SEARCH SITE
VIRGINIA LAW PORTAL
- Code of Virginia
- Virginia Administrative Code
- Constitution of Virginia
- Charters
- Authorities
- Compacts
- Uncodified Acts
- RIS Users (account required)
SEARCHABLE DATABASES
- Bills & Resolutions
session legislation - Bill Summaries
session summaries - Reports to the General Assembly
House and Senate documents - Legislative Liaisons
State agency contacts
ACROSS SESSIONS
- Subject Index: Since 1995
- Bills & Resolutions: Since 1994
- Summaries: Since 1994
Developed and maintained by the Division of Legislative Automated Systems.
2003 SESSION
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. That § 46.2-334.01 of the Code of Virginia is amended and reenacted as follows:
§ 46.2-334.01. Licenses issued to persons less than 19 years old subject to certain restrictions.
A. Any learner's permit or driver's license issued to any person less than
eighteen 18 years old shall be subject to the following:
1. Notwithstanding the provisions of § 46.2-498, whenever the driving record of
a person less than nineteen 19 years old shows that he has been convicted of
committing, when he was less than eighteen 18 years old, (i) an offense for
which demerit points have been assessed or are assessable under Article 19 (§
46.2-489 et seq.) of this chapter or (ii) a violation of any provision of Article 12
(§ 46.2-1091 et seq.) or Article 13 (§ 46.2-1095 et seq.) of Chapter 10 of this
title, the Commissioner shall direct such person to attend a driver improvement
clinic. No safe driving points shall be awarded for such clinic attendance, nor
shall any safe driving points be awarded for voluntary or court-assigned clinic
attendance. Such person's parent, guardian, legal custodian, or other person
standing in loco parentis may attend such clinic and receive a reduction in
demerit points and/or an award of safe driving points pursuant to § 46.2-498.
The provisions of this subdivision shall not be construed to prohibit awarding of
safe driving points to a person less than eighteen 18 years old who attends and
successfully completes a driver improvement clinic without having been directed to do so by the
Commissioner or required to do so by a court.
2. If any person less than nineteen 19 years old is convicted a second time of
committing, when he was less than eighteen 18 years old, (i) an offense for
which demerit points have been assessed or are assessable under Article 19 (§
46.2-489 et seq.) of this chapter or (ii) a violation of any provision of Article 12
(§ 46.2-1091 et seq.) or Article 13 (§ 46.2-1095 et seq.) of Chapter 10 of this
title, the Commissioner shall suspend such person's driver's license or privilege to
operate a motor vehicle for ninety days. Such suspension shall be consecutive
to, and not concurrent with, any other period of license suspension, revocation
or denial.
3. If any person is convicted a third time of committing, when he was less than
eighteen 18 years old, (i) an offense for which demerit points have been
assessed or are assessable under Article 19 (§ 46.2-489 et seq.) of this
chapter or (ii) a violation of any provision of Article 12 (§ 46.2-1091 et
seq.) or Article 13 (§ 46.2-1095 et seq.) of Chapter 10 of this title, the
Commissioner shall revoke such person's driver's license or privilege to
operate a motor vehicle for one year or until such person reaches the age of
eighteen 18 years, whichever is longer. Such revocation shall be
consecutive to, and not concurrent with, any other period of license suspension, revocation or
denial.
4. In no event shall any person subject to the provisions of this section, be subject to the suspension or revocation provisions of subdivision 2 or 3 of this section for multiple convictions arising out of the same transaction or occurrence.
B. The initial license issued to any such person shall be deemed a provisional
driver's license. Until the holder is 18 years old, a provisional driver's
license shall not authorize its holder to operate a motor vehicle with more than one passenger who is
less than eighteen 18 years old prior to the holder's seventeenth birthday and
for the first year after the license is issued nor more than three
passengers who are less than eighteen 18 years old thereafter until the
holder's eighteenth birthday. This passenger limitation, however, shall not
apply to members of the driver's family or household. For the purposes of this
subsection, "members of the driver's family or household" means (i) the
driver's spouse, children, stepchildren, brothers, sisters, half brothers, half
sisters, and any individual who has a child in common with the driver, whether
or not they reside in the same home with the driver; (ii) the driver's
brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law who reside in the same home with the driver;
(iii) any individual who cohabits with the driver, and any children of such
individual residing in the same home with the driver.
C. The holder of a provisional driver's license shall not operate a motor
vehicle on the highways of the Commonwealth between the hours of midnight and
4:00 a.m. except when driving (i) to or from a place of business where he is employed;
(ii) to or from a school-sponsored activity; (iii) when accompanied by a parent, a person
acting in loco parentis, or by a spouse who is eighteen 18 years old or older,
provided that such person accompanying the driver is actually occupying a seat beside the driver and
is lawfully permitted to operate a motor vehicle at the time; or (iv) in cases of emergency,
including response by volunteer firefighters and volunteer rescue squad
personnel to emergency calls.
D. The provisional driver's license restrictions in subsection B and C of this section shall expire on the holder's eighteenth birthday.
E. A violation of subsection B or C of this section shall not constitute negligence, be considered in mitigation of damages of whatever nature, be admissible in evidence or be the subject of comment by counsel in any action for the recovery of damages arising out of the operation, ownership, or maintenance of a motor vehicle, nor shall anything in this subsection change any existing law, rule, or procedure pertaining to any such civil action.
F. No citation for a violation of this section shall be issued unless the officer issuing such citation has cause to stop or arrest the driver of such motor vehicle for the violation of some other provision of this Code or local ordinance relating to the operation, ownership, or maintenance of a motor vehicle or any criminal statute.