In a peculiar incident that has raised eyebrows, a senior prosecutor under the employ of George Soros-backed Virginia Commonwealth's Attorney Steve Descano (D.
) found himself in hot water after being cited for public drinking.
The episode unfolded earlier this month when Eric Clingan, a senior assistant commonwealth's attorney in Fairfax County, was discovered by police consuming beer outside an animal hospital at the early hour of 8 a.m.
According to The Washington Free Beacon, Clingan was issued a court summons for the misdemeanor offense of drinking alcohol in public, classified as a Class 4 misdemeanor. The situation came to light on August 8, when Fairfax police responded to a call from an animal hospital employee.
The employee reported a man "drinking beer and smoking cigarettes" in a nearby parking lot, as revealed by dispatch audio obtained by 7News. The employee further noted that Clingan "is there almost every day."
This incident adds to a series of controversies surrounding Descano's office. The commonwealth's attorney has been under scrutiny for his association with left-wing billionaire George Soros, who has been known to fund various contentious causes.
Soros's Justice and Public Safety PAC notably contributed over half a million dollars to Descano's 2019 campaign, aiding his victory over a seasoned 35-year prosecutor in the Democratic primary.
In 2020, Descano issued a policy memo advising assistant commonwealth's attorneys to pursue misdemeanor charges instead of felonies when feasible. This directive was followed by a controversial decision from Descano's office to downgrade felony charges against Gerald Brevard III, who faced serious accusations of abduction and burglary.
The reduction in charges allowed Brevard to be released after serving a mere five months in prison. Tragically, Brevard was later indicted for a series of violent crimes, including the murder of two homeless men and the injury of three others in a shooting spree along the East Coast.
Descano's approach to law enforcement has been criticized for being lenient on crime. Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin (R.) recently urged Attorney General Jason Miyares (R.) to investigate Descano's repeated failures to prosecute violent offenders. This call to action was prompted by a video showing a man with a significant criminal history attempting to abduct a toddler at a mall.
"Steve Descano's record here is a broken one, and it repeats over and over again," remarked Sean Kennedy, President of Virginians for Safe Communities, to 7News. "Victims are discarded. The law is ignored, and at the end of the day, public safety is imperiled."
Clingan, who joined Descano's team in October 2021, has been involved in some of Fairfax County's most high-profile cases. He is currently the lead prosecutor in the "Au Pair affair" double murder trial, slated for October.
Following the citation, Descano's office informed 7News that Clingan is "on leave to focus on a personal matter." This development adds another layer of complexity to the ongoing scrutiny of Descano's prosecutorial practices and their implications for public safety.
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