Where appellant was ordered to pay more than $41,000 in restitution after he burned down the rented house he was living in, the restitution order is vacated. The record does not support the trial court’s calculation of the restitution amount. ...

Tagged with: Criminal Judge Stuart A. Raphael Virginia Court of Appeals

Where appellant, a volunteer firefighter, drove a fire truck without permission and caused more than $21,000 in damages, he was correctly convicted of unauthorized use of an emergency vehicle. Although appellant argues there was no evidence that he intended to ...

Tagged with: Criminal Judge Stuart A. Raphael Virginia Court of Appeals

Where appellant stated in a recorded call from the jail that he brandished a gun, this was sufficient evidence to convict him of being a violent felon in possession of a firearm. Actual possession “Vines assigns error to the trial ...

Tagged with: Criminal Judge Stuart A. Raphael Virginia Court of Appeals

The commonwealth presented sufficient evidence from which the court could find that appellant drove a truck that left the road and rolled over. As a result, a certificate of analysis was properly introduced that showed appellant was intoxicated when he ...

Tagged with: Criminal Judge Stuart A. Raphael Virginia Court of Appeals

Where the trial court orally granted the commonwealth’s motion to nolle pros appellant’s abduction charge because the victim-witness was not in the courtroom, this did not prevent the court from allowing the commonwealth to withdraw the motion when she appeared ...

Tagged with: Criminal Judge Stuart A. Raphael Virginia Court of Appeals

When the parties’ entire post-nuptial agreement is read in context, the agreement unambiguously provides that certain trust benefits were intended to be paid to wife even after the parties divorced and husband subsequently died. Background Bonnie and Raleigh Worsham were ...

Tagged with: Domestic Relations Judge Stuart A. Raphael Virginia Court of Appeals