In a statement Sunday night, March 2, Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin (R) said he commuted the sentence of Wesley Shifflett. “I have today used the executive clemency authority granted to me by the Constitution of Virginia and commuted the sentence imposed on Sgt. Wesley Shifflett was convicted of recklessly discharging a firearm by the Fairfax County Circuit Court.”
Former Fairfax County police officer Shifflett admitted during his jury trial last fall that he shot and killed Timothy McCree on Feb. 22, 2023. Shifflett testified at his trial in October of 2024 he shot Johnson in self defense because, after Johnson fell during a foot pursuit, he saw him reaching into his waistband, possibly for a gun.
“I am convinced that the court's sentence of incarceration is unjust and violates the cornerstone of our justice system — that similarly situated individuals receive proportionate sentences,” Youngkin said in his statement. “I want to emphasize that a jury acquitted Sgt. Shifflett of the more serious charge of involuntary manslaughter.”
Commuted means terminating a sentence that is being served for guilt. A commutation can change someone's prison sentence, but unlike a pardon, a commutation does not wipe out a conviction. The Code of Virginia, states that the power to grant pardons or reprieves is vested in the Governor, as provided in Article V, Section 12 of the Constitution of Virginia.
Less than two days before the governor’s commutation, on Friday, February 28, Randy I. Bellows, Circuit Court Judge for the 19th Judicial Circuit (Fairfax), sentenced Shifflett to five years in prison, the maximum penalty allowed as punishment of Class 6 convicted felony of reckless discharge of a firearm and a five-year probation. After the sentencing, Shifflett was jailed to be processed. He remained in the detention center until just before 8 p.m. Sunday, having spent two nights in jail before walking free, according to the The Washington Post.
On Oct. 4, 2024, the jury found Shifflett not guilty of involuntary manslaughter but guilty of reckless handling of a firearm,
Youngkin said the court rejected the Senior Probation and Parole Officer’s recommendation of no incarceration nor supervised probation.
“Sgt. Shifflett has no prior criminal record and was, by all accounts, an exemplary police officer. It is in the interest of justice that he be released immediately,” said Youngkin. “My action does not limit Sgt. Shifflett’s right to appeal his reckless discharge of a firearm conviction.”
Steve T. Descano (D), Fairfax Commonwealth's Attorney, responded https://x.com/FairfaxCountyCA: "I’m outraged at Youngkin’s decision tonight. Glenn Youngkin has spent the last four years honing his Trump impersonation, and now he’s following in his footsteps by commuting sentences just to score political points. This is an insult to all Virginians who value an untainted justice system."