COURTHOUSE — Twice in July, activists who allege corruption in the judicial system tried to address Virginia Beach grand jury members during a brief public process before the jurors did their work behind closed doors.
Both times, they tried to appeal directly to grand jurors so they would investigate the concerns. The activists included Aldo DiBelardino, who is running for Virginia Beach sheriff, a job which includes overseeing court security.
Incidents happened on Mondays, July 1, and July 15. On July 1, DiBelardino was removed from a courtroom after addressing the grand jury, according to the sheriff’s office. Body camera footage was posted online at a website linked to DiBelardino’s campaign site. “I have a presentment for the grand jury,” DiBelardino said in the video before deputies physically removed him.
“They carried me out of that courtroom,” DiBelardino told The Independent News this past week. “You can be in a public forum until you say things they don’t like.”
Deputies on July 15 took two people into custody. Victor Jackson of New Kent was found in summary contempt by Circuit Court Chief Judge James C. Lewis and ordered jailed after he addressed grand jurors. Janice Wolk Grenadier of Alexandria was charged with obstructing a law enforcement officer, a misdemeanor.
Grenadier, a certified Americans with Disabilities Act advocate, was removed after refusing to leave when the courtroom was ordered cleared, a complaint against her said. She was released on bond. A hearing is scheduled Wednesday, Aug. 15.
In an interview, Grenadier said she didn’t hear the judge order the courtroom cleared, and she feared for Jackson’s safety.
“I wasn’t there to interfere,” she said.
After his release, Jackson spoke in a video with someone identified as SG Anon, who has made other content about the activists. Jackson said he stood to speak after the grand jury was impaneled.
“Before I could get out a couple of words, the judge – it almost seemed as if it were orchestrated – ushered the jury out as fast as he could while I was just speaking to the grand jury,” he said. “They did not give me any opportunity to speak to the grand jury. It was controlled by the judicial system.”
Another incident outside the courthouse involved a protest by DiBelardino on Friday, July 19, when he was charged with misdemeanor trespass after being forbidden to do so. Deputies said he wouldn’t move to a designated area after being asked.
“They’re operating wrongly,” DiBelardino said during an interview this past week. “They’re using their power wrongly.”
DiBelardino, an inventor and businessperson, is running as an independent candidate in a special election against Sheriff Rocky Holcomb, a Republican, who has served as sheriff since former Sheriff Ken Stolle retired last year. Holcomb is a former state delegate and member of the City Council who was a chief deputy under Stolle.
The sheriff’s office released information about incidents through a spokesperson, but Holcomb declined to comment, referring a reporter to code that outlines court security duties of the sheriff’s office.
Officials at the courthouse also declined to comment, but events in July appear to have led to a change. On Monday, Aug. 5, the entire grand jury process was closed to the public.
“It was not lawful to do what they did,” DiBelardino said of the closure.
DiBelardino has disputed the circumstances of his arrest and said he was hurt while being taken into custody. He said the rule cited before he was arrested denied his First Amendment rights because it moved him extremely far from the doors.
The Independent News first reported DiBelardino’s arrest the day it happened, while he was in custody. He later criticized that story as “incorrect and done without integrity.” Via email, DiBelardino said he was 152 feet from the courthouse doors when arrested, and the spot he was directed to move to was 530 feet away. “There is case law about public space and limits on trespassing, especially when it relates to government corruption,” he said.
According to the sheriff’s office, DiBelardino had been provided a copy of a directive and given 15 minutes to move, but, after 20 minutes, refused and was arrested.
DiBelardino was held in custody for three days in Norfolk because he could not reach anyone to arrange bond. He wrote that he was held unlawfully without the ability to be released until someone posted bond for him. A hearing is scheduled in September.
DiBelardino has filed suits in state and federal court which allege mistreatment and describe him as a whistleblower.
This year, DiBelardino filed a petition in Circuit Court that states, “It has become clear to We the People that our courts abuse consent and color of law authority in a ‘theater of law’ … ” It claims members of the bar misuse the law and gaslight and violate rights “in a criminal RICO manner.”
Petitioners include “We the People,” DiBelardino and unnamed others. Respondents include judges and Holcomb, with the petition claiming he serves illegally.
In June, Jeff Rosen, an attorney representing Holcomb, sought dismissal because “Sheriff Holcomb was legally sworn in as the sheriff of the city of Virginia Beach.” In response, DiBelardino argued Holcomb became sheriff outside a timeframe in the law that allows this. Virginia Beach judges recused themselves in the matter.
DiBelardino and supporters traveled to Richmond on Thursday, July 25, for a hearing before retired Judge Margaret P. Spencer. Assistant Attorney General Cooper Vaughan, representing Lewis, the chief judge, argued that DiBelardino isn’t an attorney and cannot bring a case for a group.
“Neither that code section, nor any other provision of the law, authorizes a petition to impanel a grand jury brought by a single non-attorney on behalf of an entity,” Vaughan wrote in a filing.
DiBelardino said he was organizing concerned citizens, though not as a member of the bar. He argued the law does not prevent citizens from seeking an investigation.
Grenadier also spoke, arguing the grand jury is a “fourth arm” of government and ensures public corruption is investigated.
A day later, DiBelardino filed a memo that said, “We the People do not need court permission to empanel our grand jury, nor is the court or any other branch of government allowed to interfere.” He argued that authorities had prevented efforts to “lawfully give a presentment of court and government corruption to our grand jury.”
In Virginia Beach, on Monday, Aug. 5, a deputy relayed the message that the grand jury was closed. Grenadier and a reporter were not permitted in. Commonwealth’s Attorney Colin Stolle walked past, and Grenadier said the public could not enter.
“That’s up to the judge,” Stolle replied.
The next day, Spencer dismissed the matter discussed in Richmond, writing that “We the People” was improperly represented by a non-attorney and wasn’t authorized to make the request. DiBelardino, while traveling, learned of this from a reporter.
“That just means we will continue our lawful, coordinated patriot actions,” he said.
© 2024 Pungo Publishing Co., LLC
One thought on “Activists, including candidate for sheriff, interrupt portion of Virginia Beach grand jury process, leading to arrests”
Comments are closed.