Virginia Lawyers Weekly VA Lawyers Weekly

A capital murder defendant who sought forensic testing of certain evidence was entitled to present his argument to the court ex parte under Code § 9.1-1104. But the statute does not authorize ex parte status for the resulting order as ...

Tagged with: Criminal Fairfax County Circuit Court Judge Randy I. Bellows Virginia Circuit Courts

Timely notice of the required appearance date is not an element of felony failure-to-appear. In this case, notice could be inferred from the defendant’s presence in court (with counsel) when the continuance date was announced and by his counsel’s appearance ...

Tagged with: Criminal Evidence Judge Mary B. Malveaux Virginia Court of Appeals

Despite informed consent from both clients, a defendant’s attorney was disqualified from representing her on a drug charge because he had previously represented a material witness for the government. Background In a prior criminal drug prosecution, Defendant Lauren Hoback’s defense ...

Tagged with: Attorneys Criminal Judge Elizabeth K. Dillon U.S. District Court - Western District

After a trip to his native U.K., a lawful permanent resident in the U.S. was denied admission upon his return, based on a seven-year-old conviction for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute a controlled substance. His removal order was ...

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

Evidence was sufficient to convict a former Norfolk city councilman who had been involved in numerous quid pro quo relationships with local developers for many years. The district court also did not err in declining to grant a new trial. ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Criminal Judge Albert Diaz

An Amazon warehouse employee who beat up a coworker based on the victim’s sexual orientation couldn’t be convicted of a federal hate crime, though the jury delivered a guilty verdict. The act didn’t affect interstate commerce and, thus, was outside ...

Tagged with: Constitutional Criminal Judge John A. Gibney Jr. U.S. District Court - Eastern District

Evidence was sufficient to conclude that a Spanish-speaking defendant waived his Miranda rights prior to a police interview. He was given the written warning in Spanish, asked by an interpreter if he understood it, and read it back to officers. Background Detective ...

Tagged with: Constitutional Evidence Fifth Amendment Justice S. Bernard Goodwyn Supreme Court of Virginia

At a defendant’s probation revocation hearing, the circuit court properly admitted information about the defendant’s most recent convictions as reported in a news article read by the prosecutor. The article was written to inform the public, not in anticipation of ...

Tagged with: Constitutional Evidence Judge Richard Y. AtLee Jr. Sentencing Virginia Court of Appeals

In arguing that the Commonwealth struck black jurors based on their race, defense counsel did not fully put the issue of pretext before the trial court. Where the trial court did have the opportunity to consider pretext, its observation of ...

Tagged with: Criminal Judge Randolph A. Beales Virginia Court of Appeals

In a habeas challenge brought by a defendant on death row for the murder of a Norfolk law enforcement officer, an evidentiary hearing is necessary to determine whether juror bias tainted the conviction. Despite a straightforward inquiry by trial counsel, ...

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