The VLW Blog

Thanks to politics and posturing in the General Assembly, three judgeships in Hampton were left unfilled when the legislature last left Richmond, leaving the locals to clean up the mess.

Lawyers and judges in Hampton have been muddling through, but they wonder when politics will take a vacation – it’s been four long years since things were normal in the courts there. The Daily Press provides a piece on how justice continues to be meted out on the Peninsula – with retired judges, substitute judges and temporary judges.

No sign of duct tape or baling wire. Yet.

We don’t know why, exactly, but WTVR has posted the FBI file on the late civil rights lawyer Oliver Hill. There are seven parts. Viewed from present-day perspective, unsurprisingly, the documents say more about the agency than the subject of its inquiries.

From the Roanoke Times comes word of the passing of former Rocky Mount lawyer Keister Greer.

From a 1999 news release on the re-appointment of Mr. Greer to the U.Va. Board of Visitors:

“T. Keister Greer has been a member of the Virginia Bar Association for 50 years and the California Bar Association for 45 years, specializing in water and land litigation in both states. He has served on the Board of Directors of the First Virginia Bank for 23 years, chairing the board of the First Virginia Bank of Franklin County for 20 years.

“Greer attended the University of Virginia between 1939 and 1942 before leaving the school for service in the United States Marine Corps. As a second lieutenant, first lieutenant and captain in the U.S. Marine Corps, he saw combat in World War II in the Pacific, including the Battle of Okinawa. In November 1945, Keister Greer reentered UVA, where he earned his bachelor’s degree and Juris Doctor.”

Greer also was the author of two books on Franklin County’s colorful history and the father of Circuit Judge G. Carter Greer.

The Bat Phone has rung again for the prosecutor in Fincastle. Botetourt County Commonwealth’s Attorney Joel Branscom has long been the go-to guy in Southwest Virginia to serve as special prosecutor when the local parties are too close for comfort. The latest call to arms comes from Roanoke. Commonwealth’s Attorney Don Caldwell stepped aside to let Branscom decide whether to prosecute the folks who put up some anonymous attack ads aimed at a city council candidate. (One of those involved was a competing candidate.)

Among the many other cases where Branscom is (or was) special prosecutor:

-Christiansburg lawyer Gerard Marks, accused of using phonied-up documents to cover for legal work he did not do

-A former Gate City mayor convicted of 16 counts of election fraud

-A commissioner of revenue in Craig County who pleaded guilty to stealing insurance claim money

-A Pittsylvania County deputy cleared of wrongdoing after shooting a man to death in self-defense

In the back-and-forth battle between the Staunton City Council and the city’s Board of Zoning Appeals, a circuit judge now is poised to appoint a lawyer to represent the BZA at the expense of the city, which sued the BZA in the first place. The News Leader is keeping track of the action, where the city attorney now says that he will file a motion for reconsideration.

The underlying issues are whether the BZA violated state law in granting certain variances for landowners and what remedies the city has to address the situation. Since the city decided to bring the matter to circuit court, the city may end up having to pay the bills for its own lawyer and the lawyer for the BZA that it sued.

GINA actually isn’t a who, it’s a what.

As in the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act, a new law signed by President Bush yesterday.

As discrimination laws go, it’s a first: it’s an anticipatory law that forbids something before it starts happening. GINA says that any genetic information can’t be used against someone in obtaining health insurance or employment. Such data could show someone is predisposed to getting cancer or having heart problems. An insurance company could hike premiums or a company could decide not to hire.

The measure, which had been kicking around Congress since 1995, got through the Senate unanimously and received only one “no” vote in the House of Representatives.

The Washington Post has a report on Bush’s signing ceremony; he paid tribute to Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-Mass., who had been a strong backer of the measure.

The law firm of Troutman Sanders LLP earlier today was circulating a quick fact sheet on GINA, outlining the impact on group health plans and on employers.

Norfolk Circuit Judge Chuck Griffith lost his job this spring when the General Assembly declined to give him a second eight-year term on the bench.

But he didn’t stay out of work long. In fact, the day after his term expired, Griffith reported to the office of Virginia Beach Commonwealth’s Attorney Harvey Bryant. Griffith took a newly created position in that office - he is now cordinator of major violent crimes cases.

The Virginian-Pilot has the story.

It’s been a long journey for the parties in the case of Simmons v. MTD and the end is not in sight. 4-year-old Justin Simmons was killed by a riding lawnmower in 2004. In 2006, a Roanoke jury returned a $2 million verdict against the maker of the lawnmower. The defendant promptly moved to set aside the verdict, arguing that the alleged defect was present on every other riding lawnmower. In February, Circuit Judge Clifford Weckstein denied the motion and upheld the verdict. Now, the defendant has noted an appeal. With accrued interest, the appeal bond is set at $2.65 million according to the Roanoke Times.

Pleading guilty to reckless driving and refusing a breath test, J&D Judge Michael Blankenship of Wytheville will not face a charge of driving under the influence. But Blankenship still has a hit-and-run charge from a separate incident, and he has been suspended from the bench by the Judicial Inquiry and Review Commission. The Bristol Herald Courier has the report.

On a second look, the 4th US Circuit Court of Appeals again turns thumbs down on Virginia’s law banning “partial birth abortions.” The Washington Post has the AP story.