I-64 sniper suspect may face trial as adult

A juvenile charged in last month’s Interstate 64 shootings may be tried as an adult in circuit court.
Albemarle prosecutors have requested a transfer hearing for the 16-year-old Crozet boy, who appeared Wednesday in Albemarle Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court. Both prosecutors and defense lawyers asked for the juvenile’s hearing to be continued until next Wednesday so that all involved would have the necessary paperwork.
Authorities charged the juvenile and Slade A. Woodson, 19, with 15 felony counts each in connection with the March 27 shootings. The charges include two counts of malicious wounding, five counts of maliciously shooting at an occupied vehicle and other shooting charges.
Authorities allege that the two suspects fired a Ruger .22-caliber Magnum rifle at six vehicles on I-64. Two drivers suffered minor injuries when their vehicles were hit. The investigation into the early-morning shootings shut down the interstate for several hours, and Albemarle County schools closed as a precaution.
Woodson also was charged in connection with shooting incidents in Waynesboro involving a car and a bank. He is scheduled for two preliminary hearings — May 1 in Albemarle and May 20 in Waynesboro. The juvenile suspect’s last court appearance was closed to the public under a state statute. Dana Slater, the boy’s attorney, said in court Wednesday that she intends to file a motion to close her client’s hearings or close parts of them dealing with protected information. That motion will be discussed in court Wednesday.
The juvenile is being held at Blue Ridge Detention Center in Albemarle County. On Wednesday, the boy — a tall teenager with short brown hair and a few pimples on his chin — shuffled into the small courtroom wearing center-issued blue clothes. He sat between Slater and an unidentified woman. Woodson and the boy were arrested March 28 at a Yonder Hill Farm residence. Police have said Edgar W. Dawson was armed with a gun when authorities entered the home, and Albemarle Office M.J. Easton subsequently shot Dawson.
Dawson remained at the University of Virginia Medical Center until last week, according to his attorney, John Zwerling.
“He’s better,” Zwerling said. “He still has a bullet in him.”
Zwerling said he believes his client was shot four times. Dawson can walk, although Zwerling said he doesn’t think Dawson is strong enough to return to work.
State police are still investigating the shooting, Zwerling said.