Attorney General Mark Herring and his team have successfully defended the convictions of two men who were convicted of malicious wounding for their roles in the beating of Deandre Harris in a Charlottesville parking garage during the 2017 Unite the Right rally.
In unanimous decisions issued this morning, the Court of Appeals of Virginia rejected efforts by Jacob Scott Goodwin and Alex Michael Ramos to have their convictions set aside.
“We can never forget the violence, mayhem, injury, and death caused by the racists and white supremacists who descended on Charlottesville for Unite the Right, but we can ensure that those who broke the law face justice,” said Attorney General Mark R. Herring. “My team and I continue to sound the alarm about the dangers of white supremacist violence and its rise in Virginia and around the country, and will not hesitate to hold racists and white supremacists accountable when they turn their hate into violence.”
More information on the decisions from the Court of Appeals and copies of the court’s opinions are available below:
- Jacob Scott Goodwin v. Commonwealth of Virginia
Trial court did not abuse its discretion in refusing to strike four potential jurors for cause or in denying appellant’s motion to set aside the verdict where the evidence was sufficient to support the jury’s verdict that appellant was guilty of malicious wounding. - Alex Michael Ramos v. Commonwealth of Virginia
Trial court did not err in refusing to excuse, for cause, jurors who were aware that another defendant had been convicted the previous day for a malicious wounding of the same victim in the same incident or in denying motion to strike where evidence was sufficient to prove malice; argument regarding denial of motion to change venue barred by Rule 5A:18.