Charlottesville Commonwealth’s Attorney Dave Chapman filed a motion of nolle prosequi Tuesday in the case against Jesse Matthew and the disappearance and murder of second-year College student Hannah Graham, thereby handing the prosecution over to Albemarle County Commonwealth’s Attorney Denise Lunsford.
The motion, which represents a prosecutor’s willing decision not to pursue charges before the defendant goes to trial or receives a verdict, was filed in order to comply with the Double Jeopardy Clause of the Fifth Amendment.
The clause stipulates that a defendant cannot be tried for the same offense more than once. Specifically, the same evidence cannot be used to try a person repeatedly for a specific crime.
According to the motion filed with the General District Court in Charlottesville, the city’s Commonwealth’s Attorney requested the charge be dropped because Matthew has already been charged with abduction with intent to defile in Albemarle County.
“The prosecution of [Mr. Matthew] for [the pending charge] is duplicative and likely to become barred by the Double Jeopardy Clause of the Fifth Amendment,” the motion states.
Chapman said the court jurisdictions overlapped between Albemarle and Charlottesville because Matthew was originally charged in Charlottesville, but Graham’s body was later found in a field in Albemarle County.
Chapman said trying Matthew in Albemarle was a way of consolidating the relevant evidence and charges in a way that is preferable for the Commonwealth.
“[It is] both efficient and appropriate in terms of the law and the justice process,” he said.
Miriam Dickler, director of communications for the City of Charlottesville, said this kind of motion is fairly standard. She said there was never a charge for homicide or murder in the City of Charlottesville and the jurisdiction where remains are found is usually the one that takes the case.
Matthew, who is charged in Albemarle with first-degree murder and abduction with intent to defile, faces a maximum penalty of life in prison for both charges if convicted.
According to an Albemarle Commonwealth’s Attorney press release, Matthew is also charged with two counts of reckless driving, both of which are misdemeanors carrying a maximum sentence of one year in jail. The charges for reckless driving are from a Sept. 20, 2014 incident in which Matthew sped away from the Charlottesville police station after meeting there with an attorney.
The Grand Jury did not bring a capital murder charge against Matthew, which would make him eligible for the death penalty. Lunsford said in a press conference following the indictment that the charges were carefully considered.
“The charges that the jury will hear are charges that the prosecutor feels comfortable will have probable cause to bring in this case,” Lunsford said.
Chapman declined to comment about the charges.
Matthew is currently being held in a Fairfax County detention center for another crime, but he will attend a preliminary hearing on Feb. 18 in Albemarle County through a live video feed.
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