Jury Recommends a 22 ½-Sentence for Bradley Hurley for Breaking & Entering, Conspiracy, Felony Petit Larceny, and Destruction of Property
On June 3, 2015, a Buchanan County Circuit Court jury recommended a sentence of 22 years 6 months for convicted felon, Bradley Dewayne Hurley, 45, of Vansant, Virginia. According to Commonwealth’s Attorney, Gerald Arrington, the trial stemmed from the May 2013 breaking and entering, larceny, and destruction of property from a residence belonging to Jennifer Colley located on Murphy Road.
Testimony at the trial revealed that Hurley and his accomplice, Adam Bowman, bent the front door of Ms. Colley’s trailer and entered her home. After arriving at Ms. Colley’s residence, Deputies found Bowman inside the residence hiding under a tote. Bowman stated that Hurley was present and fled the scene across the river. Hurley told the officers he was at the home, but that he did not do anything wrong.
In contrast, prosecutors pointed out that the night Hurley was arrested, officers found Iraqi money and a bone handled knife in Hurley’s possession that Ms. Colley testified came from her home. Further, the deputies testified that Hurley was wet from his waist down. Ms. Colley testified that while on leave from active military duty, she came back to her home and discovered that it had been destroyed. The intruders smashed items such as her daughter’s plaster handprint, for no apparent reason. Additionally, they took items she had collected throughout her life, including her deceased father’s watch. She explained to the jury that she no longer felt comfortable with being in her own home.
Hurley’s co-conspirator, Bowman pled guilty to all of his charges back in May 2013. However, Hurley decided to continue to trial. Gerald Arrington stated that, “Mr. Hurley could have accepted responsibility for his actions and asked the Judge to follow the sentencing guidelines that called for 5 years. However, he asked 12 respected members of this community to pass judgment and determine a fair sentence. As I have repeatedly argued to the court during my tenure as Commonwealth’s Attorney, this community is tired of criminals continually breaking into homes and stealing the property and security of their lives. His sentencing is scheduled for August 12, 2015, and I will ask the Court to impose the sentence recommended by the jury.”
According to Arrington, this was not a first offense for Hurley, who had already been convicted for six prior felonies, including Grand Larceny and Breaking and entering in Dickenson County, for theft from D.O.W. Coal Company and Hurley’s sister’s home, while she was at the hospital for cancer treatment.
When asked for comment, Arrington thanked the Buchanan County Sheriff’s Office and their deputies for their investigation of this case.
