McDonnell Meets with UVA President Casteen

Backed by a bipartisan group of legislators and Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli,
Governor McDonnell issued Executive Order 11, establishing the Virginia Prisoner and Juvenile Offender Re-Entry Council and named one of his former Attorney General staff members, Banci Tewolde, to lead the group.

The Governor also signed one bill that would divert non-violent offenders from incarceration and another that would assist prisoners in working off court costs.

McDonnell said he believes offering stronger support early in the re-entry process will save money and reduce recidivism.

McDonnell  Every year, 13,000 adults and 300 juveniles are released from corrections facilities in Virginia.  That first twelve months is when a lot of that recidivism occurs so that’s when a lot of work really needs to be done.

Governor McDonnell said the new program will not have a substantial cost to the commonwealth and will be funded primarily through re-allocating existing resources.

Craig Carper, WCVE News, Capitol Square. President Casteen expressed his desire to Governor McDonnell to change state law to notify colleges when students are arrested.  McDonnell told Casteen that his administration will look into the possible change.

McDonnell:  I think this also brings to mind perhaps a larger issue in our culture.  And that is sort of the duty that all people have to see what’s going on in their communities, to be a better job of being their brother’s keeper, looking out for their neighbor, and finding ways to bring to the attention of authorities things that seem to be wrong.

Casteen discussed the challenges of maintaining safety in non-traditional college communities.

Casteen:  We have to deal with a number of issues that are peculiar to universities.  Not least, that most of our students happen not to live on the University’s grounds.

Yeardley Love, a student and womens’ lacrosse player at UVA, was found dead May 3.  Hours later, her ex-boyfriend, UVA student and men’s lacrosse player George Huguely, was charged with her murder and arrested.

Huguely was previously arrested in 2008 on charges of public intoxication and threatening to kill a police officer.

Craig Carper, WCVE News, Capitol Square.