Timeline of Criminal Case With Links to the Washington Post and Save 3ABN
Feb. 25, 2010: Fairfax County Police obtain five
felony arrest warrants for Tommy Shelton pertaining to child
molestation.
Mar. 16, 2010: Tommy Shelton travels from Kentucky
to Virginia to turn himself in, and two days later the Fairfax
County Police Department issues a
press release.
May 6, 2010: Tommy Shelton appears in court for a preliminary hearing, and the judge found
probable cause to send the child molestation charges to a grand
jury.
May 17, 2010: Tommy Shelton is indicted by a grand
jury. Tommy is to face two trials, one for each victim. Eventually,
a date for the first trial is set for July 19.
July 19, 2010: A week or so before the first trial
is to begin, Tommy
strikes a deal with the prosecutor. He decides to plead guilty
in exchange for no jail time, with his sole punishment being
having to register as a sex offender. The judge says he's unsure
he will accept a plea deal that doesn't include jail time. Sentencing
is set for September 24.
Nov. 15, 2010: Sentencing was postponed till October
22, and then again till December. But the judge decided to conduct
Tommy's sentencing hearing on November 15. The judge found Tommy's
written statement to be unremorseful, and gave Tommy a second
chance in court to sound remorseful. The judge found whatever
Tommy said to be unconvincing, and, against the wishes of the
defense, the victims, and the prosecutor, rejected the plea deal since it didn't include
jail time. Tommy then withdrew his guilty plea. Trial is now set for January,
and whether Tommy will be convicted or acquitted is now up in the air.
Tommy Says, "I've Kept Myself Away from Young People"
According to the
Washington
Post, Tommy stated to the judge:
"I am remorseful," Shelton said. "I tried to live a Christian
life all my life. I obviously got off track for a while. In the
last 15 years, I've done everything in my power to live the way
I should. I've kept myself away from young people... Saying I'm
sorry doesn't fix it, but from the bottom of my heart, I am remorseful."
But what about all the times Tommy played the piano for Kid's Time? That's been since 2001, so it
was definitely more recent than 15 years ago.
Who Will Testify for Tommy?
According to the Washington Post,
the
prosecutor told the judge that one of the reasons she wanted to see the plea
deal accepted was because "Shelton would have witnesses testify
positively about him."
