The Court of Appeals of Virginia has affirmed the conviction of Rayshawn Scott for a 2021 fatal shooting in Petersburg, ruling that a retrial properly remedied a major constitutional violation committed by the original prosecutor.
The published opinion, issued Tuesday, by Judge Daniel E. Ortiz, concluded that while the prosecution’s initial failure to disclose an agreement with a key witness violated the law, the appropriate fix was a new trial rather than a total dismissal of the charges. Judges Beales and O’Brien joined in the decision.
The Shooting and Initial Trial
The case stems from the November 24, 2021, shooting of William Parham Jr. and Alphonse Whitfield at a home in Petersburg. Parham died the following day from multiple gunshot wounds.
During the investigation, police recovered .380-caliber cartridge cases and bullets from the scene and from Parham’s body. Scott’s ex-girlfriend testified that her .380-caliber handgun went missing after Scott left her house a few days prior to the shooting. A friend testified that on the night of the incident, Scott called and instructed her to tell the ex-girlfriend to report her gun stolen because he “just did something crazy.”
In March 2023, a jury found Scott guilty of second-degree murder and six related charges. However, before sentencing, Scott’s defense learned that Senior Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney Joseph Lee had failed to disclose a pretrial agreement with a pivotal witness: Scott’s cousin, Shaquille Scott.
Lee had promised to reduce Shaquille’s pending felony drug distribution charge to a misdemeanor in exchange for his testimony. Shaquille was the only witness at the first trial to place Scott at the scene.
The Constitutional Violation and Remedy
Because prosecutors are required to disclose any favorable or impeachment evidence to the defense under the landmark U.S. Supreme Court case Brady v. Maryland, the trial court vacated Scott’s initial conviction. However, instead of dismissing the case permanently as Scott requested, the trial court ordered a retrial.
During the second trial, which was handled by Petersburg Commonwealth’s Attorney Tiffany Buckner without Lee’s participation, the defense was fully aware of the deal and cross-examined Shaquille about it. A second witness, Paulette Day, also testified and stated she saw Scott with a gun. The second jury found Scott guilty on all counts, and he was sentenced to 76 years in prison with 50 years suspended.
Scott appealed, arguing that the deliberate concealment of the agreement should have resulted in a total dismissal of his indictment, that the entire Petersburg prosecutor’s office should have been disqualified, and that the evidence was insufficient to convict him.
The Appellate Ruling
The Court of Appeals rejected Scott’s arguments. Judge Ortiz wrote that a Brady violation addresses the fairness of a proceeding, not a defendant’s ultimate guilt or innocence.
The court noted that dismissing an indictment is a “last resort” reserved for cases where evidence is permanently lost or destroyed, or where there is an entrenched pattern of pervasive prosecutorial misconduct. Because the second trial allowed the defense to expose the witness’s deal to the jury, the court ruled the prejudice was cured.
The court also took judicial notice that Lee faced state bar disciplinary action for his conduct in the first trial. In March 2026, the Supreme Court of Virginia upheld a two-year suspension of Lee’s law license after finding he knowingly failed to disclose the agreement.
“The threat of professional sanctions is sufficient to protect due process interests in all but the most severe cases,” Ortiz wrote, adding that a Brady remedy is designed to safeguard the rights of the accused rather than to act as a disciplinary tool to punish the prosecution.
Furthermore, the court found no evidence of a widespread conflict of interest within the Petersburg Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office that required a special prosecutor, noting that Lee negotiated the deal alone and did not participate in the retrial. Finally, the court ruled that the circumstantial evidence regarding Scott’s presence, flight, and post-shooting statements provided a sufficient legal basis for the conviction.
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