ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, March 20, 1996 TAG: 9603200060
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DIANE STRUZZI STAFF WRITER
A high school substance-abuse counselor wants a judicial review board to look into a Roanoke County judge's decision to dismiss charges against a convenience store clerk who sold beer to underage police informants.
Karen Cowell, a student assistance program coordinator with Roanoke County schools, made a complaint to the state's Judicial Inquiry and Review Commission this week. The seven-member commission reviews the conduct of judges.
Her complaint focuses on the actions of General District Judge George Harris in the case of Sherri Lynn Willis, a former clerk at the Riverside Quickette near Dixie Caverns.
In February, Willis pleaded no contest to two charges of selling alcohol to underage customers, but Harris dismissed the charges.
In Virginia, it is a misdemeanor to sell alcohol to anyone under 21.
"It disappoints me," said prosecutor Mark Claytor. "I obviously thought this woman should have been punished for what she did. But Judge Harris is paid to call them as he sees them. He sets the community standards."
Harris did not return messages to his office this week.
By itself, Harris' move is controversial because he dismissed charges against a defendant who did not deny them.
But the charges arose from an already high-profile case involving a 16-year-old charged with killing one of his neighbors Dec. 14 while driving drunk. That case concludes today in Roanoke County Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court.
Judge Philip Trompeter ruled last month that there was enough evidence to convict the teen-ager of drunken driving and aggravated involuntary manslaughter. He delayed final disposition of the case until today.
Detectives said the teen-ager, who is not being named because of his age, told them he purchased beer at the Riverside Quickette the night of the accident.
Police used 20-year-olds to make undercover buys at the store after receiving many complaints that it sold to underage customers.
"Usually if kids are able to purchase beer, they don't want their source to dry up," said Roanoke County Detective Chris Nielsen. "I found it interesting that the information was coming from juveniles as well as adults. Everyone from Glenvar and Salem high schools knew that was the place to buy beer."
The owner of the store, Fred Dotson, did not return messages this week. But a clerk at the store said she had instructed Willis to check customers' identification if there were a question about their age.
Police sent two 20-year-olds to buy beer at the store late last year, after the fatal accident. Nielsen said the clerk on duty did not ask the male informant for identification before selling beer to him. The clerk did ask the female for identification, but sold her the beer anyway when the informant said she had left her ID in the car.
Willis was charged Dec. 29.
Nielsen said Harris stopped him from completing his summary of the evidence against Willis during the February hearing. The judge erased Willis' plea and changed it to not guilty. Then he dismissed the charges, indicating that the informants looked older than 21.
"I think the court takes [the law] seriously," said Willis' court-appointed attorney, Laura Reed. "But it makes the police walk a thin line. ... I know why people are upset, but that's not why [Willis] was charged. This clerk only worked there for five months. It indicates that this is a bigger problem than that clerk."
Alice Ratliff, who supervises the local Alcoholic Beverage Control office, said her agents are investigating the store, which has never been cited for illegal alcohol sales.
Nielsen said Roanoke County detectives also are continuing to investigate the store.
The law that makes it illegal to sell alcohol to anyone under 21 gives the judge much discretion, Ratliff said. If a clerk believes a customer is older than 21, the question is, "Did they really violate the law?" Ratliff said.
"If a place is habitually selling [to underage drinkers], it shouldn't be that difficult to investigate successfully," she said. "If it's just a one-time mistake because the guy was 6 feet, 2 inches [tall] and 20 years old but he looks 25 - you know, we're all human."
Cowell, who filed the complaint against Harris, doesn't see those shades of gray.
"We lost a person in our community because of this. How many lives do we have to lose before something is done?" she said.
The accident involving the 16-year-old killed Bonnie Kitts, who taught homebound students for Roanoke County schools. She was struck while taking an evening walk in the neighborhood with her husband.
Because the judicial review commission operates under strict rules of confidentiality, it will not comment about its investigations or findings. Cowell said the commission's counsel told her he had received another complaint about Harris' dismissal of the charges against Willis.
The commission usually takes action against a judge privately. The most serious complaints of judicial misconduct are decided by the Supreme Court of Virginia.
In 20 years it has filed only a half-dozen complaints with the Supreme Court.
In 1991, the commission investigated former Juvenile and Domestic Relations Judge Fred. L. Hoback Jr. The state Supreme Court censured Hoback for smelling of alcohol while in the Roanoke County Courthouse.
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