Car break-in suspect in Church Hill was shot at six times

The man charged with killing a car break-in suspect in Church Hill fired two shots, then chased him and fired four more times, according to courtroom testimony in Richmond yesterday.

After hearing the testimony, a Richmond General District Court substitute judge certified to a grand jury charges of second-degree murder and use of a firearm in a felony against Eric G. Driver, 25. Judge Janipher W. Robinson said the grand jury will hear the case July 6.

Driver, of the 500 block of North 22nd Street, is charged with the April 22 shooting death of Jamall Holman, 24, of the 1700 block of Forest Glen Road in Henrico County.

The case has sparked an extensive public debate about how far people should be allowed to go to defend themselves and their property.

At yesterday's hearing, the prosecutor handling the case said it was a clear case of Driver overstepping his legal boundaries.

"Virginia law is clear: You cannot use deadly force to defend property," Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Thomas L. Johnson Jr. said.

Johnson said that after Driver's girlfriend was startled by a masked Holman breaking into her car near North 22nd and East Leigh streets, Driver should have called police instead of confronting Holman.

Instead, Johnson said, Driver not only confronted Holman and shot at him twice, he also chased Holman and fired four more times. Autopsy results indicate Holman was struck three times, Johnson said.

Defense attorney John W. Luxton said Driver merely reacted instinctively after his girlfriend was frightened and thought she was in danger.

Johnson called three witnesses, including a Church Hill resident who was walking his two dogs in a nearby alley that afternoon when he heard two gunshots. Daniel Manza said that when he turned in the direction of the shots, he saw one person chasing someone and then firing four shots from a distance of 5 to 10 feet.

Manza stayed in the alley, called 911 and waited for police.

James Peck, the first Richmond police officer on the scene, said he encountered Driver coming up Leigh Street and pulled over to speak with him.

Peck said Driver told him: "The dude just tried to break into my girlfriend's car, and I've got a gun."

Driver initially made no mention of Holman possibly having a gun, but he later claimed Holman was armed, Peck said.

David E. Burt, the lead investigator in the case, said numerous detectives and officers searched the area several times and called in a gun-sniffing dog, which also made two sweeps of the area the day of the shooting. Two days later, city public-utilities crews drained and checked the storm sewers in the neighborhood.

"No firearm was found at that time, either," Burt testified.

Luxton, who called no witnesses, said Driver felt like he was fighting for his life. Luxton suggested a lesser charge of manslaughter might be more appropriate.

But Johnson said Driver had established the intent needed to prove second-degree murder by chasing Holman after firing two shots and then firing four more times.

"The initial confrontation, that should have been the end of it," Johnson said.

Contact Joe Macenka at (804) 649-6804 or .