After 13 Years, Woman Gets Prison Sentence

Written by

Nancy Drury Duncan

EASTVILLE -- A woman who pleaded guilty to charges in Northampton County 13 years ago and then apparently left the Eastern Shore was finally back in court this week for sentencing.

Johnifer Jackson, 37, address unknown, will serve two years, eight months of a 10-year sentence for three counts of forging a sales draft, three counts of uttering a sales draft and possession of a stolen credit card.

"It is a pleasure to have Ms. Jackson back," Commonwealth's Attorney Bruce Jones told the court. "She is my oldest outstanding case. She pleaded guilty, then disappeared."

Jackson pleaded guilty to these charges in 1998 and then failed to appear for sentencing.

Jones said the store she stole from was no longer in business and that her probation officer had since retired.

During those years, Jackson lived in both Alabama and Georgia, committing numerous crimes in both places, Jones said. He said she spent much of the past ten years in prison.

While living in those states, she was convicted of shoplifting, grand larcenies and obstruction of law-enforcement officers, he said.

Defense attorney Theresa Bliss asked that Jackson be allowed to serve her time in a detention and diversion center, noting that, "there is nothing violent in her record"

She said her client was needed to take care of family, including a one-year-old grandson.

Said Jones, "While she is incarcerated, she won't be stealing from people in the public, though she might be stealing from people in the penitentiary. However long the court incarcerates her, that's how long she won't be committing crimes against the public."

Before sentencing Jackson, Judge Robert Cromwell asked, "Why do you continue to do this? This is not the most extensive criminal record I have ever seen, but it is close to it."

Source; http://www.delmarvanow.com/article/20110525/ESN01/105250368/After-13-years-woman-gets-prison-sentence?odyssey=mod%7Cnewswell%7Ctext%7CEastern%20Shore%20News%7Cs

Northampton County Court

Korey Dantaye Taylor, 31 of Eastville, was sentenced to 5 years imprisonment with all but 12 months suspended and supervised probation for proposing sex with a child under 15 years of age.

Levar Devon Myrick, 20 of Cheriton, was sentenced to 5 years imprisonment with all time suspended but time served and upon successful completion of a diversion program for grand larceny, obstruction and destruction of property.

Roy Lamont Savage, 27 of Seaford, DE, was sentenced for 2 years imprisonment and supervised probation for possession with intent to distribute cocaine, possession of a firearm while in possession of cocaine and possession of marijuana.

Herbert Burton Lane, 20 of Exmore, was sentenced to 20 years imprisonment with all buy 4 years suspended conditioned on entry into and successful completion of the Youthful Offender Program for robbery and breaking and entering.

Lynette Dainelle Hope-Smith, 46 of Birdsnest, pled guilty to charges of embezzlement.

Barry Kevin Simpson, 47 of Exmore, pled guilty to possession of cocaine.
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DMV Computers Still Down - No Driver's License Can Be Processed

NORFOLK - A computer system meltdown has taken DMV offline across the state. 74 customer service centers cannot process driver's licenses or ID cards.

Chris from Virginia Beach wrote to NewsChannel 3 saying his driver's license will expire on 9-3-10. He said, "I have been trying to get it renewed for the last eight days. I am going out of town for the holiday weekend. What are we to do? Can't get anyone on the phone with the DMV, can you please help?"

Pat Davis tried to renew her driver's license online.

"They said I had to come to the DMV because I have to have my picture taken," she said. When she got to the DMV, she was faced with another issue, "I was told that I could not renew my driver's license because the computers are down," she says.

The trouble is, most folks didn't know about the computer problem until they showed up at the DMV.

"It's extremely inconvenient, 'cause I have to take off from work to come in here," Pat says.

Pat's license expires tomorrow. She says she will not have to miss work again she she can legally drive again.

Melanie Stokes with the DMV told NewsChannel 3, "DMV apologizes for the inconvenience this statewide Vita computer outage has caused and we can only imagine the frustration our customers are experiencing when they cannot get a drivers license.

Drivers are now faced with no licenses and no clear cut answer on when the computers will be up and running again.

All other DMV services are up and running and the DMV says the Vita agency in charge of the computers is working around the clock to repair the problem. Call ahead and make sure the system is fixed before you make the trip.

