University of Virginia Library

Student Wins Retrial
In Honor Hearing

By PARKES BRITTAIN

Richard Carmona, dismissed from the
University by the Honor Committee Dec.
4, was granted a retrial in an open honor
hearing held Saturday, Jan. 8.

The defense succeeded in establishing
"good cause" for a retrial by citing the
lack of records of the original trial, in
which Mr. Carmona was found guilty of
shoplifting and was dismissed from the
University.

Trial Records Lost

The original trial had been recorded by
a faulty tape recorder which yielded only
one complete tape of the four tapes used.

Three fourths of the records of the
original trial were therefore
"inaccessible" and the right of the
defendant to have access to those records
had been violated, the committee ruled.

Mr. Carmona was represented in his
defense by Nicolas Shimicles, Timothy
Oksman and Brendan Bovaird, students in
the law school.

Mr. Shimicles stated that the defense
had originally intended to establish
grounds for a retrial on the basis of
another of the rights of the accused, "the
right to acquittal except where
substantial evidence supports the
accusation."

Double Jeopardy

One of their main arguments would
have been that the alleged offense was
not reprehensible enough to warrant
dismissal. Another argument would have
asserted that Mr. Carmona was the victim
of double jeopardy.

The defense argued that double
jeopardy had occurred when the original
investigators in the case decided not to
prosecute. Their decision had therefore
constituted a trial in which they found
Mr. Carmona innocent, thus making the
subsequent honor trial illegal, according
to the defense.

The new trial is scheduled for
Saturday. It will be open to those holding
the public passes from the open hearing.
No members of the committee who heard
the original trial will be allowed to sit in
on the retrial.

Original Trial Dismissed

The retrial is considered a "trial de
nouveau" and the original trail was
officially dismissed. Mr. Carmona
resumed his status as a fourth year man in
the College and was able to complete his
final exams.