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2010 SESSION

10101981D
HOUSE BILL NO. 39
Offered January 13, 2010
Prefiled December 18, 2009
A BILL to amend and reenact § 18.2-362 of the Code of Virginia, relating to bigamy; restitution.
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Patrons-- Orrock; Senator: Houck
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Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice
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Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:

1.  That § 18.2-362 of the Code of Virginia is amended and reenacted as follows:

§ 18.2-362. Person marrying when husband or wife is living; penalty; venue.

If any person, being married, shall, during the life of the husband or wife, marry another person in this Commonwealth, or if the marriage with such other person take place out of the Commonwealth, shall thereafter cohabit with such other person in this Commonwealth, he or she shall be guilty of a Class 4 felony. Venue for a violation of this section may be in the county or city where the subsequent marriage occurred or where the parties to the subsequent marriage cohabited.

Upon conviction, a person found guilty of this offense may be ordered by the court to make restitution to the other party of the subsequent marriage if (i) such other party believed in good faith that the former husband or wife was dead or that the former marriage had been annulled or dissolved by a divorce or was without knowledge of the former marriage and (ii) such other party did not, after receiving knowledge that the former husband or wife was not dead or that the former marriage had not been annulled or dissolved by a divorce, live together as husband and wife with such person guilty of this offense.