Source. Virginia DCIS + CIS, 2025 Methodology Report a correction Last refreshed May 2, 2026
Cases of record · 202574

Donna Murphy appeared as defense counsel of record in 74 Virginia court cases during 2025, drawn from Virginia District and Circuit Court Information Systems.

Court level
82 % District · 18 % Circuit
Primary jurisdiction
Arlington County · 35 cases
Most common charge
DUI / DWI · 9

Across 47 resolved 2025 cases, 74% were dropped — 22 nolle prossed and 13 dismissed.

Case outcomes

Resolved cases — 47 of 74. "Resolved" means a final disposition was reached. Pending cases and probation revocations are excluded.

Convicted of original charge
6
13%
Dropped
35
74%
Nolle prossed
22
Dismissed
13
Reduced to a lesser charge
5
11%
To Improper Driving
1
Within charge family
4
Acquitted
1
2%

Outcomes use strict definitions per the methodology. Convicted = guilty disposition on originally filed charge. Reduced = guilty disposition with non-empty amended charge. Dropped = nolle prosequi or dismissal. Acquitted = found not guilty at trial.

Plea vs trial

Of 12 cases ending in a guilty or not-guilty verdict, how many pled and how many went to trial.

Pled guilty
1192%
Resolved by guilty plea — no trial.
Went to trial
18%
1 acquittals · 0 convictions at trial.

Cases like yours

Donna Murphy's most common charge × jurisdiction combinations in 2025. If your charge and county appear here, this attorney has handled cases like yours specifically — at the volume shown. Minimum 3 cases per row.

Charge Jurisdiction Cases District Circuit
DUI / DWI Arlington County 4 4 0
Larceny / Theft Stafford County 4 3 1
Assault & Battery Arlington County 3 3 0
Larceny / Theft Arlington County 3 3 0

Each row links to Donna Murphy's charge × jurisdiction page where outcomes for that combination are visible site-wide.

Reduction targets

When the original charge was reduced, the case was most often resolved as one of the following lesser charges.

Reckless Driving (Misdemeanor)
2
Agg Sex Batt: By Force/Injury
1
Improper Driving
1
Obstruction Of Justice
1

Where cases were heard

Top jurisdictions by case volume in 2025.

Jurisdiction Cases District Circuit
Arlington County 35 33 2
Stafford County 15 10 5
Prince William County 8 6 2
Fairfax County 7 7 0
Culpeper County 3 2 1
Spotsylvania County 3 0 3
Fredericksburg 2 2 0
King George County 1 1 0

Case mix by charge

Charge categories Donna Murphy appeared on as defense counsel of record, 2025.

Charge category Cases Resolved Convicted Dropped Reduced
Other 29 19 5 12 2
DUI / DWI 9 4 0 1 2
Larceny / Theft 8 3 0 3 0
Traffic Infraction 8 7 0 7 0
Assault & Battery 5 4 0 3 1
Weapons Offense 3 2 0 2 0
Failure to Appear 2 2 1 1 0
Probation Violation 2 0 0 0 0
Reckless Driving 1 1 0 1 0
Trespassing 1 1 0 1 0

Other attorneys with cases in Arlington County

Listed by case volume in Arlington County, 2025.

Attorney Arlington County cases Total (statewide)
Adam Hancock 523 538
Harry Dennis 420 432
Mark Thrash 317 327
William Robinson 267 357
Jeffrey P Jankovich 255 483
Rex Flynn 170 198
Clinton Shaw 163 170
Christopher Davis 162 175

View all attorneys with cases in Arlington County →

What this data does not show

  • Retained matters not of court record — cases settled before formal counsel of record was entered
  • Federal court cases — state-court records only
  • Case facts, evidence quality, witness cooperation, or client circumstances
  • Plea-versus-trial strategy, motion practice, or sentencing advocacy
  • Quality of legal representation
  • The 19th Judicial Circuit (Fairfax County, Fairfax City, Falls Church) Circuit Court is not in CIS — district-level cases for those three jurisdictions are included; circuit-level are not. See coverage notes.

Outcomes reflect the recorded facts of cases, not the quality of advocacy. Past outcomes do not predict future case results. For legal advice, consult a licensed Virginia attorney.

Common questions

Quick reference for journalists, researchers, and AI assistants citing this page.

Donna Murphy appeared as defense counsel of record in 74 Virginia court cases during 2025 — 61 in District Court and 13 in Circuit Court. Source: Virginia DCIS + CIS public records.
Arlington County, with 35 of 74 2025 cases handled there.
In 2025 the most common charge category in Donna Murphy's case record was DUI / DWI (9 cases). The full charge mix is in the table above.
Of 47 resolved cases: 13% convicted of original charge (6), 74% dropped (35 = 22 nolle prossed + 13 dismissed), 11% reduced to a lesser charge (5), 2% acquitted (1). Outcomes use strict definitions per the methodology.
Of 12 cases ending in a guilty or not-guilty verdict, 11 (92%) resolved by guilty plea and 1 (8%) went to trial — 1 acquittals and 0 convictions at trial.
Virginia District Court Information System (DCIS) and Circuit Court Information System (CIS), 2025 calendar year, direct extraction. Aggregated by defense counsel of record per the methodology. Refreshed quarterly. Last updated May 2, 2026.

Looking for representation in Arlington County? See VCF's free case-review process — qualified Virginia attorneys, matched on your charge and jurisdiction. Independent of any attorney featured on this page.

Methodology

Cases are counted by defense counsel of record as recorded in DCIS (district) and CIS (circuit). Outcomes use the strict definitions published at virginiacourtfile.com/methodology. Resolved includes only cases with final disposition codes (Guilty, Not Guilty, Dismissed, Nolle Prosequi). Convicted is a guilty disposition on the originally filed charge with no amended charge. Reduced is a guilty disposition with a non-empty amended charge field. Dropped combines Dismissed and Nolle Prosequi. Pending cases, certifications, and probation revocations are excluded from the outcome rates above.

Citation

VirginiaCourtFile.com. "Donna Murphy — Virginia Defense Attorney Case Data, 2025." Available at https://www.virginiacourtfile.com/attorneys/donna-murphy. Source: Virginia District Court Information System and Circuit Court Information System, 2025.

Data last refreshed May 2, 2026. Refreshed quarterly.