Summary
Meets on: Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at ½ hour after adjournment in House Room 3
Members: Charniele Herring (Chair) – Les Adams – Rob Bell – Jeff Bourne – Jeff Campbell – Ronnie Campbell – Karrie Delaney – Steve Heretick – Patrick Hope – Terry Kilgore – Jay Leftwich – Mark Levine – Jason Miyares – Mike Mullin – Margaret Ransone – Don Scott – Marcus Simon – Rip Sullivan – Vivian Watts
11 Democrats and 8 Republicans
Subcommittees:
- Civil, Criminal
- Judicial
OnAir Post: Courts of Justice
News
Note: Details on bills passed below are in the Heading “Bills passed”)
- HB 1806: Suspension or modification of sentence; transfer to the Department of Corrections
- HB 1814: Garnishment of wages; protected portion of disposable earnings
- HB 1821: Experiencing or reporting overdoses; prohibits arrest and prosecution
- HB 1852: Uniform Collaborative Law Act; created
- HB 1853: Lawyers; client accounts
- HB 1864: Virginia Human Rights Act; expands definition of employer
- HB 1866: Court-appointed special advocates; information sharing
- HB 1867: Victims of crime; compensation, reporting requirement
- HB 1878: Juvenile intake and petition; appeal to a magistrate on a finding of no probable cause
- HB 1882: Deeds of trust; amendment to loan document, statement of interest rate of a refinanced mortgage
- HB 1895: Fines and costs; accrual of interest, deferral or installment payment agreements
- HB 1911: No-fault divorce; corroboration requirement
- HB 1912: Child support payments; juvenile in custody of or committed to the Department of Juvenile Justice
- HB 1936: Robbery; penalties
- HB 1991: Juveniles; release and review hearing for serious offender, plea agreement
- HB 1992: Firearms; purchase, etc., following conviction for assault and battery of a family member
- HB 2002: Child support; health care coverage, eligibility requirements
- HB 2009: Chamberlin Hotel at Fort Monroe; reverts certain property to the Commonwealth
- HB 2010: Earned sentence credits; rate at which sentence rates may be earned, prerequisites
- HB 2012: Protective orders; violations of preliminary child protective order, changes punishment, etc
- HB 2017: Juvenile offenders; youth justice diversion programs
- HB 2018: Emergency order for adult protective services; acts of violence, etc., or financial exploitation
- HB 2038: Probation, revocation, and suspension of sentence; limitations on sentence, technical violation
- HB 2047: Criminal proceedings; consideration of mental condition and intellectual, etc
- HB 2055: Child support obligations; party’s incarceration not deemed voluntary unemployment/underemployment
- HB 2064: Recording an electronic document; electronic notarial certificate
- HB 2081: Polling places; prohibited activities, unlawful possession of a firearm, penalty
- HB 2099: Judgments; limitations on enforcement, judgment liens, settlement agents, effective date
- HB 2110: Pretrial data collection; VCSC to collect and disseminate on an annual basis
- HB 2113: Criminal records; sealing of records, Sealing Fee fund created
- HB 2128: Firearms; criminal history record information check delay increased to five days
- HB 2132: Homicides and assaults and bodily woundings; certain matters not to constitute defenses
- HB 2133: Commercial sex trafficking; issuance of writ of vacatur for victims
- HB 2139: Accrual of cause of action; diagnosis of latent injury
- HB 2147: Human Rights, Division of; renamed as Office of Civil Rights
- HB 2150: Jurisdiction over criminal cases; certification or appeal of charges
- HB 2167: Parole; notice and certification, monthly reports, discretionary early consideration
- HB 2168: Illegal gambling; skill games, enforcement by localities and Attorney General, civil penalty
- HB 2169: Prostitution; reorganizes the statute penalizing into two distinct sections
- HB 2190: Wrongful death; beneficiaries
- HB 2192: Support orders; contents of orders, change in employment status, unemployment benefits
- HB 2194: Communicating threats of death or bodily injury to a person with intent to intimidate; penalty
- HB 2233: Orders of restitution; docketed on behalf of victim, enforcement
- HB 2234: Victims of sex trafficking; affirmative defense to prosecution for certain offenses
- HB 2236: Behavioral health docket; transfer of supervision
- HB 2038: Probation, revocation, and suspension of sentence; limitations on sentence, technical violation
- HB 2252: Tazewell County; quitclaim and conveyance of easement by Board of Wildlife Resources
- HB 2258: Substantial Risk Order Registry; maintenance by State Police
- HB 2263: Death penalty; abolition of current penalty.
