Habeas Petition, Direct Appeal Can Co-Exist

Capital Murder Sentences Upheld

By Deborah Elkins
Published: April 29, 2013
Tags: Criminal, Supreme Court of Virginia

The Supreme Court of Virginia denies habeas relief and upholds the death penalty for each of petitioner’s three capital murder convictions committed when he escaped from custody and shot a hospital security officer and a deputy sheriff in 2006 near the Virginia Tech campus; finding no merit in petitioner’s claims of ineffective assistance of counsel [...]

No Brady Error in Sex Offense Case

By Deborah Elkins
Published: April 29, 2013
Tags: Criminal, Justice Elizabeth A. McClanahan, Supreme Court of Virginia

At defendant’s trial for various sex offenses against his seven-year-old stepdaughter, he had enough time to make use of a recorded interview with the victim that disclosed potentially inconsistent statements, and the Supreme Court of Virginia says the Court of Appeals erred in reversing defendant’s convictions for the alleged error under Brady v. Maryland, 373 [...]

DUI case could have impact on implied consent

By Correy E. Stephenson
Published: April 29, 2013
Tags: Constitutional, Criminal, DUI, U.S. Supreme Court

A U.S. Supreme Court decision addressing the constitutionality of blood draws from drunken driving suspects may have a limited effect in Virginia – for the time being. In the April 17 decision, which split the justices 5-4, the high court held that the natural breakdown of alcohol in the bloodstream does not automatically justify an [...]

Officer’s Statements Not Coerced

By Deborah Elkins
Published: April 25, 2013
Tags: Criminal, Judge Rosemarie Annunziata, Virginia Court of Appeals

Defendant is not entitled to reversal of his misdemeanor embezzlement conviction on the basis that his statements to a superior should have been suppressed, the Court of Appeals says; the supervisor’s questions involved no threat of discharge or other economic sanction; defendant’s subjective fear that he might become the subject of an internal investigation is [...]

No Jury Trial for Treatment Petition

By Deborah Elkins
Published: April 25, 2013
Tags: Criminal, Judge D. Arthur Kelsey, Virginia Court of Appeals

A patient who has been in a state psychiatric hospital since he was found not guilty of malicious wounding by reason of insanity was not entitled to have a jury decide whether he should be required to undergo psychiatric and medical treatment against his will under Va. Code § 37.2-1101, the Court of Appeals says. [...]

Later Bad Act Comes In at Sentencing

By Deborah Elkins
Published: April 25, 2013
Tags: Criminal, Judge Larry G. Elder, Virginia Court of Appeals

At defendant’s sentencing on cocaine possession and driving after being declared a habitual offender, the court did not err in considering evidence of defendant’s participation in a cocaine sale three months after his guilty plea and prior to sentencing; the Court of Appeals says an officer’s testimony, including evidence from an informant, was sufficiently reliable [...]

Evidence Withheld, But Habeas Denied

By Deborah Elkins
Published: April 24, 2013
Tags: Criminal, Judge John A. Gibney Jr., U.S. District Court - Eastern District

A Richmond U.S. District Court denies a writ of habeas corpus in this capital murder case in which defendant was convicted on four counts of capital murder and related felony charges in the murder of a woman, her two daughters and her brother. Petitioner brings a number of claims, some of which are procedurally defaulted [...]

Doctor Convicted for Unnecessary Stent Procedures

By Deborah Elkins
Published: April 24, 2013
Tags: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Criminal, Judge Roger L. Gregory

Although proof of defendant doctor’s failure to meet medical standards for performing stent procedures, standing alone, could not sustain defendant’s conviction for health care fraud, additional direct evidence that defendant overstated blockage in numerous cases, misled patients and recorded nonexistent symptoms and attempted to shred subpoenaed patient files, all support his conviction, the 4th Circuit [...]

Illegal Re-Entry Sentence Enhanced for ‘Drug Trafficking’

By Deborah Elkins
Published: April 24, 2013
Tags: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Criminal, Judge Robert B. King

A defendant’s conviction under Oregon state law of unlawful delivery of heroin may be regarded as a “drug trafficking offense” qualifying for a 16-level enhancement under federal sentencing guidelines, and the 4th Circuit affirms defendant’s sentence of 50 months on his conviction of illegal entry after deportation, in violation of 8 U.S.C. § 1326(a). The [...]