VA-AG: Murky information and blurred lines cloud early release reoffender data, color attorney general race

A cohort of Virginia lawmakers are seeking an investigation into whether or not Attorney General Jason Miyares (R) used confidential information provided by the state Department of Corrections in his reelection campaign advertising this year.

The lawmakers’ request, sent in a letter to the Virginia Office of the State Inspector General Sept. 29, stems from campaign ads for Miyares and public events that seek to tie specific reoffenders to Democratic opponent Jay Jones’ past vote in favor of a law that allows inmates to trim their time behind bars.

The letter was signed by Sens. Mamie Locke, D-Hampton, Adam Ebbin, D-Alexandria, and Dels. Marcus Simon, D-Fairfax, Vivian Watts, D-Fairfax and Elizabeth Bennett-Parker, D-Alexandria. Together, they expressed a series of concerns: whether Miyares had access to confidential information and if it violated laws to disclose the details, whether the information sharing was a “use of state resources” for campaign activities, and whether public confidence could be undermined that release decisions and sentence credits are determined by law, “not by political convenience.”

The inclusion of a particular offender’s status, “coupled with the Attorney General’s claims regarding earned sentence credits, suggest information not otherwise available to the public,” the lawmakers wrote. “This position clearly indicated that the information could not be disclosed under the Virginia Freedom of Information Act.”



https://virginiamercury.com/2025/10/31/murky-information-and-blurred-lines-cloud-early-release-reoffender-data-color-attorney-general-race/