Earlier this week, the governor of Virginia granted Matthew Rushin, a Black man diagnosed with autism, a conditional pardon after he was sentenced to 10 years in prison for his involvement in two car crashes in early 2019.
Last January, Rushin, 22, was driving to a Virginia Beach Panera to buy pastries when he collided with a moving vehicle in the parking lot and fled. As he left, he drove head-on into traffic, striking another vehicle and seriously wounding two people. After police arrived, Rushin immediately admitted to attempted suicide and in court, pled guilty to “two counts of malicious wounding and one count of hit and run, personal injury.” As a result, Rushin was sentenced to 50 years in prison before 40 years were suspended from the initial sentence; the typical penalty for a hit-and-run that results in an injury in the state of Virginia is a fine of $2,500 or less and up to 5 years in prison.
However, Rushin’s family and members of the autism community did advocate for his release, as they believed he was denied proper accommodations, and his communication needs were not considered.
His mother, Lavern Rushin, maintains that the crash was unintentional and was not malicious, and she believes that her son was wrongfully convicted.
“It’s a terrible feeling to know that it wasn’t an intentional crash and he’s innocent,” Lavern said. “He’s sitting there enduring what he’s enduring.”
Camille Proctor, the founder and executive director of The Color of Autism Foundation, an organization that supports and educates African American families with autistic youth, stated that Rushin and others with disabilities are often slighted in their encounters with police.
“They see a Black person, they see a Latinx person, they see a brown person and they begin to make judgments and they move forward with their biases,” Proctor said.
After months of advocating for his release, Virginia Governor Ralph Norton adjusted Rushin’s sentence, setting the pace for him to be freed by next spring.
“Mr. Rushin was sentenced for 50 years, despite sentencing guidelines that call for a sentence of 2 years 7 months up to 6 years 4 months,” Alena Yarmosky said. “Governor Northam’s conditional pardon aligns Mr. Rushin’s sentence with these sentencing guidelines.”
Per the pardon, Rushin will have to agree to several guidelines before he can be released. The conditions of his pardon include supervised probation for 5 years, mandatory counseling and treatment, an evaluation of substance abuse, forfeiting his right to drive and right to own a firearm, and avoiding contact with those involved in the accidents.
While the conditions of his pardon might seem severe in comparison to other hit-and-run charges, the family perceives the governor’s revision of Rushin’s sentence as a step towards disproving his innocence.
“Today, we are thankful that Governor Northam granted Matthew Rushin’s pardon in an expeditious manner,” Lavern Rushin said. “This is the first step in proving that Matthew did not have malicious intent.”