A former Charlottesville Police Department employee will spend no time in jail after pleading guilty to illegally accessing Department of Motor Vehicles records.
Paul Jones, who was not a sworn police officer at the time of the crime, was sentenced Thursday in Charlottesville court to six months behind bars, with all time suspended on the condition of a year of good behavior.
Jones was charged back in August with computer invasion of privacy, a Class 1 misdemeanor in the commonwealth of Virginia.
Charlottesville police said they were alerted on Aug. 5 that Jones had accessed DMV records for a family member for a “non-criminal justice purpose.”
“Once the allegation was made, Chief [Michael] Kochis immediately notified Commonwealth Attorney, Joe Platania, and requested that the Virginia State Police investigate this allegation,” the police department said in a statement issued Aug. 23.
Jones was taken into custody Aug. 22 and placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of the criminal proceedings.
"As we have previously informed our community, allegations involving the misuse of law enforcement computer networks will be investigated, charged and criminally prosecuted when appropriate," Charlottesville Police Chief Michael Kochis and Commonwealth’s Attorney Joe Platania said in a joint statement issued Thursday.
Source: www.dailyprogress.com
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