Virginia Lawyers Weekly VA Lawyers Weekly

Where procedural and substantive reasonableness requirements are necessary to ensure the broad remedial purposes of the First Step Act, but the district court here did not explain why it believed a large upward variance was warranted when it resentenced the ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Criminal Judge Stephanie Dawn Thacker

Where the circuit court determined that appellant was a sexually violent predator based on testimony from an expert the commonwealth appointed, this was error because the relevant statute requires that experts be appointed by either the Commitment Review Committee or ...

Tagged with: Criminal Supreme Court of Virginia

Where the Virginia Supreme Court declared judicial emergencies in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, speedy trial deadlines were tolled. The court did not infringe on appellant’s constitutional right to a speedy trial by declaring an emergency. Further, there was sufficient ...

Tagged with: Criminal Judge Frank K. Friedman Virginia Court of Appeals

Where appellant claims that the trial court erred by playing an audio recording of his interview with a police detective then refused to admit the recording as an exhibit, appellant cannot raise the claim on appeal because he did not ...

Tagged with: Criminal Judge James W. Haley Jr. Virginia Court of Appeals

Where appellant was found guilty of possession of ammunition by a convicted felon, assault and battery of a family or household member, strangulation, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, sufficient evidence supports the convictions. Strangulation Appellant “Fate ...

Tagged with: Criminal Judge Robert J. Humphreys Virginia Court of Appeals

Where appellant argues his conviction for driving without a license was void ab initio because the summons failed to state an offense, the summons was not a court document and thus cannot be void ab initio. “He also argued that ...

Tagged with: Criminal Judge Richard Y. AtLee Jr. Virginia Court of Appeals

Appellant’s convictions for three counts of electronic solicitation of a minor are affirmed. The solicitations were not “caused by, nor had a direct and substantial relationship to, his autism spectrum disorder and … any error by the circuit court in ...

Tagged with: Criminal Judge Dominique A. Callins Virginia Court of Appeals

Sufficient evidence supports appellant’s convictions for three felony drug possession charges and a misdemeanor charge of contributing to the delinquency of a child. Further, any error in admitting evidence that appellant was a sex offender was harmless. Constructive possession “To ...

Tagged with: Criminal Judge Vernida R. Chaney Virginia Court of Appeals

Where appellant “consumed alcohol,” put four children in her car without protective seats or restraints, lost control of the car on a curve while attempting to use her cellphone, hit trees and rolled the car twice, injuring the children, she ...

Tagged with: Criminal Judge James W. Haley Jr. Virginia Court of Appeals

Where a magistrate issued an arrest warrant with two triggering conditions, the magistrate did not wholly abandon his judicial role by doing so. Conditions “The subject search warrant, prepared by law enforcement and/or the Commonwealth provides two different triggering events: ...

Tagged with: Arlington County Circuit Court Criminal Judge Daniel Fiore II Virginia Circuit Courts