CRIMINAL JUSTICE + POLICING
Va. corrections department: No sex offender crimes involving minors reported on Halloween
The Virginia Department of Corrections said that while no crimes involving convicted sex offenders and minor victims were reported on Halloween, probation and parole officers requested eight warrants for probation violations and arrested five people. “We would like to report zero violations on Halloween, but these warrants and arrests demonstrate the Virginia Department of Corrections’ […]
Va. Supreme Court rules felon must reimburse state Medicaid for victim’s medical costs
The Supreme Court of Virginia last week ruled that a Patrick County man convicted of a 2019 stabbing must pay restitution to the state Medicaid program to cover the costs of the victim’s medical treatment. The ruling reverses an earlier decision by the Virginia Court of Appeals that found the state’s Department of Medical Assistance […]
High fees, long waits cast shadow over new criminal expungement laws
More states are making it easier for residents to clear or seal their criminal records. The effort has drawn bipartisan support, as lawmakers across the political spectrum say it will help people find jobs and housing, in turn boosting local economies and reducing reliance on social services. “Folks that get out of jail or prison […]
Va. court: Zoning violation notices must spell out consequences of not appealing to local board
In a case involving a Chesapeake carport, the Virginia Court of Appeals ruled that zoning violation notices issued by a local government must clearly state that the property owner’s failure to contest the violation within 30 days means the decision is legally “final and unappealable.” “Without the finality language, a property owner might logically conclude […]
Cash bail policies are under fresh scrutiny
States can’t figure out what to do about cash bail. The system — in which an arrested suspect pays cash to avoid sitting in jail until their court date and gets the money back when they appear — is deeply entrenched in the nation’s history as a way to ensure defendants return to face justice. […]
Politicians love to cite crime data. It’s often wrong.
When Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis announced his presidential campaign in May, he proudly told the nation that Florida’s crime rate in 2021 had reached a 50-year low. But really, DeSantis couldn’t say for sure. That’s because fewer than 1 in 10 law enforcement agencies in his state had reported their crime statistics to the […]
Winchester man sentenced for embezzlement from regional community services board
The former information technology manager for the Harrisonburg-area community services board will serve 15 years in prison for embezzling almost $1 million in public funds between 2019 and 2021, when he was arrested. Winchester resident Andrew Hahn agreed to plead guilty to five counts of embezzlement and one count of money laundering. Investigators found that […]
Va. man imprisoned for 9 years over beer and sandwich theft can pursue malpractice suit, court says
The Virginia Court of Appeals is allowing a legal malpractice suit to go forward in a case brought by a Rockingham County man who served almost nine years in prison for his involvement in the 2012 theft of sandwiches and two cases of beer from a grocery store in Harrisonburg. The ruling, handed down Tuesday, […]
Current state law on traffic stops protects motorists and police officers, too
Virginia Municipal League members recently voted to revisit a 2020 law that sharply limits the opportunity for police officers to pull over drivers for minor equipment violations, including broken taillights and expired registration stickers. The law had passed in the aftermath of the horrific, videotaped police killing of George Floyd. The league is a nonprofit […]
VML members vote in favor of reviewing Virginia law limiting minor traffic stops
Local government representatives who make up the Virginia Municipal League voted this week in support of a statement calling for a review of a 2020 criminal justice reform law that limited law enforcement’s ability to make traffic stops for minor vehicle equipment issues. At its annual meeting in Norfolk, VML’s membership voted 47-17 to retain […]
Supreme Court of Virginia rejects challenge to 2022 narrowing of sentencing reforms
The Supreme Court of Virginia rejected a Virginia inmate’s argument that last-minute changes in the state’s 2022 budget rolling back earlier sentencing reforms had wrongly blocked him from being let out early for good behavior. In a decision that touched on the finer points of how policies become law, the court ruled that language in […]
Multiple Virginia school districts targeted with hoax bomb threats
More than half a dozen Virginia school districts received bomb threats Tuesday and Wednesday in what could have been a coordinated effort to disrupt schools. “The Virginia State Police is aware of and tracking the various local law enforcement agencies that responded to bomb threats called in to local schools across the commonwealth yesterday and […]