Virginia Lawyers Weekly VA Lawyers Weekly

The government didn’t violate due process by showing a kidnapping victim a photo array with the defendant’s image cropped from his music group’s promotional poster, which the victim had seen before. Background In the summer of 2012, two U.S. citizens ...

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

When a citizen conversing voluntarily with police gave them the unlabeled pill bottle in his pocket, he consented to inspection of both the outside and inside. The trial court erred in suppressing the contents. Background At around 10:30 p.m. on ...

Tagged with: Constitutional Criminal Judge Wesley G. Russell Jr. Search & Seizure Virginia Court of Appeals

Although security footage showed a juror talking with a member of the public who was later seen hugging the mother of the murder victim in the juror’s case, the trial court didn’t err in accepting the juror’s statement that they ...

Tagged with: Criminal Evidence Judge Marla Graff Decker Jury Virginia Court of Appeals

Evidence was sufficient to uphold the defendant’s conviction for failing to provide required identifying information after causing an auto accident. The defendant claimed that he didn’t talk to the other driver because she was “hysterical” and instead gave the appropriate ...

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

A woman who birthed a stillborn baby at home  and wrapped its remains in a trash bag, which was later taken to a public dumpster, was properly convicted for concealing a dead body under Code § 18.2-323.02. Background Appellant Katherine ...

Tagged with: Criminal Judge Teresa M. Chafin Virginia Court of Appeals

During a traffic stop based on the size of the defendant’s car air freshener, officers found a substantial amount of drugs, hundreds of dollars in loose cash, a loaded gun – and the defendant’s toddler. Background In 2013, Officer R. ...

Tagged with: Criminal Evidence Per Curiam Opinion Supreme Court of Virginia

Despite officers shouting at the defendant to put his hands up, he wasn’t seized for Fourth Amendment purposes until they physically removed him from his car. Because the seizure was justified by concern that the defendant was concealing a firearm, ...

Tagged with: Constitutional Criminal Evidence Judge Mary Grace O'Brien Search & Seizure Virginia Court of Appeals

Because the defendant had been required by the State of Idaho to register with the state’s sex-offender and crimes-against-minors registry, Virginia law classifies him as a sexually violent offender who must re-register every 90 days. Background In 2004, Appellant Thomas ...

Tagged with: Criminal Judge Teresa M. Chafin Virginia Court of Appeals

The trial court did not err in abating the defendant’s probation term during her active incarceration for an unrelated crime, without following the notice and hearing requirements of Code § 19.2-304. Background On May 31, 2013, Appellant Lanikki Edwards entered ...

Tagged with: Criminal Judge Teresa M. Chafin Sentencing Virginia Court of Appeals

A defendant convicted of second-degree murder, malicious wounding, and two counts of using a firearm in the commission of a felony showed that his trial counsel never conveyed a favorable plea deal that had been offered by the Commonwealth, despite ...

Tagged with: Attorneys Criminal Judge Robert E. Payne Sentencing U.S. District Court - Eastern District