New documents shed light on relationship between Love, Huguely

A pair of newly released documents in the case of slain University of Virginia fourth-year Yeardley Love shed light on her relationship with George Huguely, the former student charged with murder in her death.

Police have found fragments of an e-mail they believe Love sent to Huguely, according to two affidavits requesting search warrants for Huguely’s computers, which police had already seized.

They found Love’s computer in a Dumpster on Sadler Street in Charlottesville, after Huguely told them he had thrown it in a trash bin after leaving Love’s apartment the night she died, according to the affidavit. Huguely also told police that he and Love had e-mailed each other in the days leading up to her death, according to the affidavit.

At least one part of the fragment e-mail, found on her computer, appears to relate to a fight the two had shortly before her death, according to the affidavit.

A sorority sister of Love’s told police she saw a fight between Love and Huguely in which Love hit Huguely with her purse, spilling its contents all over Huguely’s apartment, according to the affidavit.

All of the actual text from the e-mails, along with the names of witnesses, was redacted in accordance with a sealing order requested by Charlottesville Commonwealth’s Attorney Dave Chapman.

A roommate discovered Love’s bloody body facedown on her pillow early in the morning of May 3 at their 14th Street Northwest apartment, according to court records. Huguely told police he had shaken Love as her head bounced against a wall, according to a search warrant affidavit filed by police. The medical examiner’s office later declared the cause of death to be blunt-force trauma.

In a statement, one of Huguely’s attorneys referred to Love’s death as “an accident with a tragic outcome.”

Huguely was charged hours after Love’s body was found. Both were members of UVa lacrosse teams at the time.

From the outset of their investigation, police have said that understanding the relationship between Huguely and Love would be a focus of their investigation.

Lt. Gary Pleasants said Tuesday that police likely will continue to gather evidence right up until trial, though the busiest part of the investigation has passed.

“All they’re doing now is just getting the final pieces put together,” he said.

Hugely is confined at the Albemarle-Charlottesville Regional Jail awaiting trial.

The Love killing and investigation gripped local and national attention, and has resulted in some new rules at UVa, where school officials said they had not been aware of run-ins Huguely had with authorities in other localities.

Earlier this month, the university announced a new policy that requires all students to annually disclose arrests or criminal convictions that happened since they were admitted to UVa.

UVa officials have said Huguely would likely have been suspended or possibly expelled if they had known about a 2008 drunken, violent confrontation between Huguely and Lexington police. The incident surfaced days after Huguely’s arrest in the Love killing.