If your license expires, state police now say they're extending a grace period. People with expired licenses from August 25th through August 31st will get a pass. If you've already received a summons because of the problems, it will go through the court system, but troopers have been advised to work with the Commonwealth Attorney on those cases.
www.wtkr.com

Virginia's Congressman Weigh In On JFCOM

Here are statements on the proposed closing of JFCOM in Norfolk, from Rep. Randy Forbes, R-Chesapeake, and Rep. Glenn Nye, D-Norfolk and Rep. Rob Wittman, R-Westmoreland.

From Forbes:

“For the past two years I have sounded the alarm that this Administration has allowed their uncontrolled fervor for social spending and the resulting budgetary pressure to drive our national defense strategy. We are now seeing the piecemeal auctioning off of the greatest military the world has ever known. Unfortunately, it is a silent auction because the voice of the American people is not being heard.

“Today's announcement to close our nation's premier joint operations and efficiency command is the outcome of fiscal coercion resulting from reckless and dangerous spending decisions, not from well-placed and much-needed efforts to root out waste in government. It exhibits an arrogant lack of leadership and lack of concern for the welfare of our nation and for the men and women in uniform.

“Under the cover of night, this Administration is selling off our military at auction to pay for its social programs. It has withheld our nation’s shipbuilding plan - required of them by law - while the Chinese navy aggressively bypassed us in number of ships. It has withheld our aviation plan, while our Navy struggles from a lack of aircraft needed to perform current and future missions. It has issued gag orders preventing any Pentagon officials, military and civilian, from speaking with Congress about budgets cuts and the risks to our national defense. This Administration has brought blatant partisan politics into the annual defense policy bill by attaching controversial social agendas. They have shown more regard for the rights of terrorists than for justice for those lost on September 11th and the safety of those currently fighting to protect our nation from the next radical terrorist attack. And this week, they and Congressional Democrat leadership have called the House back into session to vote on a package that includes $2.8 billion in defense spending cuts in order to pay for more social bailouts.

“The American people will see this decision for what it is: a first step in a long string of national defense cuts that will systematically and intentionally gut the institutions that protect and defend the freedoms and liberties upon which our nation was founded - and they will not stand for it.”

Joint Forces Command is the leading command for joint training, development and experimentation. Tracing its history back to 1947 with the establishment of the new commands made up from services of more than one military service, it had originally been Atlantic Command. In 1999, it was reorganized to become JFCOM for the purpose of ensuring efficiency among branches of the military. The command oversees a force of more than 1.16 million men and women and coordinates more than 70 joint training events, involving 46,000 participants, each year.

Forbes is Ranking Member of the House Armed Services Readiness Subcommittee.

From Nye:

NORFOLK – Rep. Glenn Nye, D-Norfolk, questioned U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates’ proposal to eliminate U.S Joint Forces Command (JFCOM), headquartered in Norfolk, VA. JFCOM is one of the Department of Defense’s ten combatant commands, and was created to coordinate joint training, development and experimentation among the different branches of the armed services. Gates’ proposal comes at a time when DoD is trying to substantially trim its budget.

“The proposal by the Defense Department to close JFCOM is short-sighted and without merit,” Nye said following Gates’ announcement. “I appreciate the Department’s attempt to rein in spending, but I have yet to see any substantive analysis to support the assertion that closing JFCOM will yield large savings.”

“JFCOM exercises combatant command over 1.1 million U.S. forces, and performs critical functions and training necessary to maintain our warfighters’ supremacy in overseas operations,” Nye continued. “Eliminating the Command does not eliminate the demand for these critical missions; it only redistributes the responsibilities elsewhere. I look forward to receiving the Secretary’s official proposal and his analysis for reorganization.”

Finally, from Wittman:

"I have deep concerns about the strategic implications of Secretary Gates’ decision to close Joint Forces Command (JFCOM). Until I am convinced that it is the right decision for our national security, I cannot support the closure of this Command. One of the greatest successes of the U.S. military – unlike any other in the world – is its ability to function jointly, and this decision could hinder the tremendous progress we’ve made. ‪

"I question why a change in structure of this magnitude was not included in the Quadrennial Defense Review. This is just one more example of budgetary pressures, rather than strategic need, driving defense decisions. In this announcement, the Executive Branch has clearly side-stepped the Legislative Branch without deliberation on the way forward with what's best with our nation's defense policy. I look forward to working with my colleagues on the Armed Services Committee to conduct oversight and execute our funding authority to the fullest extent. Furthermore, I look forward to hearing from Secretary Gates how the current, critical missions of JFCOM, such as joint training efforts, will be carried out under this new plan.‪"

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Toddler Left Alone In Hot Car

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (WAVY) - A Hampton couple is facing felony child endangerment charges for allegedly leaving their toddler in a car alone while they went shopping.

