Not Guilty Verdict For Widow Of Reston Founder In Assault And Battery Case

RESTON, VA — Cheryl Terio-Simon, the 78-year-old widow of Reston founder Robert E. Simon, was found not guilty of a misdemeanor assault and battery charge in connection with an incident that occurred Oct. 27 outside of the Reston Community Center.

Senzel Schaefer — who had stepped down as the president of the Lake Anne of Reston, a Condominium Association in last September — filed a report with the Fairfax County Police Department on Oct. 30. Schaefer's report claimed Terio-Simon threatened and grabbed her as she used her cellphone to record video of the HOA's election tally held outside on Lake Anne Plaza.

Terio-Simon pleaded not guilty on Dec. 15 in Fairfax County General District Court.

Both Schaefer and her husband testified in the case and a 90-second video of the incident was shown in court. Officer T.J. Wilson of the Reston Police Station, who filed the complaint on Schaefer's behalf, also provided evidence.

Defense attorney Robert Horan III, who represented Terio-Simon, said the video did not support Schaefer's claim that his client had pushed her against a wall. He applauded the not-guilty verdict, describing the case as "a big made-up event by the alleged victim."

Schaefer told Patch in a phone interview on Wednesday she wasn't really surprised by the verdict. She had told police Terio-Simon had only grabbed her phone, which was in her hand at the time.

"When things like this happen and they're left ignored, I think a lot of people would just ignore it," she said. "There's nothing I can do about this 78-year-old woman assaulting me. The point here is that assault and public degradation of another human, there's no place for it in a civil society."

On the night of Oct. 27, members of the Lake Anne of Reston, A Condominium Association (LARCA) held an election at the Reston Community Center - Lake Anne. When the vote counting ran on past the center's closing time, the board moved the voting outside.

Schaefer, who had started a petition in September expressing concerns about the LARCA election, recorded the proceedings on the plaza to ensure there were no irregularities. After a couple of delays, the winners of the LARCA election were announced on Nov. 2.

Since then, the new board has been working to address a number of issues, including finding money to fix an estimated $37 million in needed repairs to Lake Anne's aging infrastructure.

On Tuesday, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors voted to approve the Fiscal Year 2022 Mid-Year Review, which included an amendment to allocate $250,000 to help develop a visioning plan for making the Lake Anne Revitalization District economically sustainable.

Related:

Reston Founder's Widow Cited For Assault At Condo Meeting