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2006 SESSION
066526156Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. That § 19.2-299 of the Code of Virginia is amended and reenacted as follows:
§ 19.2-299. Investigations and reports by probation officers in certain cases.
A. Unless waived by the court and the defendant and
the attorney for the Commonwealth, whenWhen a
person is tried in a circuit court (i) upon a charge of assault and battery in
violation of § 18.2-57 or 18.2-57.2, stalking in violation of § 18.2-60.3,
sexual battery in violation of § 18.2-67.4, attempted sexual battery in
violation of § 18.2-67.5, or driving while intoxicated in violation of §
18.2-266, and is adjudged guilty of such charge, unless waived by the
court and the defendant and the attorney for the Commonwealth, the
court may, or on motion of the defendant shall; or (ii) upon a felony charge
not set forth in subdivision (iii) below, the court may when there is a plea
agreement between the defendant and the Commonwealth and shall when the
defendant pleads guilty without a plea agreement or is found guilty by the
court after a plea of not guilty; or (iii) the court shall when a person is
charged and adjudged guilty of a felony violation, or conspiracy to commit or
attempt to commit a felony violation, of § 18.2-46.2, 18.2-46.3, clause (ii) or (iii) of 18.2-48,
clause (2) or (3) of 18.2-49,
18.2-61, 18.2-63, 18.2-64.1, 18.2-64.2, 18.2-67.1, 18.2-67.2,
18.2-67.3, 18.2-67.4:1, 18.2-67.5, 18.2-67.5:1, 18.2-355,
18.2-356, 18.2-357, 18.2-361, 18.2-362, 18.2-366, 18.2-368, 18.2-370,
18.2-370.1, or 18.2-370.2, or any attempt to commit or conspiracy to commit any
felony violation of § 18.2-67.5, 18.2-67.5:2, or 18.2-67.5:3, direct a
probation officer of such court to thoroughly investigate and report upon the
history of the accused, including a report of the accused's criminal record as
an adult and available juvenile court records, any information regarding the
accused's participation or membership in a criminal street gang as defined in §
18.2-46.1, and all other relevant facts, to fully advise the court so the court
may determine the appropriate sentence to be imposed. The probation officer,
after having furnished a copy of this report at least five days prior to
sentencing to counsel for the accused and the attorney for the Commonwealth for
their permanent use, shall submit his report in advance of the sentencing
hearing to the judge in chambers, who shall keep such report confidential.
Counsel for the accused may provide the accused with a copy of the presentence
report. The probation officer shall be available to testify from this report in
open court in the presence of the accused, who shall have been provided with a
copy of the presentence report by his counsel or advised of its contents and be
given the right to cross-examine the investigating officer as to any matter
contained therein and to present any additional facts bearing upon the matter.
The report of the investigating officer shall at all times be kept confidential
by each recipient, and shall be filed as a part of the record in the case. Any
report so filed shall be made available only by court order and shall be sealed
upon final order by the court, except that such reports or copies thereof shall
be available at any time to any criminal justice agency, as defined in §
9.1-101, of this or any other state or of the United States; to any agency
where the accused is referred for treatment by the court or by probation and
parole services; and to counsel for any person who has been indicted jointly
for the same felony as the person subject to the report. Any report prepared
pursuant to the provisions hereof shall without court order be made available
to counsel for the person who is the subject of the report if that person is
charged with a felony subsequent to the time of the preparation of the report.
The presentence report shall be in a form prescribed by the Department of
Corrections. In all cases where such report is not ordered, a simplified report
shall be prepared on a form prescribed by the Department of Corrections. For
the purposes of this subsection, information regarding the accused's
participation or membership in a criminal street gang may include the
characteristics, specific rivalries, common practices, social customs and behavior,
terminology, and types of crimes that are likely to be committed by that
criminal street gang.
B. As a part of any presentence investigation conducted pursuant to subsection A when the offense for which the defendant was convicted was a felony, the court probation officer shall advise any victim of such offense in writing that he may submit to the Virginia Parole Board a written request (i) to be given the opportunity to submit to the Board a written statement in advance of any parole hearing describing the impact of the offense upon him and his opinion regarding the defendant's release and (ii) to receive copies of such other notifications pertaining to the defendant as the Board may provide pursuant to subsection B of § 53.1-155.
C. As part of any presentence investigation conducted pursuant to subsection A when the offense for which the defendant was convicted was a felony drug offense set forth in Article 1 (§ 18.2-247 et seq.) of Chapter 7 of Title 18.2, the presentence report shall include any known association of the defendant with illicit drug operations or markets.
D. As a part of any presentence investigation conducted pursuant to subsection A, when the offense for which the defendant was convicted was a felony, not a capital offense, committed on or after January 1, 2000, the defendant shall be required to undergo a substance abuse screening pursuant to § 18.2-251.01.