SEARCH SITE

VIRGINIA LAW PORTAL

SEARCHABLE DATABASES

ACROSS SESSIONS

Developed and maintained by the Division of Legislative Automated Systems.

2020 SPECIAL SESSION I

20200577D
HOUSE BILL NO. 5044
Offered August 18, 2020
Prefiled August 17, 2020
A BILL to amend and reenact § 9.1-600 of the Code of Virginia, relating to minimum standards for citizen complaints against law enforcement; investigation time limits.
----------
Patrons-- Davis, Fowler, Poindexter and Walker
----------
Referred to Committee on Public Safety
----------

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:

1. That § 9.1-600 of the Code of Virginia is amended and reenacted as follows:

§ 9.1-600. Civilian protection in cases of police misconduct; minimum standards.

A. State, local, and other public law-enforcement agencies, which have ten or more law-enforcement officers, shall have procedures as established in subsection B, allowing citizen submission of complaints regarding the conduct of the law-enforcement agency, law-enforcement officers in the agency, or employees of the agency.

B. Law-enforcement agencies shall ensure, at a minimum, that in the case of all written complaints:

1. The general public has access to the required forms and information concerning the submission of complaints;

2. The law-enforcement agency assists individuals in filing complaints; and

3. The time limits for conducting an investigation of such written complaints shall be consistent with the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc.'s, standards on complaint procedures regarding investigation time limits; and

4. Adequate records are maintained of the nature and disposition of such cases.