Delegates Rob Bell, R-Albemarle, and William Janis, R-Glen Allen, are currently sponsoring a bill in the General Assembly that would protect criminal witnesses from liability whenever their testimonies or criminal identifications are made "with the good faith belief in its veracity."
Some Virginia lawyers, however, say the content of the bill is already in practice.
"It makes more clear what is already common law," Virginia attorney Tom Carter said.
The bill comes in response to a lawsuit by Chris Matthew, a black Charlottesville resident who was accused of rape by a former University Law student. The student, a white female, was allegedly raped last fall and identified Matthew as her assailant.
Matthew was arrested by Charlottesville police and spent five days in prison until he was exonerated through DNA testing. The police have since arrested John Henry Agee on the same charges.
Matthew recently filed suit against the law student for defamation. His lawyer, Deborah Wyatt, said she believes the alleged victim was negligent in accusing Matthew.
According Wyatt, the codification of this bill may be simply racially motivated political grandstanding in response to her client's suit.
"If instead of being a pretty, blonde, U.Va.-type girl who had accused a black male barber and traumatized him, this had been a poor black woman who'd falsely accused a white captain of the football team and traumatized him, would [the Delegates] have been sponsoring the same bill?" Wyatt asked.
Wyatt said she believes race played a role in the victim's misidentification of Matthew, and that victims should be more careful before naming accusers.
"It's the rare person who's going to be positive, but why immunize people who say they're positive when they're not?" Wyatt said.
University Law Prof. Brandon Garrett, a specialist in wrongful conviction, said he believes the state, not individuals, should compensate those who are wrongfully convicted of crimes.
"It makes more sense for the government to assume responsibility," Garrett said.
Garrett added that other states have already adopted statutes similar to the proposed legislation.
"I think people in that situation would rather have [state compensation] to get on with their lives rather than go through the process of a lawsuit," Garrett said.
Bell did not return multiple telephone calls for this story.
Read More
Honor Committee, Class Councils offer resources for students during exam season
By Lidia Zur Muhlen and Brandon Kile | 2 days agoEvery semester, the Honor Committee utilizes a portion of its roughly $5 million endowment to fund its finals season initiatives.
University sees increase in fraudulent emails and phishing attempts
By Bertie Azqueta | 4 days agoSome of these phishing attempts come from @virginia.edu email addresses, making it more challenging for University Outlook users to differentiate fraudulent emails.
Faculty Senate discusses proposal to separate faculty position renewal from promotion
By Lexie Stadler | 5 days agoAGF are non-tenure-track professors who hold roles primarily focused on teaching, research, academic librarianship and clinical service.
