Warren County Supervisor Charged With Assault and Battery Following Meeting

Warren County Board of Supervisors member Hugh B. Henry has been charged with assault and battery following a physical altercation with a community member after Tuesday night’s Board of Supervisors meeting, according to the Warren County Sheriff’s Office.

The incident occurred Tuesday, Aug. 18, in the parking lot following the meeting. Sheriff’s deputies assigned to the meeting intervened immediately and separated Henry and the other person involved, according to the Sheriff’s Office.

Authorities said the community member initially told deputies that he did not want to pursue charges and declined medical attention. No arrest was made, and no summons was issued that night. Deputies took statements from both parties and completed an incident report.

The situation changed the following day.

On Wednesday, Aug. 19, the man sought medical treatment and contacted the Sheriff’s Office to say he wanted to pursue charges. Deputies then presented the case to a Warren County magistrate.

The magistrate issued a warrant charging Henry with assault and battery under Virginia Code § 18.2-57. The offense is a Class 1 misdemeanor.

Henry appeared at the Warren County Sheriff’s Office Thursday morning, Aug. 20, where he was served with the warrant. The magistrate had authorized his release on a summons rather than requiring a custodial arrest.

Henry is scheduled to appear in Warren County General District Court at 10 a.m. Oct. 21.

The Sheriff’s Office also addressed questions about why Henry was not arrested immediately following Tuesday’s incident. According to the agency, Virginia law gives law enforcement officers discretion to make an arrest for a misdemeanor committed in their presence but does not require an arrest in every case. State law also generally requires that people accused of most misdemeanor offenses be released on a summons rather than taken into custody.

With the two parties separated and the community member declining medical treatment and charges Tuesday night, deputies chose not to make an arrest, the Sheriff’s Office said. Instead, they documented the incident and preserved statements and other evidence.

Sheriff Crystal M. Cline defended the deputies’ handling of the incident and also disclosed a personal connection to Henry.

“My deputies responded immediately and acted within the law at every point in this incident,” Cline said. “Virginia law makes an arrest for a misdemeanor committed in an officer’s presence discretionary, not mandatory, and favors a summons over jail for most misdemeanor offenses.”

Cline said deputies respected the man’s wishes at the scene while documenting what happened. When he decided the following day to seek charges, she said, that documentation allowed deputies to quickly take the matter before a magistrate.

“I also want to be fully transparent with this community: Mr. Henry is a close family friend,” Cline said.

Because of that relationship, Cline said prosecutorial decisions will be left to the Warren County Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office.

“For exactly that reason, all prosecutorial decisions in this case rest with the Office of the Commonwealth’s Attorney, and I fully support the appointment of a special prosecutor should that office deem one appropriate,” Cline said. “No one receives different treatment from this office because of who they know.”

The Sheriff’s Office said the case remains an active criminal matter and will not provide additional comments on the evidence or circumstances surrounding the incident.

The filing of a criminal charge is an accusation and does not establish guilt. Henry is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.

(From WCSO Press Release)