PORTSMOUTH, Va. — The jury trial against a former Portsmouth police officer came to an abrupt end on Wednesday, after the judge tossed out the case.
H. Thomas Padrick, Jr., a retired judge from Virginia Beach who presided over this week's proceedings in Portsmouth, dismissed the voluntary manslaughter charge against Vincent McClean.
After prosecutors rested their case Wednesday, McClean's defense team motioned to strike. From the start, they argued the evidence does not support the charge. Judge Padrick agreed.
It was the second trial for McClean, a retired Portsmouth police officer. He was previously acquitted on a separate manslaughter charge last year. In this latest case, he had been accused in the death of a 28-year-old pregnant woman.
Carmeita Vangilder died at the Portsmouth city jail on December 13, 2018.
Before the case was thrown out, members of the jury watched footage capturing the aftermath of Vangilder's arrest from McClean's body camera and car. Jurors saw her cough periodically and ask for water at least five times.
On nearly all of those occasions, McClean answered Vangilder – saying she would have to wait until they got Downtown because he didn't have water in the cruiser.
In an interview with Virginia State Police special agents, McClean said he found Vangilder with a bag of cans for compressed air.
During opening statements, one of McClean's attorneys said, "In this tragic case, this woman was huffing and it caused her heart to be unable to pump blood." The defense attorneys argued the evidence in this case does not show an intentional killing.
Meanwhile, prosecutors argue McClean did not properly take care of Vangilder while she allegedly displayed behaviors requiring police to respond. During opening statements a prosecutor said, "the officer did not protect and serve."
Judge Padrick believes the evidence presented by prosecutors wasn't enough to rise to the matter of voluntary manslaughter or involuntary manslaughter.
"You have to prove that the actions of the defendant killed the person, but both of their experts say that she died as a result of the huffing and her heart failure," said Michael Massie, one of McClean's attorneys. "So, how did he kill her?"
Two forensic pathology experts, including the medical examiner who performed Vangilder's autopsy, testified in court on Wednesday morning. They said Vangilder's cause of death was from heart failure as a result of huffing.
Both believe chronic substance abuse also contributed to Vangilder's death. The two, however, conflicted on whether "recent cocaine use" was a factor.
Then-officer McClean arrested Vangilder at a Walmart parking lot, after discovering she had an outstanding warrant and wouldn't exit a Samaritan's car.
Police found her with five seemingly empty cans of compressed air, attorneys said in court.
Prosecutors alleged McClean ignored warning signs of medical issues.
"Any reasonable person would say, 'well, let's go get you checked out at the hospital.' I feel like the judge stepped in. I think he was afraid the jury was actually going to find him guilty," said Michelle Vangilder, Carmeita Vangilder's mother.
Michelle believes justice was lost for her daughter nicknamed Carly. She described Carly as a vibrant young lady.
"She had so many wonderful things to offer, but the court system also failed her," said Michelle. "She had 50-some arrests and yet every time for those drug arrests, they let her walk away. Instead of somebody really caring and saying 'Holy crap, 50 arrests? There's something wrong with this young lady. Let's get her the help she needs.' They released her and released her and released her."
During the trial, jurors were not allowed to be privy to the fact the Vangilder family was awarded more than $500,000 in a wrongful death lawsuit filed against the City of Portsmouth in 2019.
"Once again, the court system failed us," Michelle added.
Before announcing his ruling to dismiss, Judge Padrick referred to backseat police cruiser footage viewed by the jury. That was a video in which Vangilder appeared to cough, throw up multiple times and ask for water. At one point, she said, "I don't feel good."
The judge believes Vanguilder looked generally calm in the footage. "She didn't look like she was dying to me," said Padrick.
Additionally, he questioned how a police officer would know Vangilder was having a medical crisis.
McClean didn't speak too much following the judge's ruling. Though, he described it to reporters as a "great moment."
"This thing has disrupted my life and put my family in a tailspin financially and lots of nights crying because of this incident and it was all because I did my job," McClean said. "I'm sorry about what happened, but as I said, I was just doing my job."
Last July, a jury found McClean not guilty of voluntary manslaughter for the 2018 death of Willie Marable. In both that case and the case on trial this week, the central issue was whether McClean provided the necessary medical aid.
"We're going to look for some level of vindication for him in a civil lawsuit," said Massie.
Massie said McClean's legal team plans to file two multi-million-dollar lawsuits by the end of this week on behalf of McClean and his family; one for the 2023 case and another for the case dismissed Wednesday.
McClean’s legal team — comprised of Massie, Nathan Chapman and Don Scott — described what happened as “malicious prosecution.” Scott, who is an attorney by profession, also currently serves as Virginia’s Speaker of the House.
Meanwhile, the Portsmouth Commonwealth's Attorney's Office issued 13News Now the following statement: "Just as this office respected the grand jury's decision to issue an indictment in this matter, this office also acknowledges the court process. Although the court did not allow the jurors to exercise their civic duty as the fact finders of this case, it must be noted that the medical attention and care of those experiencing medical emergencies in custody should be paramount. Citizens should have a reasonable expectation of safety while in custody. This office appreciates the hard work of officers daily as public servants to ensure safety in our city but we will also never hesitate to demand accountability. Our thoughts remain with Carly Vanguilder's family."
The Fraternal Order of Police Gosport Lodge #20 also released a statement late Thursday, expressing support for Judge Padrick's ruling. It stated, in part:
"Hopefully with this decision, Officer McClean can finally rest in his retirement, secure in the knowledge that he gave his best to the City of Portsmouth in the service of its citizens. ... As an organization, we hope that it has become abundantly clear that there appears to be some sort of baseless vendetta from the Commonwealth Attorney’s Office for the City of Portsmouth against Portsmouth Police Officers ... we hope that our collective focus and efforts can move past the meritless prosecution of the men and women tasked with protecting the city, and return to the successful prosecution and conviction of those that would prey on its citizens."
On Friday, the Portsmouth Office of the Commonwealth's Attorney released a statement in response to the Fraternal Order of Police:
"The Portsmouth Commonwealth's Attorney's Office prides itself on its commitment to fairness and equity for all. In the event complaints of harm against any community member are brought forward, accountability is sought, no matter who is on the other end of the complaint, including law enforcement. It is a matter of integrity that law enforcement officers are not exempt from the same legal process our community members are subject to. That said, this office has nothing but respect for all law enforcement officers who also serve fairly and equitably in discharging their duties and any statement to the contrary is unequivocally false. This office will continue to work together with our law enforcement partners to in service of our community."