Ex-Fairfax Police Officer's Gun Charge Conviction Upheld By Judge

FAIRFAX COUNTY, VA — A judge has upheld a former Fairfax County police officer's conviction in the shooting death of a Black man accused of stealing a pair of designer sunglasses from Nordstrom at Tysons Corner Center.

In October, a jury convicted Wesley Shifflett, 36, of reckless discharge of a firearm in the death of Timothy McCree Johnson. Shifflett was found not guilty of involuntary manslaughter.

Two months later, defense attorneys asked a judge to set aside the verdict. On Tuesday, Judge Randy Bellows denied the request and upheld the conviction.

“This case is about Timothy Johnson, a member of our community who lost his life... But this case is also about fairness, who the law protects, and who the justice system works for," Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano said in a statement. "We still have work to do, but this ruling is proof that institutions can evolve if people in power choose the right path — even if that right path is the harder one."

Johnson, 37, was shot and killed on Feb. 22, 2023, in a wooded area near the shopping mall after a foot chase and orders by officers to get on the ground, according to police. He was taken by medics to an area hospital, where he died.

An officer saw Johnson leaving Nordstrom near a parking garage. As he left the store, an anti-theft alarm was activated, police said. The suspect then ran through the parking garage, across the parking lot and into a wooded area while the officers gave him repeated commands to get on the ground, according to police.

Two police officers fired their guns, according to police, striking Johnson in the chest one time.

Shifflett was indicted by a special grand jury in October 2023.

Throughout the trial, Shifflett's lawyers argued that he was simply doing his job when he fired twice at Johnson, according to a Washington Post report. Lawyers said Shifflett also believed he saw Johnson reaching for his waistband.

Meanwhile, prosecutors portrayed Shifflett as a man who made a reckless decision with lethal consequences, the Post reported.