VA Governor Signs Host Of Police, Criminal Justice Reform Bills

RICHMOND, VA — Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam signed into law several bills aimed at advancing police and criminal justice reform in the state, the governor announced Wednesday.

Northam has been working closely with state legislators on the measures since early summer, when the deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor led to a national reckoning on racial bias in policing, the governor's office said.

"Today, Virginia becomes just the third state to ban no-knock warrants," Northam said Wednesday at a news conference in Richmond. "These reforms also reduce militarization of police equipment, standardize law enforcement training programs, and strengthen the process to de-certify officers when needed."

Northam signed Senate Bill 5030, sponsored by Sen. Mamie Locke, an omnibus police reform legislation that incorporates a number of reform measures passed by the House of Delegates, including:

• House Bill 5099, sponsored by Del. Lashrecse Aird, prohibits law enforcement officers from seeking or executing a no-knock search warrant.
• House Bill 5049, sponsored by Del. Daniel Helmer, reduces the militarization of police by prohibiting law enforcement from obtaining or using specified equipment, including grenades, weaponized aircraft, and high caliber firearms. Northam amended this bill to clarify that law enforcement agencies can seek a waiver to use restricted equipment for search and rescue missions.
• House Bill 5109, sponsored by Del. Patrick Hope, creates statewide minimum training standards for law enforcement officers, including training on awareness of racism, the potential for biased profiling, and de-escalation techniques. Northam made technical amendments to this bill to align it with Senate Bill 5030.
• House Bill 5104, sponsored by Del. Marcia Price, mandates law enforcement agencies and jails request the prior employment and disciplinary history of new hires.
• House Bill 5108, sponsored by Del. Elizabeth Guzman, expands and diversifies the Criminal Justice Services Board, ensuring that the perspectives of social justice leaders, people of color, and mental health providers are represented in the state’s criminal justice policymaking.
• House Bill 5051, sponsored by Del. Marcus Simon, strengthens the process by which law enforcement officers can be decertified and allows the Criminal Justice Services Board to initiate decertification proceedings.
• House Bill 5069, sponsored by Del. Jennifer Carroll Foy, limits the circumstances in which law enforcement officers can use neck restraints.
• House Bill 5029, sponsored by Del. Delores McQuinn, requires law enforcement officers intervene when they witness another officer engaging or attempting to engage in the use of excessive force.
• House Bill 5045, sponsored by Del. Karrie Delaney, makes it a Class 6 felony for law enforcement officers to “carnally know” someone they have arrested or detained, an inmate, parolee, probationer, pretrial defendant, or post trial offender, if the officer is in a position of authority over such individual.

Northam also signed House Bill 5055 and Senate Bill 5035, sponsored by Majority Leader Charniele Herring and Sen. Ghazala Hashmi, which empower localities to create civilian law enforcement review boards. These new laws also permit civilian review boards the authority to issue subpoenas and make binding disciplinary decisions.

The governor also signed Senate Bill 5014, sponsored by Sen. John Edwards, which mandates the creation of minimum crisis intervention training standards and requires law enforcement officers complete crisis intervention training.

“The deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery woke Americans to a longstanding problem that has existed for generations—and we know Virginia is not immune,” Sen. Locke said Wednesday in a statement. “These are transformative bills that will make Virginians’ lives better, and I’m so proud to see them signed into law.”

Northam also signed Senate Bill 5018, sponsored by Sen. John Bell, which allows individuals serving a sentence for certain felony offenses who are terminally ill to petition the state Parole Board for conditional release.

He also amended House Bill 5148 and Senate Bill 5034, sponsored by Del. Don Scott and Sen. Jennifer Boysko, respectively, which allow for increased earned sentencing credits. The governor proposed a six-month delay to give the Department of Corrections sufficient time to implement the program.