Norfolk man serving life for 2004 sexual assault and burglaries granted geriatric parole

The Virginia Parole Board has granted parole to Selwyn Shawn Herring, who was convicted of object sexual penetration, burglary and robbery in Norfolk, according to the board's August 2026 decisions report.

The board's August report lists Herring, 62, as granted geriatric parole, recorded Aug. 28 and certified Aug. 31. His Norfolk Circuit Court judgment, dated July 9, 2004, includes a life sentence for penetration with an inanimate object, two 20-year sentences for burglary with intent to commit murder, rape or a related felony, a 20-year sentence for burglary with intent to commit larceny or assault, five years for robbery and two years for attempted statutory burglary. The report estimates he has served 22 years and 22 days.

This newsroom did not find contemporaneous news coverage or a court opinion describing the facts of the 2004 Norfolk case. The account here is limited to the board's record and registry information. The victims are not named, consistent with this publication's policy on sexual offenses; the board's minutes say the victims in the case have all died.

Prior and repeat offenses: Sex-offender registry information republished by the site OffenderRadar, drawn from the North Carolina registry, lists a Selwyn Shawn Herring, with a birth date consistent with his age, as convicted on April 20, 1993, in Surry County, North Carolina, of attempted rape or attempted sex offense, with a 10-year sentence and release in 1998. That earlier conviction does not appear in the Virginia board's August report, and this newsroom has not yet confirmed it with North Carolina authorities. The 2004 Norfolk judgment itself covers six separate felony counts.

The board's stated reasons: The board's listed reasons included excellent institutional adjustment, a stable release plan, significant community support, demonstrated rehabilitation, improved coping skills, infraction-free conduct since incarceration, participation in correctional and vocational programs, strong work performance, a low risk-assessment score, reduced risk factors, clear acceptance of responsibility, faith or community participation and no victim opposition.

The Aug. 27 minutes record a 5-0 vote. The board's Victim Services Team reported "that the victims in this case have all passed away." Board Member Kevin White said Herring had been infraction-free for 13 years, and Chair Shannon Dion added stable family relationships.

How the decision was made: At the Aug. 27 meeting, held in person and electronically at the board's offices on Atmore Drive in Richmond, each candidate addressed the board by video after a summary of victim input, and Chair Shannon Dion then called on each member to vote and state reasons, according to the approved minutes. The board approved those minutes on Sept. 10. The August report notes that the offenses it lists include all offenses for which a person has been serving time, whether or not they are parole-eligible.

Crime trends in Norfolk: According to the Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services report "Virginia Index Crime and Drug Arrest Trends 2016-2025," published in August 2026 using Virginia State Police crime repository data, Norfolk recorded 389.7 violent index crimes per 100,000 residents in 2025, compared with 671.7 in 2016, down 42% over the decade. Its property crime rate was 3,050.6 per 100,000 in 2025, compared with 4,011.4 in 2016, down 24%. Statewide, DCJS reported 210.5 violent crimes per 100,000 residents in 2025, down 7% from 2024 and 14% from 2023; the median rate among Virginia's counties and independent cities was 172.9. DCJS notes that the repository receives rolling updates, so the rates may be revised.

Across August, the board decided 44 parole cases and granted 14, according to its monthly decisions report, a grant rate of about 32% for the month. It denied the other 30. Separately, it held 10 parole-violation hearings, revoking parole in three, continuing parole in six and discharging one person from supervision. For historical context, the Virginia State Crime Commission reported discretionary-parole grant rates of 11% in 2018, 8% in 2019, 12% in 2020 and 8% through September 2021, and Bolts magazine reported a rate of about 1.6% in 2023. All five current board members were appointed by Gov. Abigail Spanberger on March 4, 2026, and confirmed by the General Assembly in March.

Parole in Virginia is supervised release: the board sets conditions, and it can revoke parole and return a person to prison for violations, as it did in three revocation cases this August. The board's report does not give a release date or say where Herring will live.

Richmond is an independent city in the Richmond region.

Surry County is a county in Southside Virginia. Its county seat is Surry.