Buta Biberaj, who received $860K from Soros-led PAC, joined McAuliffe rally this month
Jessica Chasmar, Fox News
October 17, 2021
The Loudoun County prosecutor who sought jail time against a father who was arrested at a school board meeting after his daughter was allegedly sexually assaulted in a school bathroom has ties to progressive megadonor George Soros and Democratic Virginia gubernatorial nominee Terry McAuliffe.
Loudoun County Commonwealth's Attorney Buta Biberaj was described in the explosive report by The Daily Wire as the "progressive" elected county prosecutor who ran on a platform of ending "mass incarceration," but yet she sought jail time for disorderly conduct and resisting arrest, both misdemeanor charges, against Scott Smith.
Smith was arrested during a June 22 school board meeting several weeks after he says his daughter was raped by a gender-fluid student in a school bathroom. The student, a 15-year-old boy, was charged in that case with two counts of forcible sodomy and later arrested. He was then fitted with an ankle monitor and transferred to another school in Ashburn, where he was accused of committing another sexual assault against another female student in October.
Biberaj told Fox 5 on Friday the decision to transfer the student to a different school came because he didn't have a prior history of such behavior at the time, and she asked the public to "be patient" and refrain from judgment until "all the facts" in the case come to light.
Meanwhile, Smith's attorney has announced plans to sue the school district over its handling of the case and his own arrest at the school board meeting. He was sentenced in that case to 10 days in jail, all suspended, contingent on a year of good behavior.
According to The Daily Wire, Biberaj appeared in court to personally prosecute Smith, despite knowing the details of the case involving his daughter. Smith's attorney Elizabeth Lancaster told the outlet that she's known Biberaj for "years" and was shocked when the charges against Smith weren't dropped.
"The idea that they would actually be seeking jail time, I'd guess in my 15 years the number of times I've seen that happen would be zero," Lancaster said. "The idea that this is a person who we need to put in a cage was astounding to me given the social justice reform she was pushing. I was blown away."
The Daily Wire's article appears to suggest Biberaj's motives for prosecuting the case are political, claiming she is "known for leniency and alternatives to incarceration" in other cases. She came under fire earlier this month for dismissing of hundreds of domestic violence cases after an accused wife-beater out on bond allegedly murdered his wife with a hammer. An advocacy group called Virginians for Safe Communities is leading a recall effort against Biberaj because of that case, the Washington Free Beacon reported.
Biberaj did not immediately respond to Fox News' request for comment.
Biberaj was one of several Soros-backed prosecutors elected in Northern Virginia in 2019 after her campaign received more than $860,000 from Soros' Justice and Public Safety PAC. She is a criminal reform advocate and member of a group of the commonwealth's attorneys called Virginia Progressive Prosecutors for Justice, which calls for eliminating mandatory minimum sentences and cash bail.
Biberaj is also a close ally with McAuliffe, who reportedly accepted a $250,000 contribution from Soros for his campaign in August. Biberaj, who has praised McAulliffe as being "part of the progress" that Virginia needs, joined the former Democratic governor as recently as Oct. 2 at a campaign event in Leesburg.
McAuliffe, who is running against Republican gubernatorial nominee Glenn Youngkin, has previously praised Biberaj as a "champion" for criminal justice reform. He fundraised and campaigned for her in 2019, saying she would bring "real criminal justice reform" to Virginia.
McAuliffe's campaign did not immediately respond to Fox News' request for comment.
Posts
