The VLW Blog

Virginia State Bar disciplinary charges against former York County assistant prosecutor Cathy Krinick have been dropped in the wake of dismissal of a companion case against commonwealth’s attorney Eileen Addison.
VSB Counsel Edward Davis confirmed the head of a three-judge panel has signed the order dismissing charges against Krinick, who is now in private practice in [...]

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A three-judge disciplinary panel Monday found no evidence of improper witness coaching against York County Commonwealth’s Attorney Eileen Addison. After hearing the case presented by Virginia State Bar lawyers, the panel dismissed misconduct charges that arose from a 1996 capital murder case, reports the Daily Press.
The ruling ends what had been scheduled as a three-day [...]

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Chief Justice Leroy Rountree Hassell Sr. says he will appoint a subcommittee of the Committee on District Courts to help develop a policy designed to save $3 million a year in court-appointed attorneys’ fees.
Commonwealth’s attorneys suggested the money could be saved if they adopted a general rule of not seeking jail time for misdemeanor offenses, [...]

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The Senate voted 23-17 today to drastically increase filing fees in general district and circuit courts to provide money for sheriffs and commonwealth’s attorneys.
Proponents of Senate Bill 329, patroned by Sen. Richard H. Stuart, R-Westmoreland, contend there is no other to generate about $50 million and save the jobs of about 1,400 deputy sheriffs.
Critics countered [...]

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Matt Geary, the No. 2 man in the office of Richmond Commonwealth’s Attorney Mike Herring, is resigning to return to private practice.
Geary was involved in a number of high profile murder cases, including the deaths of six people on his first day in the office in January 2006, but his major contribution to the office [...]

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Former Floyd County Commonwealth’s Attorney Gordon E. Hannett Jr. has agreed to pay $3,500 and to perform 100 hours of community service to avoid trial on charges of stealing the hard drives from computers in the prosecutor’s office.
The charges will be dropped if he performs by April 16.
As reported by the Richmond Times-Dispatch, Hannett never [...]

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Portsmouth Commonwealth’s Attorney Earle Mobley (left) got a public pat on the back Saturday from columnist Roger Chesley at The Virginian-Pilot.
The piece highlight’s Mobley’s unsolicited telephone call to lawyers in a high-profile murder trial underway in nearby Chesapeake.  In that case, special prosecutor Roger Ebert put a jailhouse snitch named Jamaal Skeeter (we couldn’t make [...]

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The Virginia Association of Commonwealth’s Attorneys has canceled its forum for candidates for the Virginia Court of Appeals.
The forum had been scheduled for Monday at the University of Richmond law school.  In a news release, VACA president Joel R. Branscom said one of the expected participants withdrew, leaving only three of the eight candidates planning [...]

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The Virginia Association of Commonwealth’s Attorneys has invited the eight candidates for the vacancy on the Virginia Court of Appeals to appear at a forum Monday at 4:30 p.m. in the Moot Courtroom at the University of Richmond.

UR law professor Ronald J. Bacigal will moderate the program. It is open to the public, and questions [...]

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The Commonwealth’s Attorney for Danville is retiring after 39 years.  William H. Fuller III has announced he will not seek re-election this year, reports the Danville Register Bee.  Fuller has been the city’s chief prosecutor since 1970.
UPDATE:  Senior Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney Michael Newman wasted no time letting folks know that he will stand for election [...]

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