Published December 23, 2020 • Updated on December 23, 2020 at 12:23 pm Photo by Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images & Win McNamee/Getty Images & Graeme Sloan/Bloomberg via Getty Images (L-R) Between the devastation of the coronavirus pandemic, a renewed racial justice movement and an election that will unseat President Donald Trump, it’s been a monumental news year in Washington, D.C., and our region. Here are the top 20 local stories that captivated readers and viewers in 2020. First COVID-19 Cases Diagnosed in DC, Maryland and Virginia in March At first, there were just three people in the D.C. area who were known to have COVID-19. A woman in her 50s and a married couple in their 70s, all from Montgomery County, Maryland, fell ill after taking a cruise in Egypt, officials announced on March 5. Two days later, a U.S. Marine at Fort Belvoir in Virginia was announced to be positive, along with with the first two cases in D.C., those of a church rector and an international visitor to the city.