Tag Archives: Commonwealth’s Attorney

Jail House Snitches Lie

jailCellWe all know jail house snitches are of a lowly character that can’t be trusted.  When I was a NY federal prosecutor, I would never think of using one in the grand jury or on the witness stand in a criminal case.

However convincing the rat, however seemingly useful the testimony to make your prosecution, you had to worry that you were being had – so that the snitch could get what he wanted, some consideration on his sentence, favors to ease his custody, or funds and rewards for his commissary or outside bank account for “cooperating.”

Often the jail house snitch seemingly offers “inside information” on what the target of your investigation said about an offense while the target was in jail, in the yard, at the sally port, by his cell, “admitting” to some aspect of the case you’re pursuing that helps you “make” your case.

These mimetic monsters absorb small and large details from an unwary or reckless prosecutor’s questions and weave a story that “fits,” that helps make a conviction possible in a difficult case where the prosecutor may feel he’s suffering an evidential shortfall.

Our criminal justice system is hardly perfect to begin with but taking one of these snitches and adding them to the mix of a jury trial is to infect an already challenged process with an ingredient you almost certainly know is flawed.  Yet it happens all too often that prosecutors use these snitches at trial in capital or murder cases.

Another challenging aspect of any criminal prosecution is how you use accomplice testimony, meaning someone who was involved in the crime, who “flips,” and agrees to testify for the government in exchange for some consideration on the charges he’ll face or the time he’ll spend in custody, from probation to fewer years than if he took his chances at trial.  You can appreciate how risky it is to shore up an accomplice’s testimony with a jail house snitch.

We will likely be having court arguments, even evidentiary hearings with prosecutors and investigators testifying, so that the court may decide whether a jail house snitch lied at a first degree murder trial in Loudoun County that resulted in a conviction on June 16, 2014, and a jury recommendation that the Accused be imprisoned for life.  Continue reading

Okay, so Plowman dropped the charges

That doesn’t change the fact that you should still write in Joy Maloney for Broad Run School Board.

My issues with Mr. Kuester’s candidacy remain the same, I feel that people on the school board should believe in the value of public education, and should be fiscally responsible. Mr. Kuesters fails both those tests.

Mr. Kuesters sends his school-age children to private religious school. That’s his right, obviously. But I think someone who wants to be in charge of our public schools, who has school-age children, should be invested enough in the schools to have his children attend them.

The School Board has fiscal oversight over the schools budget. Mr. Kuesters filed bankruptcy last year and is in more financial hot-water this year with his HOAs.

And then there is the arrest. I have volunteered with LAWS, the Loudoun Abused Women’s Shelter, and I am aware of how common it is for abused spouses to withdraw complaints against their abusers. Mr. Kuesters may or may not have abused his wife, but whatever happened, it’s clear that he has personal issues that are too complex to be completely dealt with before swearing in on January 1.

Meanwhile, Joy Maloney has a daughter at Eagle Ridge, her family is on a good solid financial footing, and she’s not facing family turmoil. PLUS, she has a Masters in Educational Leadership and a Bachelors in Secondary Education. She taught high school for 5 years, and she works in a STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) field.

Write in Joy Maloney for Broad Run School Board.

 

 

 

 

 

 

(Crossposted at Doorbell Queen)

Jennifer Wexton for Commonwealth’s Attorney

Jim Plowman will have an opponent this year.

Loudoun veteran legal mind, Jennifer Wexton, has announced her candidacy for Commonwealth’s Attorney. Leesburg Today has the story.

Having practiced criminal defense law at Ritenour Paice & Mougin-Boal since 2005, Wexton spent the four years before that as an Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney, including two serving under Plowman. In addition to practicing law, Wexton serves as the current president of the Loudoun Bar Association, where she has previously served on the Board of Directors. In 2010 she also served as a Special Justice and as a Substitute Judge in the Loudoun County District Courts. Wexton also is certified by the Virginia Supreme Court to serve as “guardian ad litem” to represent the interests of children in pending legal matters, and in 2009 was appointed to the county’s Community Services Board.

While a prosecutor, Wexton received the 2005 Izaak Walton League Award for Outstanding Service to the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries. In 2007 she was awarded the Harry L. Carrico Award for her pro bono legal work in private practice. – Leesburg Today

Judge Wexton presents a compelling alternative to our current Commonwealth’s Attorney, whose history of ethical line crossing was an issue in the 2007 race.

In the interests of transparency, I’ve been working with Jennifer for the past few weeks. I’ve found her to be engaging, knowledgeable and possessing a fundamental caring for the people of Loudoun County. She brings a breadth of experience and qualifications to the office that any County would be lucky to have. Here’s hoping the voters agree on November 8th.