Judge James W. Haley Jr. | Virginia Lawyers Weekly

Criminal – Identity Question – Public Place – Motel Room

By Deborah Elkins
Published: September 16, 2010
Tags: Criminal, Judge James W. Haley Jr., Virginia Court of Appeals

A defendant who gave false identity information to Virginia Beach police when they questioned him in a motel room cannot be convicted of a misdemeanor under the local ordinance because he was not a “place open to the public” at the time he provided the information; the Court of Appeals reverses and dismisses the charge. [...]

Search & Seizure – Warrantless Entry – Exigent Circumstances – Anonymous Tip

By Deborah Elkins
Published: August 3, 2010
Tags: Judge James W. Haley Jr., Search & Seizure, Virginia Court of Appeals

A police officer who came to defendant’s apartment minutes after getting an anonymous tip that “‘a white male named Jimmy Smith and a black male named Bobby’ were inside the residence and Bobby was selling drugs to Jimmy,” and who observed, when defendant Jimmy Smith opened the door, a black male with something white in [...]

Criminal – Construction Fraud – Jury Instruction – Comment On Evidence

By Deborah Elkins
Published: July 15, 2010
Tags: Criminal, Judge James W. Haley Jr., Virginia Court of Appeals

At a contractor’s trial for construction fraud in violation of Va. Code § 28.2-200.1, the trial court erred in basing a jury instruction on another case that cited evidence such as failure to apply for a permit and failure to communicate with a homeowner as probative of fraudulent intent; the Court of Appeals says the [...]

Criminal – Abduction – Cross-Exam Limitation – Phone Calls

By Deborah Elkins
Published: July 13, 2010
Tags: Criminal, Judge James W. Haley Jr., Virginia Court of Appeals

A defendant cannot overturn his conviction for abducting his girlfriend in violation of Va. Code § 18.2-47 because his claims about the trial court’s limitation of his cross-examination of the victim are procedurally barred, the Court of Appeals says. Defendant’s first claim on appeal concerns the trial court’s refusal to permit defendant to cross-examine his [...]

Domestic Relations – Termination Of Parental Rights – Child Sexual Abuse

By Deborah Elkins
Published: July 13, 2010
Tags: Domestic Relations, Judge James W. Haley Jr., Virginia Court of Appeals

A man who abused his nine-year-old daughter and seven-year-old son, and who allowed another man to live in the home and sexually abuse the children, has the termination of his parental rights affirmed by the Court of Appeals. Two persistent problems led DFS to change the permanency plan to one of adoption. These problems – [...]

Criminal – B&E Of Dwelling – Larcenous Intent

By Deborah Elkins
Published: July 13, 2010
Tags: Criminal, Judge James W. Haley Jr., Virginia Court of Appeals

The Court of Appeals affirms defendant’s burglary conviction, despite his claim he only entered his neighbor’s apartment to see if he was still at home and left when the neighbor’s friend, who had been asleep in the apartment, escorted him out; defendant had just spoken to his neighbor and seen him leave for work about [...]

Search & Seizure – Probable Cause – Marijuana & Gun Possession – Informant

By Deborah Elkins
Published: July 13, 2010
Tags: Judge James W. Haley Jr., Search & Seizure, Virginia Court of Appeals

Although police had not previously worked with a particular informant who set up a drug buy from defendant, police knew defendant, questioned the informant about defendant and obtained accurate answers, was present and listened to the entire conversation when the informant called defendant on the phone to set up the buy in a restaurant parking [...]

Criminal – Grand Larceny – Jackhammer Value

By Deborah Elkins
Published: June 24, 2010
Tags: Criminal, Judge James W. Haley Jr., Virginia Court of Appeals

Although the commonwealth provided evidence of the cost to replace a rental jackhammer that defendant never returned, and his rental fees of $221, the value of an item is its fair market value at the time of taking, and the Court of Appeals reverses defendant’s conviction of grand larceny and remands for a possible new [...]

Criminal – Abduction – Assault – Incidental Detention Doctrine

By Deborah Elkins
Published: June 24, 2010
Tags: Criminal, Judge James W. Haley Jr., Virginia Court of Appeals

A defendant’s act of pointing a gun at the victim, who was defendant’s psychiatrist, was incidental to the assault offense, and defendant’s separate conviction of felony abduction under Va. Code § 18.2-47 is reversed by the Court of Appeals. The victim’s testimony was clearly adequate to establish that defendant pointed a gun at him, which [...]

Workers’ Comp – Tattoo Artist – Independent Contractor

By Deborah Elkins
Published: May 27, 2010
Tags: Judge James W. Haley Jr., Virginia Court of Appeals, Workers' Comp

Although a tattoo artist had been “promoted” and received a 55-percent share of his customer fees for tattoos, he provided his own tools and negotiated his own fees, and did not receive a regular salary or any benefits, and the Court of Appeals says the tattoo artist was an “independent contractor,” not an “employee” whose [...]

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