Legal Question in Criminal Law in Virginia

Virginia laws

Ok I just found out my ex and 2 of his ''buddies'' were charged with 13 felonies and 2 misdemeanors and I am wondering if he should expect any significant jail time. Let me give you some history. His criminal record consists of 2 domestic violence charges on me in which he received 3 years of probation and anger management. He has had 2-3 probation violations for breaching the protective order and now has been charged with 5 B&E's, 5 Destruction of property's, 2 Grand Larceny's, 2 Petit Larceny's, and 1 Poss. of burglary tools. This is in Powhatan, VA. Initially this looks like grounds for some serious jail time but I have seen him get off so easy for other things I am just curious if he is at risk of actually EVER paying for anything he does. What are your opinions on this situation. Is there lawyer out there who will get him just another slap on the wrist???


Asked on 11/29/08, 10:21 pm

2 Answers from Attorneys
James Bullard James A. Bullard, Jr., P.C.

Re: Virginia laws

Any sentence your friend receives will be based on what charges he gets convicted of and the sentencing guidelines. It could be possible for a favorable outcome depending on what the evidence is.

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Answered on 11/29/08, 11:36 pm
Jonathon Moseley Moseley & Associates Law Firm

Re: Virginia laws

It is impossible to predict whether someone will be sentenced to jail based on the number of accusations. That is because the police and prosecutors tend to "over charge" -- that is pile up many charges for the same event. THerefore, while it sounds like a lot of charges, it could be really just the same, single incident, but the police are trying to intimidate the accused into cutting a deal and pleading guilty to some of them.

However, if he previously had suspended sentences, and the time in which they were suspended has not expired, then he will probably be automatically sent to jail on account of the suspended sentence. That is, the jail time was previously set aside conditional upon him staying out of trouble. If he violated the terms of the suspended sentence, then the jail time previously ordered is re-imposed automatically. He is clearly facing a very serious set of charges.

It is still possible for him to "get off." Charges are only accusations. They might be true or they might not be true. In the hands of a good attorney (like me and my consultant, who is a criminal defense genius), he could very well defeate the charges. But it is obvious that he is in serious trouble and is facing a lot of problems.

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Answered on 11/29/08, 11:42 pm


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