An employee at the Walmart in the 12000 block of Jefferson Avenue told police he was in the parking lot at around 11 a.m. on August 18 when he noticed a child alone in a car. He said he waited for about ten minutes for someone to return to the car, but that never happened, so the employee alerted his manager.

Newport News Police arrived at the store and made an announcement over the Walmart sound system. When the parents returned to the car, they reportedly told officers they were only inside the store for about three minutes. According to the store manager, the 2 year old child was in the car for as long as 40 minutes.

Police charged Andriy Kot and Khrystyna Porseua, both 29 years old, with felony child endangerment.

www.wavy.com

Coupled Argued Before Her Death

Former Virginia lacrosse players George Huguely V and Yeardley Love got into a physical altercation and exchanged e-mails in the days leading up to Love’s May 3 death, according to search warrant affidavits released Wednesday.

The affidavits, released by the Charlottesville Circuit Court, reveal partially redacted findings of the searches of two white-colored Apple laptop computers that were seized from the bedroom of Huguely’s off-campus apartment May 3.

Huguely, a 22-year-old Chevy Chase native who had been a member of the men’s lacrosse team at Virginia, is charged with first-degree murder in the death of Love, his former girlfriend of more than two years. A hearing in Huguely’s case has been set for Oct. 8.

According to the affidavits, an unidentified witness told police the day after the alleged murder that Love had told her about an e-mail Huguely sent to Love in the previous week.

The witness told police she may have seen the e-mail while she and Love were in Chicago. The Virginia women’s lacrosse team, of which the 22-year-old Love was a member, played at Northwestern on April 30 in Evanston, Ill.

Following the physical altercation at Love’s off-campus apartment on the night of her alleged murder, Huguely took Love’s personal computer, he later told police. Huguely said he threw Love’s computer into a dumpster after leaving Love’s residence that night.

Two Charlottesville detectives recovered the computer shortly thereafter in a dumpster on Sadler Street in Charlottesville, according to the affidavit. The computer’s serial number matched records of a computer previously sold to Love that were provided by Dell Inc.

During a forensic search of Love’s computer that was consented to by Sharon Love, Yeardley’s mother, police discovered fragments of an e-mail with a statement that was redacted in the affidavit. A fragmented e-mail is "a partial portion of an email that has been retrieved from the deleted files of a computer that was previously sent or received," according to the affidavit.

Police believe the e-mail was sent in response to a previous e-mail sent by Huguely. Two other witnesses independently told police of their knowledge of recent e-mail correspondence between Huguely and Love.

Witnesses also told police Love lost her cell phone and a camera following a verbal argument with Huguely at his apartment in the days leading up to her alleged murder. A friend of Love’s stated she witnessed an altercation between Love and Huguely “a few days before Love’s death,” according to the affidavit.

“She stated that Love and Huguely were arguing and Love hit Huguely with her purse,” the affidavit stated. The witness, whose named was redacted, “stated that when Love’s purse hit Huguely all her stuff flew out of her purse.”

The witness helped Love collect her belongings and leave Huguely’s apartment. Love later told the unnamed witness that she was missing her camera and cell phone and that she thought the items had been left at Huguely’s apartment, according to the affidavit.

The witness said Love asked her to go to Huguely’s apartment and retrieve the items, which the unnamed witness attempted to do. The affidavit stated that the witness found the camera, but not the cell phone.

www.washingtonpost.com

Va. ACLU Urges Localities to Ignore Cuccinelli's Opinion

Richmond, Va. --

The ACLU of Virginia urged Virginia police chiefs and sheriffs today to ignore a recent opinion from Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli that says police officers can question individuals about their immigration status during a stop or arrest.

Rebecca Glenberg, ACLU's legal director, said the Cuccinelli opinion cited no Virginia law to back it up. Attorney Generals' opinions are advisory and do not have the force of law.

