During his last days in office, former Gov. Glenn Youngkin pardoned Wesley Shifflett, a former Fairfax County Police sergeant who was convicted in the 2023 killing of an unarmed man suspected of shoplifting.
Shifflett was involved in the 2023 shooting death of Timothy McCree Johnson. Johnson was accused of stealing a pair of designer sunglasses from Nordstrom at Tysons Corner Center. Officers chased him on foot and shot him outside the mall. Johnson was unarmed at the time of the incident.
Shifflett was acquitted of a manslaughter charge but convicted of recklessly handling a firearm. Youngkin commuted that sentence in March 2025.
Youngkin issued an absolute pardon on January 15, just before the end of his term as governor. It cites that a report from April found that “it was reasonable for Sgt. Wesley Gonzalez Shifflett to believe he was in significant danger of death or serious physical injury” during the incident. It said that this means the deadly force he used was “both lawful and consistent with the department’s policy and training.”
Shifflett’s was the only absolute pardon that Youngkin issued in his last year as governor.
When he commuted the sentence, Youngkin said he was “convinced that the court’s sentence of incarceration is unjust and violates the cornerstone of our justice system.” The charge would have come with five years in prison, with two years suspended, and an additional five years of probation.
“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 at the time.
Fairfax County Commonwealth Attorney Steve Descano objected to Youngkin commuting the sentence, saying “This is an insult to all Virginians who value an untainted justice system.”
Feature image of Glenn Youngkin by Michael Butcher