- HB 2290: Larceny; repeals punishment for conviction of second or subsequent misdemeanor
- HB 2298: Muzzleloading rifle and shotgun; clarifies definitions
- HB 2310: Concealed handgun permits; demonstration of competence
- HB 2317: Sexual and Domestic Violence, Advisory Committee on; increases membership, duties
– February 21, 2021
A broad section of Chesterfield’s legal community, along with a number of current and former politicians, the Virginia Legislative Black Caucus and the state NAACP, have thrown their support behind O’Berry.
At least 35 people lined up to speak on her behalf at the Dec. 11 joint meeting of the Senate Judiciary and House Courts of Justice committees that interviewed judges.
At the same gathering, O’Berry was met with strong opposition by supporters of criminal justice reform, including community activists and the Chesterfield Branch of the NAACP. Many accused O’Berry of doling out harsh punishments, wrongly holding criminal defendants without bail and disregarding their rights, especially in the Black and Hispanic communities.
swva today, – February 10, 2021
Efforts to roll back limitations on the federal qualified immunity doctrine have again stalled out in the Virginia General Assembly.
Lawmakers in both the Senate and the House of Delegates failed to advance measures aimed at making it easier to sue law enforcement for violating new prohibited practices laws or for violating constitutional rights during arrest or detention. A federal doctrine, qualified immunity can be used to shield government officials, including police officers, from being held liable in civil suits for constitutional violations. It does not shield from criminal prosecution.
The House bill was the first to falter on Jan. 29 when the Courts of Justice Civil Sub-Committee voted to table it for further review by the Virginia Crime Commission. On Feb. 1, the Senate Judiciary Committee followed suit, voting to pass by its version of the bill indefinitely, saying a sub-committee may be convened to review it at a later time.
Leaders of the General Assembly courts committees are calling for a new round of bar evaluations of candidates for Court of Appeals judgeships with an eye toward racial, regional and practice diversity.
The Democratic committee heads recommend an April 15 application deadline for seven new and existing openings on the Court of Appeals of Virginia. The court is set to grow by six seats in July as it expands jurisdiction to provide appeals of right for all litigants. The court expansion bill is on the desk of Gov. Ralph Northam.
In a March 15 letter to heads of the Virginia State Bar and other statewide bar groups, Senate Judiciary Committee Chair John S. Edwards and House Courts of Justice Committee Chair Charniele L. Herring urge consideration of regional diversity as well as diversity in race and practice areas.
Marijuana Moment, – February 1, 2021
Proposals to legalize marijuana in Virginia cleared key committee votes in both chambers of the state legislature over the weekend and Monday morning as lawmakers raced to qualify the bills for full floor votes ahead of an upcoming mid-session deadline on Friday.
Gov. Ralph Northam (D) and top lawmakers unveiled the legalization plan in mid-January, on the first day of a short 2021 legislative session scheduled to end later this month. To survive into the next stage of the session, versions of the marijuana proposal must pass the Senate and House of Delegates by Friday, the state’s so-called crossover deadline.
“This is a breakneck speed for us,” Del. Vivian Watts (D), vice chair of the House Courts of Justice Committee, said at a virtual meeting on Sunday, where the panel voted to approve the House version of the legislation, HB 2312, and refer it to the House Appropriations Committee. If it succeeds there, the measure would next advance to the House floor.
