Officially Announced — While a large sign at the work site of the soon-to-be new Costco in Mount Vernon reads "Opening Spring 2013," like a lot of construction projects, the muddy, fenced location for the new mega-store looks as if it's going to take a little longer. 

4. Capitol Prague Opens Georgetown Cafe; Restaurant to Follow — Capitol Prague, a Czech and Slovak restaurant and bar, opened its cafe over the weekend in Georgetown. The restaurant portion will open in the next couple of weeks.

3. Police Identify Driver Killed in I-95 South Crash Near Backlick Road Exit — A driver was killed in a three-car crash near the Backlick Road exit that shut down the southbound lanes of Interstate 95 for nearly five hours, according to Virginia State Police.

2. Kilmer Mourns Loss of Student — The Kilmer Middle School community is mourning the loss of a classmate and student who lost a years-long battle with leukemia this week. Brendan Kelly, 15, died last weekend after being ill for "some time," Principal Doug Tyson said in an email.

1. Man Charged with Misdemeanor for Assaulting Cab Driver — A Clifton man turned himself in to Fairfax County Police this week following his alleged assault of a taxi cab driver from Great Falls. The 39-year-old taxi driver is Muslim, and claims that Ed Dahlberg compared him to the Boston Marathon bombing suspects and repeatedly punched him, resulting in a fractured jaw, a head injury and hearing loss.