Yesterday, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin released a statement that he has commuted the sentence of former Fairfax County police officer Sgt. Wesley Shifflett. Shifflett, 36, was convicted of recklessly discharging a firearm that resulted in the 2023 death of Timothy McCree Johnson.
Johnson, 37, was unarmed at the time of the shooting. He was accused of stealing a pair of designer sunglasses from the Nordstrom at Tysons Corner Center. Johnson was shot outside the mall after being chased by officers on foot and ordered to get on the ground, according to police.
Shifflett was convicted of recklessly handling a firearm but was found not guilty of involuntary manslaughter. On Friday, February 28, a Fairfax County judge sentenced Shifflett to five years in prison with two years suspended and an additional five years of probation.
Youngkin’s Statement
“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. I want to emphasize that a jury acquitted Sgt. Shifflett of the more serious charge of involuntary manslaughter, a conviction for which the sentencing guidelines recommend no jail time or up to six months’ incarceration,” Youngkin said in the statement.
He further stated: “In this case, the court rejected the senior probation and parole officer’s recommendation of no incarceration nor supervised probation and instead imposed a sentence of five years’ incarceration with two suspended and an additional five years of 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.”
Commonwealth Attorney’s Response
Fairfax County Commonwealth Attorney Steve Descano released a statement in response to the pardon. “I’m outraged at Youngkin’s decision tonight,” Descano said. “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.”
Feature image photo by Austin Stevens, Office of Governor Glenn Youngkin
