Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares is using the murder of a Harrisonburg woman in a Washington, D.C., hotel to play partisan politics.
“Washington, D.C., is dealing with a crime explosion. Actions speak louder than words – and the only actionable items taken by Washington D.C. leadership have been ways to lessen criminal penalties, further fostering an environment for criminal activity. There is no deterrent for illegal behavior in Washington, D.C., as these repeat offenders know they will either not be charged or let back on the streets in no time,” Miyares wrote in a letter to Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser and members of the D.C. City Council.
A press release from the Office of Attorney General says the letter is “a direct response to the tragic murder of Christy Bautista over the weekend.”
Bautista, 31, was murdered on March 31 in her Northeast D.C. hotel room when a man walked into her room and stabbed her 30 times.
George Sydnor Jr. 43, has been arrested and charged with first-degree murder in the death of Bautista, who, according to family members, was in town to attend a concert.
Bautista, according to D.C. Police, had been in her room at the Ivy City Hotel, located in a trendy neighborhood with upscale bars and an organic grocery store, less than an hour before Sydnor walked into her room and attacked her.
Sydnor was arrested in D.C. in October on an armed robbery charge, and was also wanted for skipping out on a hearing in a larceny case in Prince George’s County in Maryland, but was released from jail after prosecutors in the U.S. Attorney’s Office agreed to a plea deal in January.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office has not responded to requests for comment as to why it agreed to Sydnor’s release ahead of his sentencing in the robbery case in the wake of last week’s murder.
For context, this is happening as congressional Republicans have been leading an effort to assert more federal control over criminal justice in the District.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office is a federal criminal justice agency, a point that seems to be lost on Miyares, who in his letter takes D.C. leaders to task for “fostering an environment for criminal activity.”
“There is no deterrent for illegal behavior in Washington, D.C., as these repeat offenders know they will either not be charged or let back on the streets in no time. That’s why we lost Christy Bautista,” Miyares wrote.
“D.C.’s lenient policies and perspectives are responsible for her murderer’s release when he should have been in custody. An innocent woman lost her life to someone who should have been in jail. Her murder is a tragedy that should have never happened.”
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Chris Graham
