by Dick Hall-Sizemore

The Richmond Times-Dispatch recently reported on three men caught up in Virginia’s criminal justice system. 

The first is Jordan Shelton, a 28-year-old Richmond man. He was on trial in Greene County on a charge of involuntary manslaughter, for which he could have gotten a sentence of ten years. Two years ago, Shelton was driving a truck on a winding road in Ruckersville. As he rounded a curve, he struck a car being driven by 89-year-old Melvin Bond. Bond was killed. A Virginia State Trooper reported that Shelton said that he often drove over the centerline “on roads like that.”

This was not an isolated incident for Shelton. Two months after that fatal crash, he was arrested in Henrico for driving 96 mph in 65 mph zone. He was found guilty of reckless driving and served two days of a three-month jail sentence. Over the last six years, he has accumulated six driving convictions.

The Greene County Commonwealth’s attorney allowed Shelton to enter a plea of guilty to a reckless driving charge, rather than involuntary manslaughter, on the condition that the involuntary manslaughter charge would be dismissed if he maintains a clear driving record for a year. The judge made it clear that Shelton was fortunate when he told him, “The court would find you guilty with sufficient evidence of involuntary manslaughter if you had your trial today.”

The other two men were undocumented immigrants caught up in ICE raids at the Chesterfield County courthouse. Jonathan Escobar Herrera had come to the courthouse to appear on a charge of driving without a license. He has no criminal record outside of a reckless driving charge. He had a job as a painter to support his wife and two children. Jose Allende Galindo was at the courthouse to pay a fine for a missed vehicle inspection. He has no criminal record.

Gov. Glenn Youngkin congratulated ICE for “getting really tough bad guys off the street.” Attorney General Jason Miyares said that the arrests targeted violent criminals. They both seem confused about who really is a threat to the safety of Virginians — a driver with a history of reckless driving convictions including one in which a man was killed or two men with minor traffic violations and no criminal record.