probation violation
Virginia probation revocation – Fairfax criminal lawyer on penalties
Virginia probation revocation (VPR) proceedings can be very stressful on defendants. As a Fairfax criminal lawyer, I know that 2021 brought a great statutory change that limits penalties for alleged "technical" probation violations, versus new convictions that cause a probation violation. Virginia Code § 19.2-306.1 However, if...
Probation conviction for dismissed count – Fairfax lawyer comments
A probation conviction (PC) can happen with a dismissed prosecution, if a new criminal law violation is still proven. As a Fairfax criminal lawyer, I was disappointed to see a Virginia Court of Appeals opinion (thankfully unpublished, so not binding on any court, but which...
Virginia probation length & violation caps benefit criminal defendants
Virginia probation length and violation penalty caps screamed out for reasonable limits for decades. As a Fairfax criminal lawyer, I applaud that those probation violation sentencing caps finally have become law, effective the middle of this year. These caps mean that supervised probation for felony...
The Hobson’s choice of agreeing to unsavory probation conditions or risking a more severe sentence
In 2008 in Grayson County, Virginia, Circuit Court, Lara was convicted of aggravated sexual battery of a mentally incapacitated victim. He was sentenced to twenty years suspending seventeen of those years, conditioned on probation obligations including participating in psychological counseling. U.S. v. Lara, ___ F.3d....
Virginia – Question whether a judge has jurisdiction to violate probation in the first place
In law school, we learn legal rules, legal tests, legal analysis, legal counter-analysis, legal theory, legalese, and legal jargon. As criminal trial lawyers, we often spend so much time dealing with evidence, investigation, discovery and persuasion that we need to remember at each step to...
DWI Defendants- Beware and abolish VASAP (the Virginia Alcohol Safety Action Program)
Clearly, VASAP should be abolished, and should be replaced by private drug and alcohol programs. Until such abolition, VASAP should be reformed to more routinely give credit for participation in private state-licensed alcohol and drug education programs.