Shooting Victim Was ‘Hostile’ Witness
A trial court did not err in allowing the commonwealth to treat a shooting victim as a hostile witness to allow her examination on her prior inconsistent statements which placed defendant at the scene,...
View ArticleGould receives Murray Janus Professionalism Award
Virginia State Bar Executive Director Karen A. Gould has received the 2016 Murray Janus Professionalism Award from the Richmond-based John Marshall Inn of Court. The John Marshall Inn created the...
View ArticleMcCullough takes seat on high court
Justice Stephen R. McCullough was invested as the 106th member of the Supreme Court of Virginia on May 23, at a ceremony featuring his family, his colleagues from the Court of Appeals and past...
View ArticleVictim’s Account Supported Gun Possession Charge
A 16-year-old girl’s testimony that defendant pointed a gun in her face in order to gain access to her apartment and to steal a laptop, a cell phone and a Ziplock bag of change, provided sufficient...
View ArticleSupport Cut-Off Clause Was Scrivener’s Error
A trial court did not err in finding husband could not stop spousal support due to a drafting error based on a mutual mistake in a couple’s separation agreement allowing spousal support to terminate...
View ArticleTalk About Ghostwritten Letter OK at Sentencing
In sentencing defendant for pandering for using a mentally incapacitated young woman as a prostitute and taking all money she earned from clients, a trial court did not err in considering a recorded...
View ArticleStricken Husband Gets Larger Pension Share
A circuit court did not err in dividing the marital share of husband’s military pension 55-45 in husband’s favor, in light of appointment of a conservator for husband due to his incapacity from a...
View ArticleCourt Changes Track on Partial Disability
A claimant who worked in a light-duty capacity on a courthouse custodial staff after a work-related injury, who was laid off because employer decided to outsource its custodial needs, did not prove...
View Article‘Made-Up’ SSN Supports Identity Theft
A defendant who claimed he “made up” the social security number – which belonged to a Loudoun County resident – that defendant used to obtain a mortgage loan for his Silver Spring, Md. home can be...
View ArticleNo Jurisdiction in Trial & Appeals Courts
Although the trial court amended its sentencing order to include defendant’s guilty plea and sentence for rape of a child, his stepdaughter, the trial court did not thereby acquire plenary...
View ArticleCourt Balances Business Interest with Marital Debt
A trial court erred in awarding $249,000 of marital debt to husband based on factors that included wife’s interest in husband’s business, although the trial court said no evidence was presented on...
View ArticleRape Victim’s Prelim Testimony Comes In
The Court of Appeals affirms defendant’s convictions of rape and abduction with intent to defile for an assault on his ex-fiancée, who died before his trial and whose preliminary hearing testimony...
View ArticleSupport Order Must Cover Health Care Cost
Although the circuit court’s order requires father to pay child support, it failed to include provisions related to health care coverage and unreimbursed medical expenses, as required by Va. Code §...
View ArticleNo De Facto Award for Workplace Fall
An employer’s voluntary payment of medical benefits to plaintiff, a cook and custodian for a community action agency, after she fell at her workplace did not constitute a de facto workers’ comp award,...
View ArticleNo Standing for Nursing Home Challenger
The Court of Appeals upholds a circuit court decision affirming the State Health Commissioner’s denial of appellant NHC Healthcare/Bristol LLC’s petition seeking good cause standing status under Va....
View ArticleNo Support Change for Income Increase
A father failed to show mother’s income had increased since the parties’ 2014 final divorce decree, but his evidence did show an increase in his income from his painting business, and the trial court...
View ArticleFall From Ladder Not Caused by Alcohol
Although claimant had alcohol in his system from drinking during the evening before he fell off a 10-foot ladder, employer did not prove his blood alcohol content in the range of 0.09 to 0.17 at the...
View ArticleRespondent Doc Could Testify as Expert
Although the Virginia Board of Medicine erred in saying respondent, a physician board-certified in internal medicine and rheumatology, legally could not testify as an expert in the board’s proceeding...
View ArticleText Message Treatment Supported Warrant
A defendant’s complaints about an affidavit to secure a warrant to search defendant’s residence a few hours after he was identified as a suspect in breaking open a drive-through ATM in order to enter a...
View ArticleMine Worker Wins Lifetime Wage Benefits
The Court of Appeals affirms an award of lifetime wage benefits to a mine worker diagnosed with pneumoconiosis pursuant to Va. Code § 65.2-504(A)(4), rejecting employer’s contention that the claim for...
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