'Technical violation'? Spanberger's board paroles Norfolk man convicted in 2023 of raping a child

Gov. Abigail Spanberger's parole board has voted to release Clarence Eugene Billups, convicted of rape, including the 2023 rape of a child under 13 in Norfolk, according to the board's own September 2026 decisions report.

The board's September report lists Billups, 71, as granted under dual eligibility, with a decision date of Sept. 11 and certification on Sept. 14. His record shows two rape convictions in Norfolk Circuit Court dated June 18, 1992, each carrying 35 years with 10 suspended; a Parole Board violation entry dated March 21, 2023, carrying 23 years, 5 months and 29 days; and a Norfolk Circuit Court conviction dated April 14, 2023, for rape of a victim under 13, with a 10-year sentence and 9 years and 9 months suspended. The report estimates his total time served at 29 years, 6 months and 6 days. The minutes say he was considered for discretionary parole and geriatric conditional release.

The Washington Examiner reported Oct. 7 that parole records show Billups "was convicted in 2023 of raping the child while out on parole for two prior rape convictions." This newsroom found no contemporaneous news coverage of the underlying offenses, and the board record does not give the date of the 2023 offense. In keeping with this newsroom's policy, no victim is identified.

The rest of the record: The record shows two 1992 rape convictions, a 2023 parole violation and the 2023 child-rape conviction. In September 2023, the board under Gov. Glenn Youngkin denied Billups discretionary parole, saying, "Your prior failure(s) and/or convictions while under community supervision indicate that you are unlikely to comply with conditions of release," according to that month's decisions report.

Why the board says he should go free: The board's listed reasons were no victim opposition, demonstrated rehabilitation, a medical condition, release being compatible with public safety, clear acceptance of responsibility, excellent institutional adjustment, a stable release plan, correctional and vocational programming, a low risk-assessment score, a "severe long-term disability that limits daily functioning" and infraction-free conduct since incarceration.

The Sept. 10 minutes record a 4-0 vote. The board's Victim Services team said "the two victims are okay with his release" but asked that Billups stay away from them and their families. Vice Chair Kecia Brothers Hayes said the prosecuting attorney supports release. Board Member Valerie Boykin and Chair Shannon Dion each said they concluded that "three years is enough time to serve on a technical violation." The minutes do not explain why the members described the violation as technical when the record lists a 2023 conviction.

To be fair to the board, every reason quoted above comes from its own record, and the four members present explained their votes on the record at the Sept. 10 meeting. The question for voters is whether those reasons outweigh what the court ordered, what the record shows about his past, and what victims told the board.

What the numbers say about Norfolk: Violent crime in Norfolk has improved over the past decade, according to the state's own figures. The Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services, using Virginia State Police data, reported 389.7 violent index crimes per 100,000 residents in Norfolk in 2025, against 671.7 in 2016, down 42%. Property crime stood at 3,050.6 per 100,000 in 2025, down 24% from 4,011.4. For comparison, the statewide violent crime rate was 210.5 per 100,000 in 2025, and the median Virginia locality came in at 172.9, according to the August 2026 DCJS report. DCJS cautions that the figures are subject to revision.

This is what Democratic control of the parole board looks like. Gov. Abigail Spanberger, a Democrat, appointed every one of the five members of the board, replacing the board she inherited, and the Democratic-led General Assembly confirmed them in Senate Joint Resolution 209 in March. Her chair, Shannon Dion, was previously named director of the Department of Criminal Justice Services by Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam. Board member Tyrone Nelson has run for the Henrico Board of Supervisors as a Democrat. The four members who voted on Sept. 10 were Dion, Vice Chair Kecia Brothers Hayes, Nelson and Valerie Boykin; Bishop Kevin White was absent, according to the minutes. None of that means the governor personally ordered any individual release; the board votes, and the record shows how each member voted. But the governor picks the board, and by law its members serve at the governor's pleasure. Statewide, a Washington Examiner analysis found Spanberger's board had a 13.89% release rate in 2026, more than 10 times the 1.23% rate under Youngkin's board in 2025, and WJLA 7News counted 48 grants in 205 discretionary and geriatric cases since May, about 23%; in September alone, the board granted 7 of 85 cases, about 8.2%.

Parole is not the end of a sentence. The board can revoke it, and in September it revoked parole in two cases. The board's report does not say when Billups will walk out or where he will live, questions Norfolk residents are entitled to ask.

Norfolk is an independent city in Hampton Roads.

Email the Norfolk Board/Council:
Kenneth Alexander, mayor@norfolk.gov,
Martin Thomas, martin.thomas@norfolk.gov,
Courtney Doyle, courtney.doyle@norfolk.gov,
Mamie Johnson, mamie.johnson@norfolk.gov,
John Paige, john.paige@norfolk.gov,
Thomas Smigiel, thomas.smigiel@norfolk.gov,
Jeremy McGee, jeremy.mcgee@norfolk.gov,
Carlos Clanton, carlos.clanton@norfolk.gov,

Email the Henrico County Board/Council:
Dan Schmitt, brookland@henrico.gov,
Roscoe Cooper III, fairfield@henrico.gov,
Misty Roundtree, threechopt@henrico.gov,
Jody Rogish, tuckahoe@henrico.gov,
Tyrone Nelson, varina@henrico.gov,