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What’s the value of a cannon barrel?

by | May 24, 2025

Close up on the scales of justice on a small bronze statue over a blue background with copy space conceptual of law and order
(Courtesy/Adobe Stock)

Case postponed to find out

A Castleton man’s case was continued in Rappahannock County Circuit Court Friday to determine the value of a Napoleon bronze 12-pounder cannon barrel — a weapon widely used in the American Civil War — like the one he is accused of stealing. 

James Franklin Nicholson Jr., 53, is facing nine charges — including driving while intoxicated and stealing several items: two replicas of antique cannons, a John Deere tractor and a trailer full of hunting equipment and camping gear.

The items, all reported stolen in July 2023, were discovered at Nicholson’s residence on Castleton Ford Road after he was arrested in April 2024 for driving while intoxicated on Richmond Road. 

Commonwealth’s Attorney Art Goff said this is an “unusual case,” and his office’s victim witness coordinator Patrick Fitzgerald has been “working doggedly” to find the value of the cannon barrel so that an accurate restitution amount can be set for repayment to the victim. Goff said Fitzgerald has made contact with a manufacturer, but has not heard back yet on the exact value. 

“We’re asking for a continuance,” Goff told Judge Douglas L. Fleming Jr. “[It will] probably be in favor of Mr. Nicholson,” Goff said, and added that they believe the value asserted by the owner of the cannons “may be $5,000 in excess” of the cost of buying one brand new. According to court records, the victim valued both cannons at a total of $50,000. 

Nicholson’s attorney Ryan Rakness said he had no objection to continuing the case for sentencing. 

Nicholson is being held without bond at RSW Regional Jail. He will appear back in court on July 14.

Author

  • Ireland Hayes

    Ireland joined Foothills Forum as a full-time reporter in 2023 after graduating from the University of Georgia’s Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication with a degree in journalism and minor in music. As a student, she gained valuable experience in reporter and editor positions at The Red & Black, an award-winning student newspaper, and contributed to Grady Newsource and the Athens Banner-Herald. She spent three years as an editorial assistant at Georgia Magazine, UGA’s quarterly alumni publication, and interned with The Bitter Southerner. Growing up in a small town in Southeast Georgia, Ireland developed a deep appreciation for rural communities and the unique stories they have to tell. She completed undergraduate research on news deserts, ghost papers and the ways rural communities in Georgia are being forced to adapt to a lack of local news. This research further sparked her interest in a career contributing to the preservation of local and rural news.

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By Ireland Hayes

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Ireland joined Foothills Forum as a full-time reporter in 2023 after graduating from the University of Georgia’s Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication with a degree in journalism and minor in music. As a student, she gained valuable experience in reporter and editor positions at The Red & Black, an award-winning student newspaper, and contributed to Grady Newsource and the Athens Banner-Herald. She spent three years as an editorial assistant at Georgia Magazine, UGA’s quarterly alumni publication, and interned with The Bitter Southerner. Growing up in a small town in Southeast Georgia, Ireland developed a deep appreciation for rural communities and the unique stories they have to tell. She completed undergraduate research on news deserts, ghost papers and the ways rural communities in Georgia are being forced to adapt to a lack of local news. This research further sparked her interest in a career contributing to the preservation of local and rural news.