What is the Crime Commission and Who is this Guy?

The Virginia State Crime Commission (VCSS) is a group of 13 individuals that includes mostly members of the Virginia Senate and House of Delegates. This commission will set the tone on changes to the criminal code when lawmakers will meet in Richmond this upcoming January. Additionally, the Governor of Virginia gets to appoint three members to participate in the recommendations that the VCSS will make.

On Wednesday the VSCC meet and heard presentations on the topic of driving under the influence of alcohol and drugs. It was a typical boring government meeting except for a people like me who follow Virginia politics. Speaker of the House of Delegates Todd Gilbert, President Pro Temp of the Senate Louise Lucas, and the last two chairs of the Courts of Justice Committee Rob Bell and Charniele Herring were in attendance. It was like a Pro Bowl of Virginia Lawmakers that were pulling each other aside and whispering to each other.

However the person that caught my attention was an appointee from Governor Youngkin, Assistant Commonwealth Attorney Robert Tracci. Full disclosure, Tracci and I go back when I was assaulted by neo-Nazi Christopher Cantwell on August 11th, 2017 at the University of Virginia Rotunda during Unite the Right. Robert Tracci was the Commonwealth Attorney of Albemarle County. (For those unfamiliar, UVA is in Albemarle County and Commonwealth Attorney is the Virginia term for District Attorney.)

My personal experience with Robert Tracci is not good. When I was a victim of a white nationalist mob in one of the darkest moments in modern American history but I did not feel secure with Tracci looking out for me. When I was sued by Cantwell in one of the dumbest lawsuits, that's when I had to start taking this serious and it was not a routine case. I did not feel that Tracci was interested in treating me as the victim of deliberate and overt political violence from a gang of fascists.

With all that unpleasantness behind me, now I get to share Tracci's second greatest blunder. His first greatest blunder? I'll save that story for another day.

On January 31, 2018 a train collided with a garbage truck that was did not see oncoming train most likely because of a malfunctioning crossing sign. Tragically the passager of the truck died in that crash. Tracci unsuccessfully prosecuted the driver for a DUI and involuntary manslaughter because the driver had THC level that Tracci felt impaired the driver. After his defeat in court, Tracci immediately began a campaign to change the law that would make driving with a per se limit on driving with THC in Virginia.

There's one other important detail of this crash, the train was carrying dozens of Congressional Republicans including (the then) Speaker of the House Paul Ryan. This was supposed to Tracci's major victory to score political points but he failed. Tracci would go on to lose his reelection and that's why he is now an Assistant Commonwealth Attorney in Louisa County.

Wednesday’s meeting was a rehash of Tracci's losing fight. Upset that he lost his case against. He contradicted the statements from Toxicology Program Manager James Hutchings of the Virginia Department of Forensic Science who has been with the DFS since 2010 when Republican Bob McDonell was Governor of Virginia so I better not hear any claims like he is a Terry McAuliffe deep state plant.

This is dangerous and ignorant attempt at policymaking from Tracci. Testing THC levels of drivers won't reduce driving fatalities (which has the two leading causes of distracted driving and alcohol impairment.)

If there is any consolation, Senate Democrat Scott Surovell was prepared to push back against Tracci. THC can be detected from 1 to 30 days. THC blood limits in drivers could criminalize marijuana users from even driving sober.