UPDATE: 4:56pm
A response from George Huguely’s defense attorneys, Rhonda Quagliana and Francis McQ. Lawrence, is pasted below:
"These additional charges were not unexpected and we have been fully prepared to defend against them. We think it is significant that the amended charges acknowledge that there was no premeditation."
Check back on Monday for updates as the story develops.
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Prosecution’s case against George Huguely, the former UVA lacrosse player charged with the murder of classmate and ex-girlfriend Yeardley Love, just got bigger.
According to a press release from Commonwealth’s Attorney Dave Chapman, the Charlottesville General District Court issued five additional warrants today. Charges include felony murder, robbery, two counts of burglary, and grand larceny. Chapman writes in the release that a "video first appearance" is scheduled for Monday in the general district court.
"It is imperative to bear in mind that this is a continuing investigation," reads the release. "Like the original charge, these new warrants constitute allegations of fact. Every person is presumed to be innocent unless and until proof beyond a reasonable doubt is established before a judge or jury pursuant to a trial." Chapman adds that a January 21 preliminary hearing may be continued during Monday’s court appearance.
In December, a medical examiner and a forensic pathologist offered competing perspectives on whether Love’s death could be classified as blunt force trauma, as well as whether amphetamines may have left Love susceptible to a cardiac arrhythmia. Click here for more, and follow C-VILLE next week for details as the story develops.
