Hearing hints of unease in prosecuting Martese Johnson

MARTESE COURT AIRED: 3-26-15 on WAMU

In his first court appearance following his bloody arrest outside a bar near the University of Virginia, Martese Johnson learned that his case would await completion of the state probe of the men who arrested him. Hawes Spencer reports.               Q-SIG 1:20

The hearing came a day after Governor Terry McAuliffe demanded that Alcoholic Beverage Control agents get retrained on the use of force, cultural diversity, and on their interactions with young people.

In court, the prosecutor said she wanted to wait until May 28 before deciding whether to move forward, and the judge agreed the matter may never actually come to trial.

"It sounds like the Commonwealth Attorney is not committed to a prosecution in this case."

That's legal analyst Scott Goodman, who points out that in the notorious seltzer water case two years ago the prosecutor not only dropped all charges but also expunged the arrest record of the seltzer-toting woman who later won a six-figure settlement.

Here, Johnson has been officially portrayed as very agitated and belligerent and granted release only after getting "sober."

However, the bar bouncer chatting with Johnson just moments before the arrest described the student as cordial.

"I didn't think he was intoxicated at all."

Likewise, UVA's top diversity official, Marcus Martin, had this to say on Anderson Cooper's television program.

"The breathalyzer test was done at the Police Station, and it did not indicate that he was intoxicated."

After the hearing, a spokesperson said the ABC remains committed to providing the information requested in the probe of its actions. Meanwhile, as some state lawmakers clamor to kill or curtail the ABC, the Governor has begun convening a panel of top officials to review the agency's mission. This is Hawes Spencer

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