The VLW Blog

The U.S. Supreme Court yesterday ruled that federal judges are note required to follow sentencing guidelines that permit harsher penalties for crack cocaine crimes than powder cocaine. In a case from Norfolk, the court, 7-2, reinforced the view that the federal sentencing guidelines are merely advisory rather than mandatory. Lawyers USA has the story.

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Michael Vick could play professional football in 2009, but he would have to shake off two years of rust and miss much of the pre-season training for whatever team is willing to accept bad publicity and uncertain performance. U.S. District Judge Henry E. Hudson sentenced Vick today to 23 months in prison on a federal [...]

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Hope, Emily Dickinson famously once wrote, is a thing with feathers. The new logo for the College of William and Mary is a thing without feathers. The NCAA decided the two feathers on the school’s previous logo were “hostile and abusive” to Native Americans. But the new logo is pretty hopeless. It’s dull. W&M is [...]

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There are 18, count ‘em, 18 candidates seeking two soon-to-be-available circuit judgeships in Chesapeake. One seat is open now, following the appointment of Judge S. Bernard Goodwyn to the Supreme Court of Virginia last month. Judge Frederick Creekmore will be retiring. State lawmakers representing Chesapeake recently interviewed all 18 candidates, reports The Virginian-Pilot. The list [...]

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Leroy R. Hassell Jr. not only failed to complete the 200 hours of community service imposed as part of convictions for embezzlement, unlawful entry and trespassing, he forged documents saying that he had. As a result, Henrico Circuit Judge L.A. Harris jr. sentenced him yesterday to 16 months in jail, part of it for forging [...]

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A Virginia State Bar disciplinary subcommittee has dismissed a complaint by Virginia Beach circuit judges that Commonwealth’s Attorney Harvey L. Bryant III violated legal ethics. Bryant announced the dismissal Saturday at the same event that led to the complaint—a Republican prayer breakfast. Ethical proceedings typically remain confidential unless and until the VSB’s disciplinary apparatus finds [...]

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Enough of that squished-together Times New Roman typeface already. That’s one possible reading of the thinking of the Supreme Court of Virginia in amending its rules on “Forms of Briefs and Other Papers.” Or it may be that they just want to read less. The practical effect of the amendments, which will take effect Feb. [...]

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