She said the Cuccinelli opinion likely would lead to racial profiling.

Cuccinelli addressed the possibility of racial profiling Wednesday in an interview with CNN.

"Being in Virginia, I can tell you that given our race history, we're very sensitive to not allowing for racial profiling, not allowing the kind of abuse of the legal process as happened in the '40s, '50s, '60s [which] we had to work our way out of frankly, through the '70s and on," Cuccinelli said.

"The way we avoid it in this situation is we apply the same rules to everybody."

Cuccinelli noted that the new Arizona immigration law required law enforcement officers to inquire about immigration status. Cuccinelli's opinion said that Virginia's law enforcement officers may make such inquiries, but they are not required to do so.

He said he expects that local governments around the state will devise their own policies for how their police and sheriffs should proceed.

Also today, Corey A. Stewart, chairman of the Prince William Board of County Supervisors, said he is asking Congress to subpoena Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for information about criminal illegal aliens that ICE is no longer taking into physical custody.

Stewart's inquiry follows a car crash in Prince William County that killed one nun and critically injured two others.

Carlos A. Martinelly Montano is charged in the crash with third-offense driving under the influence, involuntary manslaughter and driving on a revoked license.

The three nuns were less than 4 miles from their spiritual home at the Benedictine Sisters of Virginia monastery near Manassas when their car was struck head-on by a vehicle driven by Montano, a native of Bolivia and an illegal immigrant.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security opened an investigation Tuesday into how an illegal immigrant managed to avoid deportation, even after repeated arrests before Sunday's crash.

www.timesdispatch.com

Judge Rules Cuccinelli's Healthcare Challenge Can Continue

Richmond, Va. --

Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli's legal challenge to President Barack Obama's national health care overhaul can continue, a federal judge ruled today.

U.S. District Court Judge Henry E. Hudson denied a motion brought by lawyers for the administration to dismiss the lawsuit, filed by Virginia in March, a day after Obama signed into law federal health legislation.

"While this case raises a host of complex constitutional issues, all seem to distill to the single question of whether or not Congress has the power to regulate -- and tax -- a citizen's decision not to participate in interstate commerce," wrote Hudson in his 32-page memorandum.

"Given the presence of some authority arguably supporting the theory underlying each side's position, this court cannot conclude at this stage that the complaint fails to state a cause of action," he wrote.

Hudson said the case cannot be resolved without a further hearing on the merits.

While the legal battle over the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act ultimately is expected to end up in the U.S. Supreme Court, today's ruling is a setback for the administration, which also faces a separate but similar legal challenge to health reform filed by Florida on behalf of 20 states.

www.timesdispatch.com

Highest Environmental Honor Awarded To Wallops

WALLOPS ISLAND --NASA's Wallops Flight Facility has been awarded the highest environmental recognition within the Commonwealth of Virginia for programs protecting the area's natural resources.

Wallops is only the second federal facility in the Commonwealth of Virginia to receive this Extraordinary Environ-mental Enterprise level of the Virginia Environment-al Excellence Program.

"VEEP E4 status is the highest level of environmental recognition in the commonwealth. Wallops joins an elite group which not only strives for environmental excellence within their own missions, but also reaches beyond their facility fence line in proactively working with community partners to promote environmental stewardship," said Carolyn Turner, Wallops head of the Environmental Office.

The facility is currently pursuing renewable energy sources, alternative fuels, and LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certifications for existing buildings. The Wallops Environmental office also specializes in pollution prevention, hazardous waste management, protecting endangered species, recycling, storage tank management and environmental planning.

These programs are managed through the Wallops environmental management system, a process aimed at reducing the facility's impacts on the environment by identifying impacts, setting goals to minimize those impacts, improving procedures and tracking progress.

VEEP is a partnership program that has a goal of a more sustainable Virginia. The program is aimed at improving environmental performance and stewardship through a beyond-compliance collaboration with the Department of Environmental Quality.

The award program has stepped levels. The higher the level, the more advanced the facility's environmental program. To be awarded the Extraordinary Environ-mental Enterprise award, a facility must display a commitment to the highest environmental performance.

Some of the requirements for a facility to receive this award include a fully implemented environmental management system including a pollution program, community involvement, and continuous and sustainable progress. Another main component is maintaining a record of sustained compliance.

