The suspect in an Albemarle County speeding case, who allegedly hit 128 mph and veered into a highway rest stop, was so waylaid by COVID-19 he was insufficiently healthy to attend his latest scheduled court hearing last month, according to his lawyer.
Red Hill-area resident Austin Franklin Lilly, 24, did not appear for his hearing last month in Albemarle General District Court, where he faces more than a dozen charges.
"He called me yesterday," attorney George Coles told the court Aug. 21. "He said he tested positive for COVID."
"He sounded terrible," Coles continued. "Based on the condition, I told him not to come."
Judge Matthew Quatrara sometimes gives defendants the benefit of the doubt, but the commonwealth’s COVID contagion was then listed as "minimal" by the Virginia Department of Health, and Lilly has a history of missing court dates.
"I’m going to want some documentation," the judge told Coles.
The defense offered to go downstairs to the lobby of the courthouse to check with the bailiffs to see if perhaps his client had attempted to enter and been turned away. Coles said he’d return if he obtained such information. He did not return, and although the court moved on to other cases, the judge set a new hearing for Thursday to "show cause" for the absence.
Lilly’s eluding-authorities charge dates back to May 2, 2024 when Virginia state trooper Gerald McCoy initiated a chase on the Albemarle slope of Interstate 64. Heading east, the pursuit — or at least the pursued — reportedly veered into the rest stop near mile marker 105.
Other criminal charges Lilly faces stem from several hunting incidents nearly five years ago. In all, Lilly faces 18 criminal charges. One charge was for failure to appear in court.
"He’s got a pretty big stack of things here," the judge said on June 26 when a prior hearing was postponed by the joint request of both prosecution and defense.
As for McCoy, it is not his only case alleging a 128 mph speeder. Court records show that last fall McCoy clocked a young man traveling I-64 at that pace in Louisa County.
Short Pump resident Nicholas Markus, then 20, was going 128 in a 70 mph zone in a 2015 Infiniti, according to the summons McCoy issued. The incident took place at 7:40 a.m. on Nov. 17, 2024 near mile marker 136 near Zion Crossroads.
The Louisa General District Court assigned Markus, now 21, eight days in jail and allowed him to serve his time on weekends at Central Virginia Regional Jail in Orange. The court also restricted his driver’s license for 90 days to three destinations: his church, his job at the Innsbrook Noodles & Company and his school, J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College.
Since The Daily Progress last reported on allegations of sober triple-digit speeding, the following cases have been resolved:
25-year-old Francisco Javier Florencio of Timberville got two days in jail for going 104 in a 70.40-year-old Lauren Ashley Bennett of Hampton saw her 102 speed reduced to 95 and got not jail but $341 in fines and fees.20-year-old Abbass Ashkanani of Richmond got his 105 speed reduced to 96 and got no jail but $341 in fines and fees.19-year-old Ray Wendo of Charlottesville got four jail days for going 102 in a 45.
Additionally, 19-year-old Demajaye Jamir Kindred of Albuquerque, New Mexico, was found guilty in absentia on July 11 of speeding. However, Albemarle County police officer Daniel Shetler did not charge Kindred with reckless driving, so he was convicted not of a crime but instead of a driving infraction. His $281 in fines is marked "past due."
Then, there’s 20-year-old Roberto Moncada of Manassas. When he came to court July 14, he saw his 102-in-a-45 reckless driving charge not prosecuted because the summoning Albemarle police officer, Austin Monroe, did not appear. However, Moncada was also facing a charge of failing to appear for his initial hearing in early May. That charge was levied by the judge, who found him guilty but decreed a fully suspended, 10-day sentence.
The topic of so-called super speeders is one that has caught the attention of Virginia legislators. Starting next year, they have enabled judges in cases of street racing or triple-digit speeding convictions to force the guilty to install speed limiters in their vehicle. That law, championed by Del. Patrick Hope, D-Arlington, takes effect July 1.
Source: www.dailyprogress.com