Virginia jury acquits school spokesman of perjury in probe that was a focus of governor’s campaign

By MATTHEW BARAKAT
Associated Press

LEESBURG, Va. (AP) — A jury has acquitted the longtime spokesman for a northern Virginia school system of perjuring himself during a high-profile investigation of two school-based sexual assaults. The jury took only about 2 hours of deliberation Thursday before acquitting Loudoun County Public Schools Public Information Office Wayde Byard on the sole perjury count lodged against him by a special grand jury. The perjury case was the first prosecution to go to trial from the special grand jury’s probe, commissioned by Republican Attorney General Jason Miyares at the request of Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin. Byard said he was relieved by the verdict but not surprised.