VIRGINIA BEACH
The challenger in the race for commonwealth's attorney hasn't had a fixed address in the city since June 1 and last month filed for unemployment benefits in Newport News.
Mark C. Hardman could face a penalty of $150 for not amending his address on campaign paperwork filed at the Virginia Beach general registrar's office, according to state election law. An amended filing is required within 10 days of changing an address.
Candidates for constitutional offices, including commonwealth's attorney, are required to live in the city or county in which they're filing to run.
For the past three months, Hardman, 28, said, he has slept on friends' couches, camped at First Landing State Park and stayed at his mother's house in Newport News. He also spent several weeks volunteering at an orphanage in Ecuador, he said in a phone interview from the South American country.
Hardman is running as an independent, hoping to unseat Republican Harvey Bryant.
In March, Hardman was fired as a prosecutor in the Portsmouth Commonwealth's Attorney's Office. He said that his boss, Commonwealth's Attorney Earle Mobley, infringed on his right to seek public office and that Mobley fired him to protect his friend Bryant.
"I wasn't prepared, financially, to lose my job at that point in the election cycle," he said. "It had an impact on my living situation, and I continued to... take all steps that were necessary to maintain my residency in Virginia Beach."
Without a job, Hardman said he was unable to sign a new lease in June, and he couldn't afford the summer rent for his home on 75th Street. That address was the only one on file for Hardman's residence as of Wednesday at the Beach general registrar's office.
Hardman said filing for unemployment benefits in Newport News shouldn't have any effect on his residency. He said he has used his mother's house as a billing address for about 10 years.
In a blog posting Wednesday, he wrote that he lived in Newport News from October 2008 until February, when he moved into a duplex in Virginia Beach. He stayed there through May, he wrote.
Hardman said he intends to move to the Croatan section of Virginia Beach when he returns today from Ecuador. His new campaign manager, George J. Mendelson, is leasing a house there and allowing him to stay for free. Mendelson was a federal prosecutor in the 1970s and early 1980s before becoming a private attorney.
If Hardman defeats Bryant, Mendelson will be hired as the office's chief deputy, Hardman said.
The commonwealth's attorney in Virginia Beach oversees an office of close to 40 attorneys who prosecute about 16,000 criminal charges a year.
Bryant, 63, was appointed in 2000 and elected later that year. He won re-election in 2001 and 2005.
Shawn Day, (757) 222-5131, shawn.day@pilotonline.com
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RE: Hardman's Dismissal
If what Hardman is saying why he got fired is because he decided to run for commonwealth District Attorney, then someone should investigate the accusations. Sometimes if you tell the truth people don't want to accept it. I don't care if he did three cases. Fair is Fair. Now instead of criticizing Hardman we as people should be checking into what he is saying.
... and as I was saying...
Now granted, IF all that Hardman is saying is a lie, then we should try to kick him out of this city! But, IF what he is saying is the TRUTH, and IF Bryant is the corrupt individual that Hardman depicts, then we should be hurrying to get him into office with great haste. Where is a myth buster when I need one!?!?
Fair enough...
That's a fair response, Lady Earle. I saw the article you cited and it still seems that its simply Hardman's words and accusations. I'm just not convinced.
As for the "pro bono" work in South America, while it is certainly commendable, it just goes to show that he has some mixed up priorities. He's running for office, has no job, and apparently no place to live. But he's spending valuable time and money to go to South America just a couple of months before the election? Hm...time to grow up, junior. Big boys don't get summers off anymore.
it's all about the IF
Fear not, kind Ninja, I would not dare to defame someone on this sacred url! And I would direct you to: http://abovethelaw.com/2009/09/former_lawyer_of_the_day_now_s.php
for the suggestions that Bryant had a friend of Hardman’s fired. As to his experience – of course he hasn’t had a lot, although I would not go as far as you to say he has “zero experience as a trial attorney” and when you say you are “SURE that he PROBABLY hasn’t had a felony trial, let alone a jury trial for any type of crime” – are you “sure”? Why only “probably”? Who are your informants? I know you ninja’s are sneaky.
Attorneys tend to associate like schoolgirls on a playground (quickly); it doesn’t take much time out of law school to be “associated” with lots of them (using that term loosely, of course). It would indeed be appropriate for him to still practice as you suggest. (I only meant earlier that it would be irresponsible of him to start work at a new firm when he is planning on quitting it in a short time). His time in South America, as I understand it, was not a “vacation” at all but a time when he was doing pro bono work and helping the people where he was.
Sooo???
So what if he hasn't had the same address for the past few years? And so what if he filed for unemployment benefits? It wouldn't be appropriate for him to open up a solo practice or take a position at a different law firm when he is planning on leaving to take a new post this November. And since when has lack of experience stopped Americans from voting a qualified candidate into office? (Exhibit A: Obama). Sure he hasn't had as much experience - but he is not without some experience, and as a voting public, shouldn't we demand that our public officials carry themselves with integrity in office? If Bryant has been having attorneys fired for being associated with Hardman, what kind of person does that make him? Aren't we sick of the stiff-necked, good old boy political club that Bryant and others are a part of around here? It's time for change.
