Like the petitioner in Currier v. Virginia, a defendant who voluntarily requested to sever and continue one of the charges against him for strategic reasons could not prevail on his claim that the second trial violated double jeopardy principles, either ...

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

A out-of-state defendant is subject to the court’s jurisdiction, based on the numerous purchase orders (of large dollar value) that it placed with a Virginia health-care-products company. Background Plaintiff Belmora, a Virginia pharmaceutical company, is suing Defendant Midway Importing Inc. ...

Tagged with: Business Law Civil Procedure Constitutional Due Process Fifth Amendment Judge Liam O'Grady 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

A defendant’s constitutional right against double jeopardy was not violated by her convictions for both felony murder and felony hit-and-run. Background One morning in September 2014, a woman later identified as Defendant Sarah Flanders drove a red Dodge Durango onto ...

Tagged with: Constitutional Criminal Fifth Amendment Judge Rudolph Bumgardner III Virginia Court of Appeals

An arresting officer’s addition of the phrase “if you’re charged with a crime” to the standard Miranda warning effectively put the defendant on notice of his constitutional rights, and his subsequent incriminating statements were admissible. Background On August 3, 2012, ...

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

A drug-trafficking defendant’s conversation with police officers was custodial when police repeatedly implied that they would arrest him that day if he didn’t become an informant, causing him to lose his job. Because these threats constituted a custodial interrogation without ...

Tagged with: Constitutional Criminal Fifth Amendment Judge Robert E. Payne U.S. District Court - Eastern District