Court approves pretrial intervention program for Sen. Blyden

Sen. Marvin Blyden has been approved for a pretrial intervention program that would allow him to avoid criminal conviction for exposing the public to COVID-19, according to documents filed in V.I. Superior Court.

The case began when Blyden went to a concert at Tillett Gardens on St. Thomas on Sept. 18 despite an order from the Health Department to quarantine until Sept. 25, potentially exposing dozens of people to the virus, according to court records.

Blyden was charged on Sept. 24 with one count of “exposure in a public place while infected with a contagious disease,” a violation of the Virgin Islands criminal code. The violation carries a possible $200 fine and up to a year in prison, according to the news release from V.I. Attorney General Denise George.

The Legislature also convened a special Ethics Committee to investigate Blyden’s conduct, and senators voted to sanction him in December. He was suspended for 160 working hours and divested of his position as majority leader.

Blyden admitted to failing to quarantine, according to a statement from the committee, but objected to the sanctions.

In regards to the criminal charge, Blyden filed a pro se motion on April 20 without the assistance of his defense attorney, Dwayne Henry, requesting diversion to a pretrial intervention program.

Blyden wrote that the attorney general agreed to a pretrial diversion program that would include community service with My Brother’s Workshop or the Malik Adam James Foundation Inc., “a non-profit that works with COVID relief efforts.”