BY KEITH EPPS
An appeals court decision overturning his previous convictions has paid off for 70-year-old James Edward Jones.
A Stafford County Circuit Court jury yesterday convicted Jones of unlawful wounding and carrying a concealed weapon. But it gave Jones no prison time and imposed only a $3,000 fine, meaning he will not have to return to prison.
The jury was not aware that Jones had been convicted before and served time.
Jones, who shot a neighbor in a dispute involving burning stumps and chopping wood, had served 19 months of a five-year sentence he got from another jury in April 2006.
But the state Court of Appeals overturned the convictions, saying the judge in Jones' first trial should have allowed the jury to view a taped interview Jones had with a Stafford detective. The tape was played during this trial.
The shooting occurred on Sept. 25, 2005, on River Ridge Lane in western Stafford.
Jones and his neighbor at the time, Michael Finnegan, got into a heated dispute over Finnegan's outdoor activities. They hadn't gotten along for some time.
The two agreed to meet at the end of the road to settle the issue physically, according to Finnegan's testimony. Jones then shot Finnegan, now 47, in the stomach with a .40-caliber pistol.
Jones has claimed all along that Finnegan was charging at him and he shot in self-defense. Finnegan testified that he was at least 35 feet away when he was shot.
While they dispute the details, both men agree that their problems should have never gone so far.
"We were two stupid men who acted like kids," Jones said yesterday. "And we both paid a big price."
The two shook hands yesterday and Finnegan said he accepted Jones' apology.
A number of witnesses, including an FBI agent and a doctor, got on the stand yesterday in support of Jones. Most of the witnesses know him from the boxing gym he runs in Falls Church and described Jones as a great friend and encourager.
Prosecutor Eric Olsen said that while he didn't dispute what the defense witnesses said, Jones still deserved a "significant" prison sentence. He said it was important to the country's system of justice that Jones pay for what he did.
Defense attorney Mark Gardner, speaking to the jury, scoffed at what he described as Olsen's notion that "the whole nation is going to crumble if you don't send this 70-year-old man to jail."
After the jury's sentence was read, Jones' son stood and began clapping loudly. He quickly stopped as he was reprimanded by Judge J. Martin Bass.
Keith Epps: 540/374-5404
Email: kepps@freelancestar.com