Jury finds former Virginia Military Institute Cadet guilty on one count of assault, battery

ROCKBRIDGE COUNTY, Va. – A former Virginia Navy Institute Cadet’s has been discovered responsible of assault and battery by a twelve-person jury in Rockbridge County on Wednesday.

Jacob Littlefield was on trial for assault and strangulation that investigators mentioned occurred final yr within the Barracks at VMI.

The Commonwealth mentioned Littlefield was drunk and put his arms across the neck of one other Cadet, Cooper Layne.

The protection argued the altercation, which was caught on video, exhibits that the time the protection’s arms have been across the sufferer’s neck was not lengthy sufficient o be thought-about strangulation, nor have been there any bruising or marks.

Layne took the stand and recalled the night time that this occurred simply over a yr in the past.

“I noticed like ‘oh my gosh that is getting out of hand. That is getting bodily. That is past drunken simply loudness,’” Layne mentioned.

On Wednesday night, the jury discovered Littlefield responsible on one depend of assault and battery, a lesser sentence from the unique strangulation cost.

The jury additionally discovered Littlefield not responsible on the second assault and battery cost.

As a substitute of ready for an additional day to condemn Littlefield, the Commonwealth, protection and Choose Christopher Russell agreed to do the sentencing the identical day, Wednesday.

Littlefield took the stand throughout his sentencing to apologize to the court docket and the sufferer.

“If I might return and never do what occurred that night time and never accuse you of issues and are available at you that night time. In my sobriety now, I don’t assume I’d ever deal with somebody like that,” mentioned Littlefield.

Littlefield was sentenced to 180 days in jail – 120 of these suspended.