Opinion ID: 1058030
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 6

Heading: Clarifying Instruction

Text: Bennett argues that the circuit court erred in refusing to give the jury an instruction to clarify the definition of repudiation. We disagree. As previously stated, although he objected to sending the issue of repudiation to the jury, Bennett did not object to Sage's proposed jury instruction on repudiation. Furthermore, when the jury asked for clarification about the instruction regarding repudiation, Bennett agreed that the circuit court should simply instruct the jury to rely on the plain language of the instruction. Bennett waited until after the jury returned to deliberate to ask the court for a clarifying instruction regarding the definition of repudiation. Under these facts, when Bennett agreed to the jury instruction given on repudiation, and only asked the court to issue a clarifying instruction after the jury returned to deliberate, we hold that the circuit court did not abuse its discretion in refusing to issue Bennett's proposed clarifying instruction. See E.I. DuPont De Nemours & Co. v. Snead, 124 Va. 177, 187, 97 S.E. 812, 815 (1919) (holding it is not error for a circuit court to refuse an instruction after the jury has already been sufficiently instructed on that issue).