Virginia man chooses vasectomy over longer prison term
A 27-year-old Virginia man has agreed to get a vasectomy as part of a plea deal in a child endangerment case.
The June 4 plea deal for Jessie Lee Herald shaves up to five years off his prison sentence, report the Northern Virginia Daily, the Associated Press and the Washington Post. He was sentenced to a year and eight months in prison, and will have to get the vasectomy within a year of his release. He cannot reverse the operation during the five years of probation following his prison sentence.
Herald has at least seven children by at least six women, according to Shenandoah County assistant prosecutor Ilona White. “He needs to be able to support the children he already has when he gets out” of prison, she told AP.
Herald pleaded guilty to child endangerment, hit-and-run driving, and driving on a suspended license in connection with a Dec. 23 car crash. Police said Herald’s 3-year-old son was traveling with him at the time of the accident. The boy was treated for minor injuries.
