Commonwealth's Attorney | FFXnow

JUST IN: Driver indicted after crashing bus of kindergarteners on Cox Farms trip

Published December 21, 2022 at 11:45AM

Fairfax County Police Department Capt. Rachel Levy at an October press conference on Troy Reynolds' arrest following a school bus crash (via ABC7)

A bus driver was indicted by a grand jury yesterday (Tuesday) for allegedly driving drunk while transporting D.C. kindergarten students home from a trip to Cox Farms in Centreville.

Troy Reynolds, 48, faces nine felony charges of child endangerment and three misdemeanor charges, including a second offense of driving while intoxicated, driving with a disqualified commercial license, and driving a bus without a commercial driver’s license, Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano announced today.

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County prosecutor’s office awards grants for domestic violence victim services

By Angela Woolsey

Published December 19, 2022 at 11:45AM

Steve Descano named United Community’s Progreso Center as a recipient of a Community Partnership Grant (courtesy Fairfax County Office of the Commonwealth's Attorney)

A trio of local nonprofits that assist people who have experienced abuse and domestic violence got a little funding boost last week, courtesy of Fairfax County prosecutors.

On Thursday (Dec. 15), the Fairfax County Office of the Commonwealth’s Attorney named the Women for Afghan Women (WAW) and United Community’s Progreso Literacy and Citizenship Center as the inaugural recipients of its new Community Partnership Grants, which are intended for organizations that serve victims of domestic violence, sexual abuse and crimes against children.

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Fairfax County top prosecutor Steve Descano to seek reelection in 2023

By Matt Blitz

Published December 16, 2022 at 9:30AM

Fairfax County Commonwealth's Attorney Steve T. Descano delivers remarks at a press conference in Fairfax (File photo by Jay Westcott)

Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano is gearing up for what may be the most heated local election race in 2023.

The first-term chief prosecutor, who defeated a longtime incumbent in 2019 on the strength of a progressive platform, is planning to seek reelection next year, a representative for Descano confirmed to FFXnow.

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JUST IN: Serial killer gets life in prison for 1987 Herndon murder

By Angela Woolsey

Published December 8, 2022 at 3:50PM

Fairfax County Courthouse (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

A man already serving a life sentence in prison for the murder of his ex-girlfriend in 2002 has pleaded guilty to killing a woman in Herndon 35 years ago.

The Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney announced today that Charles Helem was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for murdering 37-year-old Eige Sober-Adler, whose body was found in a field near the Dulles Toll Road on Sept. 8, 1987.

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Sully’s Pour House slams prosecutors over handling of 2021 shooting case

By Fatimah Waseem

Published December 5, 2022 at 3:00PM | Updated March 30, 2023 at 1:37PM

Sully's Pour House in Herndon (via Google Maps)

The owners of Sully’s Pour House, a gastropub in the Town of Herndon, is disappointed over the handling of prosecution against a man who allegedly fired a gun in the business on Nov. 6 last year.

In a scathing Nov. 30 Facebook post, the owners said the justice system failed the business and the community by not taking a tougher stance on the case, accusing the office of Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano of trivializing “a stressful, frightening, and unsafe situation.”

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New bond data dashboard shows disagreement between Fairfax County prosecutors and courts

By Matt Blitz

Published November 7, 2022 at 3:00PM

Fairfax County Commonwealth Attorney's Bond Data Dashboard (image via Fairfax County)

A new data dashboard shows Fairfax County prosecutors are sometimes asking for more detainments of defendants than judges.

The Office of the Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney (OCA) released a dashboard in October with data comparing how often and under what circumstances prosecutors are asking for pre-trial detainment and release to a judge’s recommendations.

News

No charges against Herndon police officer who shot driver in July pursuit

By Fatimah Waseem

Published November 2, 2022 at 1:30PM

Town of Herndon police (courtesy Herndon Police Department)

A Herndon police officer won’t face charges after shooting a driver this summer who was waving a handgun at police officers during a police chase, Fairfax County prosecutors announced Friday (Oct. 28).

The officer, whose name was withheld, reportedly fired five rounds and shot the driver three times in the July 5 incident. The driver was hospitalized for at least 15 days.

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JUST IN: No charges against police who shot man in Springfield Town Center

By Angela Woolsey

Published October 12, 2022 at 3:45PM

The scene at Springfield Town Center's parking lot outside Target, where a police officer reportedly shot a man (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

The Fairfax County police officers who fatally shot a Reston man at Springfield Town Center in June won’t face any charges, the county’s top prosecutor announced today (Wednesday).

An investigation determined that officers Daniel Houtz and Ryan Sheehan reasonably believed that 37-year-old Christian Parker posed a serious, immediate threat to them and a third officer at the scene, according to a news release from Fairfax County County Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano.

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Suspect in Tysons Corner Center gunfire incident indicted, faces new charges

By Angela Woolsey

Published September 20, 2022 at 9:30AM

Fairfax County police clear Tysons Corner Center after reports of gunshots (staff photo by James Cullum)

The man who allegedly fired a gun inside Tysons Corner Center this summer, sparking a chaotic evacuation of the mall, is expected to face trial after getting indicted by a Fairfax County grand jury yesterday (Monday).

The circuit court jury indicted Noah Settles, a 22-year-old D.C. resident also known as rapper No Savage, on seven charges that could result in up to 45 years of imprisonment if he’s convicted, Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano told FFXnow.

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JUST IN: Man convicted of sexual abuse at Annandale day care given life in prison

By Angela Woolsey

Published August 26, 2022 at 12:10PM

The Fairfax County Courthouse (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

A man who sexually abused children for years at a home day care in Annandale has been sentenced to life in prison, Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano announced today (Friday).

Elwood Lewis Thomas, a 38-year-old man from Alexandria, will serve four life sentences and an additional 36 years in prison after being convicted last year on multiple counts of rape, aggravated sexual battery, and sexual penetration with an object, according to Descano’s office.