VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Online court records show the attorney for Virginia Beach Pastor John Blanchard, who was accused of attempted solicitation of a minor, filed a motion on December 12 to expunge his criminal records.
Chesterfield County police say Blanchard was one of 17 people arrested as part of a two-day sting operation in October 2021. He was charged with felony solicitation of prostitution with underage people in Chesterfield, Virginia.
Investigators said they communicated undercover with Blanchard and the others on social media, pretending to be underage girls advertising prostitution. All 17 who were charged had arranged to meet with someone whom they thought was underage and was soliciting sex, and when they arrived, officers arrested them.
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Then, during a preliminary hearing in October 2022, the Chesterfield County prosecutor told a judge the case would be nolle pros. That means the charges were dropped for now, but they could be refiled at a later date if prosecutors feel they have enough evidence against Blanchard to move forward.
However, the Chesterfield Commonwealth's Attorney's Office remarked on December 29 in court records that they had "no objection" to the request to expunge criminal records in Blanchard's case.
This means that if Blanchard is arrested in the future, a judge cannot take his previous arrest into consideration.
Local attorney and legal analyst, Ed Booth, said while the order is meant to clear or seal the records, it doesn't stop prosecutors from bringing those charges back if they find more evidence.
"It makes it so that anyone who goes and looks for the criminal record, you won't see any evidence of that charge," said Booth. "In this particular instance, an expungement is not necessarily a barge from future prosecution if that were something that was even considered. Really, they're two separate things."
While Blanchard stepped down from pastoral duties during court proceedings, he has since resumed his position at Rock Church International in Virginia Beach.
13News Now has filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to get more information from the documents filed to expunge Blanchard's record and has reached out to the Chesterfield Commonwealth's Attorney's Office for comment on the motion.
As of Thursday evening, the Chesterfield County Circuit Court Clerk said the expungement is not yet finalized because the office is still waiting on a response from the judge handling this request.
Chesterfield County Police Chief Col. Jeffrey Katz sent 13News Now the following statement regarding Blanchard's case:
"Although I find the evidence in this case compelling, I’m not saying that Pastor Blanchard is guilty…or innocent, nor have I become preoccupied with any of the rhetoric surrounding why this case was nolle prossed.
However, I think it is concerning that despite the fact we’ve done 10 solicitation operations - netting 70 defendants - since Pastor Blanchard’s arrest we have received no technical guidance or feedback with respect to how this case fell short of our CA's prosecutorial expectations. In fact, I actually learned of this nolle prosse via Facebook.
The sealing of all records surrounding this investigation leaves my staff and I no better informed and denies our community the opportunity to draw reasonable inferences and calculate potential risks within their best judgment. Matters of such dispute should be argued in a court of law, amidst due process rights, and within the rules of evidence. Locking away all records associated with this investigation does nothing to establish guilt OR innocence. It just buries reasonable questions. Questions that merit answers for all involved."