RICHMOND, Va. (AP) _ Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe has rejected an effort to allow a German diplomat’s son and convicted murderer to return to his home country. McAuliffe spokesman Brian Coy said Tuesday that the Democrat has denied the transfer petition submitted by Jens Soering, who’s serving two life terms for the 1985 slayings of his ex-girlfriend’s parents in Bedford County. Coy said the governor determined that Soering’s trial and conviction were in accordance with Virginia law. Days before leaving office in January 2010, then-Gov. Tim Kaine asked the Justice Department to transfer Soering to a German prison. Kaine secretly agreed to a plan that would have kept Soering behind bars in Germany for at least two years. But Kaine’s successor, Gov. Bob McDonnell, revoked that request soon after taking office.
