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 § 19.2-76.1 of the Code of Virginia is amended and reenacted as follows:
§ 19.2-76.1. Submission of quarterly reports concerning unexecuted felony and misdemeanor warrants and other criminal process; destruction.
It shall be the duty of the chief law-enforcement officer of the police
department or sheriff's office, whichever is responsible for such service, in
each county, town or city of the Commonwealth to submit quarterly reports to
the attorney for the Commonwealth for the county, town or city concerning
unexecuted felony and misdemeanor arrest warrants, summonses, capiases or other
unexecuted criminal processes as hereinafter provided. The reports shall list
those existing felony arrest warrants in his possession which that have not
been executed within seven years of the date of issuance and, those misdemeanor
arrest warrants, summonses and capiases and other criminal processes in his
possession which that have not been executed within three years from the
date of issuance, and those unexecuted misdemeanor arrest warrants, summonses
and capiases in his possession that were issued for a now deceased person, based on
mistaken identity or as a result of any other technical or legal error. The
reports shall be submitted in writing no later than the tenth day of April, July,
October, and January of each year, together with the unexecuted felony and
misdemeanor warrants, or other unexecuted criminal processes listed therein.
Upon receipt of the report and the warrants listed therein, the attorney for
the Commonwealth shall petition the circuit court of the county or city for the
destruction of such unexecuted felony and misdemeanor warrants, summonses,
capiases or other unexecuted criminal processes. The attorney for the
Commonwealth may petition that certain of the unexecuted warrants, summonses,
capiases and other unexecuted criminal processes not be destroyed based upon
justifiable continuing, active investigation of the cases. The circuit court
shall order the destruction of each such unexecuted felony warrant and each
unexecuted misdemeanor warrant, summons, capias and other criminal process
except (i) any warrant which charges capital murder and (ii) any unexecuted
criminal process whose preservation is deemed justifiable by the court. No
arrest shall be made under the authority of any warrant or other process which
has been ordered destroyed pursuant to this section. Nothing in this section
shall be construed to relate to or affect the time within which a prosecution
for a felony or a misdemeanor shall be commenced.
As used herein, the term "chief law-enforcement officer" refers to the chiefs of police of cities, counties and towns and sheriffs of cities and counties, unless a political subdivision has otherwise designated its chief law-enforcement officer by appropriate resolution or ordinance, in which case the local designation shall be controlling.