Photo: Virginia House GOP
(Associated Press) — The chair of the Virginia Parole Board has filed a defamation lawsuit against a Richmond TV station and one of its reporters over some of the station’s coverage of an ongoing controversy involving the board. Court records show board chair Tonya Chapman filed the $7 million lawsuit Friday against WTVR-TV and Jon Burkett. The stories that prompted the lawsuit dealt with a 13-page draft report produced by the Office of the State Inspector General, which has been investigating the parole board. The specific report dealt with the board’s decision to release inmate Vincent Martin, who had served 40 years in a police officer’s killing. WTVR was the first news organization to report on the document, which contained substantial differences from the final report made public last year, including a critical finding about Chapman.
(WFIR NEWS) — Republican lawmakers have raised concerns about the differences in the two documents, including Delegate and candidate for governor Kirk Cox. WFIR’s Evan Jones has more:
