Calls for Whitfield compensation continue

Two more lawmakers have expressed support for providing payment to a Norfolk man wrongly imprisoned on rape charges for 22 years during the upcoming General Assembly special session.

Democratic Dels. Joe Bouchard and Steve Shannon seperately issued statements Wednesday calling for legislative action that would compel the state to financially compensate Arthur Whitfield for his years spent behind bars.

Bouchard is a freshman lawmaker from Virginia Beach; Shannon represents a Northern Virginia district and is the Democratic candidate for attorney general.

They join a growing list that includes gubernatorial candidates Creigh Deeds and Bob McDonnell.

Also advocating passage of a claims bill during the special session scheduled for Aug. 19 are state Sens. Ken Stolle, R-Virginia Beach; and Ralph Northam, D-Norfolk; and Del. Kenny Alexander, D-Norfolk.

The session has been called to amend state law dealing with how forensic scientists are called to testify in court . It was scheduled in the wake of a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision that placed the burden on prosecutors to present analysts as witnesses at trial instead of a report of their findings.

When Gov. Timothy M. Kaine announced the special session last week, he said legislative leaders had assured him its scope would be limited.

But Kaine spokeswoman Lynda Tran said Wednesday that the governor "who pardoned Mr. Whitfield earlier this year, is clearly sympathetic to his circumstances and would not object to a claims bill being considered as part of a session that is otherwise focused on public safety."

Whitfield was released from prison not long after DNA test results from 2004 showed that he had not committed two rapes in Norfolk dating to 1981. By that time, he had been incarcerated for more than two decades.

Free for about five years, Whitfield recently told The Virginian-Pilot that he has experienced health problems and financial woes.

A claims bill crafted by Stolle would pay Whitfield about $445,000. Virginia adopted a formula several years ago that specifies how claims are calculated and their method of payment in installments over a number of years.

If a claims proposal is not acted on during the special session, Whitfield likely would not receive relief until early next year when legislators gather again in Richmond.

Rules adopted by lawmakers at the start of the special session will help determine what type of bills will be considered when the General Assembly convenes next month.

UPDATE: Del. Bobby Mathieson, D-Virginia Beach, also supports taking up a claims bill for Whitfield during the special session.

-- Julian Walker

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