A man described as polite, responsible, respectful and caring by friends and family was sentenced Thursday for robbing a 71-year-old man.
Quinton Fields Jr., a 26-year-old James City County man who previously attended Lafayette High School, entered an Alford plea for a felony count of robbery in November.
An Alford plea means Fields conceded the evidence would have been sufficient to find him guilty had he gone to trial.
He was sentenced Thursday to 30 years in prison with 15 years suspended.
His father, his grandmother, his reverend and his friend’s mother all testified they were surprised when they heard Fields had been accused of breaking into a man’s home in Yorktown Square apartments, assaulting him in his bed and robbing him Feb. 20.
“I just don’t see Quinton doing something like this,” his friend’s mother, who has been close with him since he was 17 years old, said at Fields’ hearing Thursday.
Fields’ attorney Amy VanFossen said Fields’ mother turned him in to authorities.
Fields testified he was cooperative with deputies from the York-Poquoson Sheriff’s Office, noting authorities did not interview several others who were around the victim’s apartment during the incident.
“I had no other choice but to [take responsibility for the robbery,]” Fields said.
In 2009, Fields received a suspended sentence for distributing marijuana in Williamsburg.
He was convicted of unlawful wounding in Williamsburg in 2010 and was sentenced to five years with all but seven months suspended.
“Mr. Fields is good at hiding his criminal behavior,” said York-Poquoson Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney Jeremy Markle. “This is the kind of behavior that he participates in.”
Fields’ attorney VanFossen said none of the DNA collected from the crime scene — including shoeprints on the kicked-in front door and Fields’ clothes — returned with a match on Fields.
She said there were “holes in the case” and it would have been difficult to prosecute the case based on the lack of evidence against Fields.
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