A criminal appeal is a formal request to rehear a case that has already been decided -- a request that a new court reconsider the decision of the first court. When one or both sides of a case that has already been decided think there was a mistake made at trial, they can file an appeal. An appeal is entirely different than a jury trial. There is no testimony taken. The court of appeals decides the case entirely upon the written briefs filed by your attorney and the offie of the Attorney General who represents the prosecution and asks that the conviction be upheld.
Fort Valley is a mountain valley in Shenandoah County, Virginia. The so-called "valley within a valley" lies between the two arms of the northern Massanutten Mountain range in the Shenandoah Valley. The valley is closed at both ends (except for a very narrow gap at the northern end through which Passage Creek flows and a single road, S.R. 678, runs) but opens out as one moves toward the center, becoming about three miles wide at its widest. In all, Fort Valley is 23 miles long. Roads exit the valley at Edinburg Gap (S.R. 675) towards Edinburg, Moreland Gap (S.R. 730) towards New Market and Edith Gap (S.R. 675) towards Luray. There is also a dirt road that leads to Woodstock (S. R 758) over Powell Mountain. The valley is mostly rural, consisting of private farmland, surrounded by the George Washington National Forest, which covers the slopes on both the east and west mountains. The Elizabeth Furnace and Camp Roosevelt recreational areas of the G.W. Forest are located within Fort Valley. According to tradition, Daniel Morgan built the first road into Fort Valley from the north, at the order of George Washington, with a view to holing up in this naturally fortified valley as a possible last stand against the British during the American Revolution. The Continental Army's victory at Yorktown altered Washington's plans.