Sustained compliance requires that the facility be in good standing with the federal and state regulations. It also requires the facility to have less than two environmental violations in the previous three years. Wallops has had no violations.

"Wallops Flight Facility is always striving for environmental excellence," Turner said.

www.easternshorenews.com

State Surplus Will Go Towards Bonus, Schools, Water, Roads

The state finished the last fiscal year with a $220 million surplus, Gov. Bob McDonnell confirmed today, which means state workers will get a bonus in December.

McDonnell told a news conference that the money will go to a $82 million, 3 percent one-time bonus for state employees, to local school divisions, to the Water Quality Improvement Fund and to the transportation trust fund.

Actually, state tax revenue continued to decline in the fiscal year ended June 30, but not by as much as had been forecast, McDonnell said. The decline was 0.6 percent, versus an estimate of a 2.3 percent decline.

McDonnell hailed the surplus as a product of prudent fiscal management, noting that the state in January was forecasting a $1.8 billion shortfall. He also said a $4.2 billion budget shortfall had been forecast for the two years ending June 30, 2012.

"We have reduced state spending in this new biennium to 2006 levels," he said.
State employees have gone without a pay raise since 2007.

McDonnell said there are still problems in the economy, particularly in the real estate sector, but that tax collections appeared to have begun turning around in April.

www.timesdispatch.com

State Of The County Report

The Northampton County Chamber of Commerce hosted its annual State of the County Breakfast at Aqua Restaurant in Cape Charles on Wednesday, May 5th.

The morning started off with a report on the state of the Commonwealth with Senator Ralph Northam. Northam reported that 4.2 million dollars has been cut from the budget in areas of Medicaid, k-12 education and law enforcement.

He also stated how the shore needs to concentrate on turning its economy around by getting people back to work. He mentioned the wallops initiative how there are companies coming to the shore that will be hiring. He noted that the Shore needs to make sure it has the ability to train the workforce, concentrating on vocational training.

Delegate Lynwood Lewis addressed the group, giving an overview of what happened during the general assembly session in Richmond. He said Virginia isnt immune to the Economic Challenge. He compared the challenge to a Category 5 storm. Lewis also elaborated on budget cuts. And stated how Virginia has been rated by several agencies the best place in the country to do business since it has a relative low tax and positive business environment.

Sam Long was the first member of the Northampton County Board of Supervisors to speak. He reminded the group that its a tough budget year and the board is having to make very difficult choices. Long voiced how he is disappointed in the lack of funding on Regional Jail, but excited with direction of the Board of Supervisors. He mentioned that they are taking steps toward eco develop-and opportunities are being presented but being kept private at this time.

Spencer Murray, intending to give a satellite view of Northampton County, noted the Northampton County was much like the rest of the world, country and state. He encouraged the county to connect with one another and reminded the group that we are really all in this mess together and we will either sink or we'll swim together. He said if community stops caring about each other, we wont make it.

Supervisor Richard Tankard was up next and focused in on Northampton Countys School System. He believes that the school system should make the same types of changes that have been done at the county level, noting that county employees have been furloughed, positions cut, and savings in many areas. He encouraged the school system to strive for the same so taxes dont have to be raised.

He also reported that through an audit, the school system discovered $377,000 last year that they didnt know they had and over 200,000 the year before. He asked school system to adjust their budget request based on this fact. By changing the base, it would be a big step to having a balanced budget.

Re-elected Mayor Dora Sullivan reported that Cape Charles has 16 millions in government funded projects going on at the same time. She noted how important tourism is to the town and that Cape Charles is Open For Business.

Newly elected Councilman Larry Lemond represented Cheriton reporting that the town has had 4 new businesses open recently, they are working on a boundary adjustment and the waste water system with other towns and the county.

Eastville Town Mayor Jim Sturgis reported that because of budget cutbacks at the state level, that town has re-instated its own police department, water testing is now paid for by the town and VDOT is requiring Eastville to be responsible for street repairs.

Re-elected Exmore Town May Billy Moore stated Exmore is a great town, giving credit to town employees, town manager and police department. He considers Exmore the commercial hub of the county. He noted that the two new hotels seem to be busy, the town is working towards broadband coming, and that the town is working with PSA and towards water and sewage.

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