CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, Va. — Chesterfield County Commonwealth's Attorney Stacey Davenport spoke publicly to the media for the first time Thursday morning since controversy began mounting over her decision to drop charges against a pastor involved in a sex sting operation.
On the steps of the county courthouse, Davenport read a brief statement to reporters announcing new evidence against John Blanchard has come to light in the past 48 hours.
Blanchard, the pastor of Rock Church in Virginia Beach, was accused by Chesterfield Police of driving more than two hours up to a local hotel to meet a "minor" for prostitution. The "minor" was an undercover detective posing as a 17-year-old sex worker as part of a prostitution operation, police said.
When Blanchard arrived at the hotel, he was met by officers who arrested him. Police charged him with soliciting prostitution from a minor over 16-years-old and using a vehicle to promote prostitution or unlawful sex.
But in the fall, Davenport dismissed the charges against Blanchard saying there was not enough evidence to find him guilty. The move sparked heavy public criticism from Police Chief Jeffrey Katz and State Delegate Tim Anderson, a republican lawmaker representing the Virginia Beach area.
For months, Katz has defended his department's investigation and publicly called on Davenport to offer reasoning for withdrawing charges.
However on Thursday, Davenport revealed new information may now allow the case to move forward. But Davenport said she'd have to remove herself from the case, blaming Katz and Anderson.
“I intend to move the court to appoint a special prosecutor to determine whether this case should now be prosecuted," Davenport said. “Due to the repeated public comments and unfounded political attacks levied upon my office by both Chesterfield County Police Chief Jeffrey Katz and Delegate Tim Anderson, I cannot ethically make any decisions on whether or not this new information should impact future prosecutorial decisions in this matter.”
Chief Katz declined an interview request with CBS 6, but in a written statement, he supported the decision to bring in a special prosecutor and said he has only ever asked Davenport "reasonable questions."
"If Ms. Davenport chooses to frame those questions as a political attack, so be it," Katz said. "The wheels of justice are back in motion."
Still, questions remain as to why Davenport personally involved herself in Blanchard's case and why she believed the original evidence was insufficient. Davenport did not provide those explanations during her announcement to the press Thursday and walked away from reporters without taking questions.
“Because this may once again become a future pending criminal case, I cannot make any further comments on the facts or the circumstances surrounding anything related to this matter," she said.
CBS 6 then went into Davenport's office to ask follow-up questions, but Davenport refused to speak further.
"She doesn't have an answer. She doesn't explain her decisions, and if you don't have a good answer, it's probably best not to get stumbled up by a bunch of reporters," said Delegate Tim Anderson.
Anderson was present for Davenport's announcement Thursday. He said he's glad another prosecutor will be taking an independent look at the case.
"She's never answered the biggest question, which is the question we've asked from the beginning. Why? What was the lack of evidence? What was it? Why did you do this?" Anderson said.
Chesterfield County constituent Traci Franssen said she's been following the Blanchard case closely and watched Davenport's announcement Thursday through a live stream.
“I thought she was going to come out with some answers. People have been asking for some answers, for some light. You work for us," Franssen said. "Tell us what you're doing to work for us. Why did you make these decisions on our behalf? She came out and didn't even answer any questions from the press."
Franssen said she trusts the police department to do its job and is thankful Chief Katz made his concerns public.
However, she said she's worried about the working relationship between Katz and Davenport and if it could impact their efforts to keep Chesterfield as safe as possible.
"The police are one part of the public safety process, and then you need the prosecutor to really drive it home. And they have to work hand in hand, so they need a collaborative relationship to make each other's job go," Franssen said. "And if they're butting heads behind the scenes, and it's even spilling out into public like this, what are the things we don't even know about that they're not working effectively on?"
Franssen added, "We as citizens decide who sits in this seat, and we can make our voices heard in November."
CBS 6 legal analyst Todd Stone said Davenport is making the "responsible" decision by having a judge appoint a special prosecutor. Stone believes it could help repair the relationship between the Commonwealth Attorney's office and the police department.
Chesterfield Police said it cannot elaborate on the new evidence against Blanchard. Police said still to this day, Davenport has offered no information as to why she felt their initial investigation was not prosecutable.
CBS 6 reached out to an attorney for Blanchard for a comment and has not yet heard back.
