Lewis v. Commonwealth, 295 Va. 454

Background

Lewis lived with Pamela McDavid; police were summoned after two separate domestic incidents: October 9, 2015 (pushing/neck hold, split lip) and December 23, 2015 (slapping causing visible injury).
A grand jury originally indicted Lewis for felony assault and battery of a family/household member for both incidents under Va. Code § 18.2-57.2(B) (felony if defendant "has been previously convicted" twice within 20 years).
Commonwealth amended the October count to a misdemeanor before trial; Lewis joined the amendment and was tried first on the October misdemeanor by the bench and the court found him guilty on May 5, 2016 (sentencing deferred).
Immediately after, Lewis was arraigned and tried on the December offense as a felony; the Commonwealth relied on the 2011 Newport News conviction and the court’s May 5 finding of guilt as the two predicate convictions.
The circuit court (1) took judicial notice of the misdemeanor finding from the earlier trial that day and (2) denied Lewis’s motions to strike that the December indictment required two prior convictions existing before the December offense and that the October finding was not yet a "conviction." The court convicted Lewis of the felony; the Court of Appeals affirmed and the Virginia Supreme Court granted review.

Issues

Issue	Lewis's Argument	Commonwealth's Argument	Held
When must predicate convictions exist for § 18.2-57.2(B) felony charging?	Statute requires the two prior convictions to exist before the December offense was committed.	The statute requires the indictment to allege prior convictions and those convictions must exist at the time of indictment; proof at trial must be beyond a reasonable doubt.	The court: convictions must exist at time of indictment (for probable cause) and be proven at trial; not necessarily before the later offense was committed.
What constitutes a "conviction" for use as a predicate under § 18.2-57.2(B)?	A conviction requires both adjudication of guilt and imposition of sentence (written judgment entry).	A conviction occurs when the court formally adjudicates guilt (finding the defendant guilty); entry of a written order and sentencing are separate.	The court: a formal adjudication (court finding the defendant guilty) is a conviction for § 18.2-57.2(B); sentencing is not required.
Does absence of an entered written judgment at trial prevent using that adjudication as a predicate conviction?	Yes — courts speak only through written orders, and the written conviction order postdated the felony trial.	No — rendition (oral adjudication) is the judicial act; entry is memorialization and need not preclude proving the conviction by other evidence.	The court: the oral adjudication (and later memorializing order) sufficed; the written order merely memorialized the May 5 judgment.
Did the Commonwealth prove two predicate convictions beyond a reasonable doubt at the felony trial?	Contended insufficient because October conviction was not yet "entered" at time of trial.	Proven: 2011 Newport News certified conviction plus the circuit court’s guilty adjudication earlier that day.	The court: Commonwealth met its burden; the felony conviction was properly predicated on the two convictions.

Key Cases Cited

Belew v. Commonwealth, 284 Va. 173 (clarifying de novo review of statutory interpretation)
Smith v. Commonwealth, 134 Va. 589 (1922) (distinguishing verdict from judgment of conviction)
Moreau v. Fuller, 276 Va. 127 (holding finding evidence sufficient is distinct from rendition of judgment)
Hernandez v. Commonwealth, 281 Va. 222 (confirming trial court may defer disposition; finding sufficient ≠ judgment)
Starrs v. Commonwealth, 287 Va. 1 (guilty plea supplies evidence but a judgment is required to fix sentencing constraints)
Jefferson v. Commonwealth, 269 Va. 136 (distinguishing rendition of judgment from entry on records)
Palmer v. Commonwealth, 269 Va. 203 (Commonwealth bears burden to prove prior conviction as element)