Careful there Lady Earle
You seem to be crossing into the dangerous area of potential defamatory statements. I haven't seen or heard anything that suggests Bryant has been having attorneys fired for being associated with Hardman. I don't know how it's possible for that many attorneys to be associated with Hardman when he practically just graduated from law school.
Obama had experience as an elected official. Hardman barely has experience as a lawyer. He has zero experience as a trial attorney. I'm sure he probably hasn't had a felony trial, let alone a jury trial for any type of crime.
In fact, it would be appropriate for him to still be practicing law while running for office. People who are planning on running marathons don't stop running until the day of the race. Harvey Bryant is still working and practicing law while the race is going on. For a guy with such a lack of experience, I don't understand why Hardman would be spending his time collecting unemployment and taking vacations down to South America instead of taking this opportunity to get on the court appointed list and try as many criminal cases as he can.
If Hardman is half the attorney he thinks he is, he should have no proble
...as I was saying...
If Hardman is half the attorney he thinks he is, he should have no problem getting some cases between now and the election. He should go ahead and stand in front of the court house and tell every defendant that walks in about his 5 months of experience in Portsmouth, never trying a jury trial, and only 2 years out of law school. I'm sure they will be just as excited about hiring him as their defense attorney as the people of Virginia Beach are about hiring him as their chief prosecutor.
Unbelievable
How can someone expect the voters to trust them with the authority and responsibility of running an office with "close to 40 attorneys" and who knows how many more support staff personnel when that person can't even manage his own finances? Setting aside what ever fraud (claiming residence in Va. Beach, a "billing address" in Newport News and seeking benefits from the City of Newport News) occurred here, can he please explain why he has been unemployed at all? You would think that someone with as meager a resume as Mr. Hardman would have tried to do something useful for the community these last few months. He is a lawyer too right? Couldn't he have gotten on the court appointed counsel list and done some work? Guess he couldn't be bothered to get up from sleeping on his friend's couch.
Or..
How about someone who saw a huge amount of corruption in his CA office, learned of corruption elsewhere, decided to do something about it, got fired, found a new job where Harvey Bryant arranged for him and his friend to both be fired. Harvey Bryant does not deserve to be Commonwealth's Attorney, he has demonstrated several times that he does not have the necessary judgment to render proper justice. One need look no further than the Obama-Sessoms' flier where Bryant had the confessions of the man who was eventually convicted of a misdemeanor by Mobley in Portsmouth. Bryant had evidence a crime was committed but instead sat on it for months until punting it to someone else to handle. Despicable.
It's all about me!
I have no work experience; I'm homeless; I am unable to obtain employment right now! But hey, I'm running to be the chief prosecutor for the largest city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It's about me and what I think I deserve from the good citizens of Virginia Beach. Who does this guy think he is?
Va Beach Commonwealth's Attorney election
The young man who wants to be the next chief law enforcement officer for the city of Virginia Beach (AKA Commonwealth's Attorney) should first take a long, sober, honest evaluation of his personal life before attempting to affect the lives of the citizens of Virginia Beach. He should focus his energy and abilities on addressing fundamental personal needs such as securing adequate shelter! In a nutshell, his personal life is in complete shambles as evidenced by the fact that he does not even have adequate shelter, and is surviving off the generosity of friends,and yet he expects the citizens to place him in charge of the very office designated to protect the wellfare and dignity of the city of Virginia Beach through its prosecution of criminal behavior by those persons who choose to use the city as a venue for violating the law. One phrase comes to mind, "A mind is a terrible thing to waste".
Homeless Candidate for Commonwealth's Attorney?
So we have an individual that has zero ties to this city, jobless and homeless running for the top prosecutor's job in Virginia Beach? How do we expect to hire him to keep our streets safe and prosecute violent criminals when he can't even find a job? Are his lawyering skills so weak that he can't even operate as a solo practitioner?
If Hardman can't even manage his life why would the voters of Virginia Beach want him to to manage an office of over thirty attorneys. All of whom, might I add, have more prosecutorial experience than Mr. Hardman; a man who has never tried a capital murder case.
There has never been a less qualified candidate for a Constitutional Office in Viriginia Beach city history.
Hilarious.....
Thinking of this man's chances..... resembles something close to making snowballs in a blast furnace.
Homeless Prosecutor
How on earth can anyone take this guy seriously? Did the Pilot bury this? I had to search to find this article.
Ha ha ha, SERIOUSLY???
How is this not listed under the top local headlines? This is huge news for the people of Virginia Beach. The person running to be the top prosecutor in VB not only has less than 6 months of actual court room experience, but is a vagrant??? He's filed for unemployment in Newport News??? I guess he's only running so he can tell the unemployment commission that he's actively seeking a job.