Virginia Lawyers Weekly VA Lawyers Weekly

Where the commonwealth has declined to prosecute defendant for the misdemeanor offense of driving without an ignition interlock system, this court must dismiss the charge. Overview Defendant was charged in the general district court. The commonwealth declined to prosecute. Defendant ...

Tagged with: Criminal Fairfax Circuit Court Judge Richard E. Gardiner Virginia Circuit Courts

Where a jury found appellant guilty of wounding by mob, the conviction is affirmed. There was sufficient evidence that appellant and two others had a common intent to harm another person, and that appellant “did not abandon or contradict this ...

Tagged with: Criminal Judge Mary Grace O'Brien Virginia Court of Appeals

Where the circuit court granted bail to appellee, who was charged with several sex crimes but “gave no reasons to support its decision to grant pre-trial bond[,]” this was an abuse of discretion. The circuit court’s judgment is reversed and ...

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

Where appellant made a successful Batson challenge after the Commonwealth exercised a peremptory strike to remove the only “African American on the venire[,]” the trial court did not abuse its discretion by declining to reseat the improperly struck juror because ...

Tagged with: Criminal Supreme Court of Virginia

Where a proposed instruction would inform the jury that appellant could petition for a geriatric release once he served five years of his sentence, appellant’s motion to include information that only a small percentage of offenders were actually granted such ...

Tagged with: Criminal Supreme Court of Virginia

Where a prison guard argued the 18 U.S.C. § 1519 obstruction of justice charge required the government to prove he intended to obstruct an investigation that he knew would become a federal investigation, because knowledge of a federal investigation under ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Criminal Judge G. Steven Agee

A police officer’s affidavit provided probable cause to issue a search warrant even though the affidavit stated that the officer would execute it when he knew defendant had drugs for sale. Waiting to resupply Defendant Paige is charged with possession ...

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

Where this court granted defendant’s motion for bail but stayed execution of the order to give the commonwealth the opportunity to appeal, the court has the inherent authority to do so. Background “It is undisputed that, because of the charges, ...

Tagged with: Criminal Fairfax County Circuit Court Judge Richard E. Gardiner Virginia Circuit Courts

Even if the trial court erred by excluding text-message evidence at appellant’s rape trial, any error was harmless given the “overwhelming” evidence corroborating the victim’s testimony that appellant raped her. Background A.D. accused appellant of raping her in a motel ...

Tagged with: Criminal Judge Mary Bennett Malveaux Virginia Court of Appeals

Where the trial court excluded impeachment evidence from a rape victim’s aunt, any error was harmless given that the jury acquitted appellant on charges based solely on the victim’s testimony but convicted him when there was corroborating evidence. Overview S.D. ...

Tagged with: Criminal Supreme Court of Virginia