Man found guilty for high-speed chase, crashing car into home in New Kent

A former Newport News man who led a state trooper on a high-speed chase through James City County and New Kent County that resulted in a car crashing into a home has been found guilty of felony eluding.

Brandon Ralfel Robinson, 30, formerly of the 700 block of Topsider Court, received guilty verdicts on one charge each of felony eluding of police, misdemeanor driving revoked (third of subsequent offense), misdemeanor failing to report an accident, and misdemeanor reckless driving during a contested trial Monday afternoon in New Kent Circuit Court.

On March 17, 2017 around 6 a.m., Trooper James Shaw was patrolling Interstate 64 westbound in James City County when he noticed a vehicle traveling a lot faster than he was that was about a quarter-mile ahead of him. As the trooper accelerated, the vehicle seemed to do the same, with Shaw’s vehicle topping off at 130 miles per hour and still unable to catch the vehicle. The car the officer was trailing, later identified as a 2010 white Camaro, exited the 227 off ramp and made a right onto Route 30. The officer initiated a traffic stop and the vehicle stopped into a subdivision. As the officer approached the car to get a view of the driver, he noticed the operator was moving a lot inside. According to the officer, he looked at the suspect for about 30 seconds to get a look at him before the Camaro pulled off. Shaw hopped into his car and begin pursuing the vehicle westbound on Route 30 (Barhamsville Road) into New Kent County at speeds that reached 120 miles per hour. The vehicle made a left turn onto Barham Road and the driver bailed from the moving vehicle. According to Shaw, the operator of the Camaro ran into the woods and video of the chase showed the Camaro crashing into a home. A K-9 Unit was brought in to search for the suspect but was unable to locate him.

Using information gathered from the license plate of the vehicle, the registration was tracked back to Lisa Jones. Through an extensive computer database, Robinson’s image appeared as a person connected with Jones. Jones testified, identifying herself as Robinson’s ex-wife and testified about not having the car in her possession.

“He took the keys to the car one month ago,” said Jones, saying that she last saw the defendant in February 2017. “I called the police about the car being taken but the police department couldn’t do anything about it because we were still married.”

Jones said she never saw the defendant again but received messages from him through social media.

Defense attorney Todd DuVal questioned Jones, saying that she couldn’t say who was driving the car the night of the incident.

“You don’t know if he had it?” the defense lawyer asked. “You don’t know if he was driving it do you?”

“I only saw it [the car] when he drove off,” Jones responded.

Duval continued his argument, pointing to dashcam video of the light shining through the window of the driver’s side after the initial stop. The attorney followed that by pointing to the proclamation of a person heading to the forest after the driver bailed from the car.

“There is no person running into the woodline,” DuVal argued. “When the car was rolling away [towards the house], it was a good 70 feet away.”

The defense attorney followed that up with a letter that showed that an in-home visit was conducted by a parole officer the same day. Cecelia Nelson, the mother of two of Robinson’s children, testified that she saw him the morning.

“He pulled up in a blue Nissan around 10 a.m.,” she said. “He was still there when I left for work at 10:40 a.m.”

Commonwealth’s Attorney Linwood Gregory cross-examined Nelson about any additional information from the day of the offense.

“Were you there when the parole officer came to make an in-home visit?” Gregory asked.

“No,” Nelson responded.

“Do you know where he was coming from when he got home?” the Commonwealth’s Attorney inquired.

“That’s something you have to ask him,” Nelson rebutted.

With both sides concluding their case, Bondurant pondered for about 10-15 minutes before weighing in with his insight to the case.

“As I see this, it all boils down to Ms. Nelson,” the judge said. “She says that he drove off in a blue Nissan the night before and she didn’t see him until 10 a.m. the next day. The Camaro was seen by the trooper around 6 a.m.

“It’s interesting to the court that the blue Nissan belongs to ‘Stacie’,” Bondurant continued, pointing to testimony about Robinson’s involvement with another woman. “He drives her car to see another woman that stays with her.

“The officer testified seeing the defendant for at least 30 seconds and distinctly remembers seeing his facial features,” added the judge, specifically identifying the testimony of Shaw who pointed out the numerous facial tattoos of Robinson along with his outgrown facial hair. “The car was never reported stolen that night.

“I go back to the trooper being emphatic about identifying the defendant and I find him guilty on all the charges,” Bondurant concluded.

A presentence report is being prepared on the defendant with formal sentencing scheduled for Dec. 17.