SB 489: Interlocutory Appeals

SB 489, relating to interlocutory appeals by the Commonwealth, has been passed by indefinitely by the Senate Courts of Justice.

SB 70: Expungement

As of February 8, 2010, Senator McEachin’s bill relating to expungement was passed by indefinitely by the Senate Courts of Justice.

HB 72: Firearms

As of February 8, the Committee on Militia, Police, and Public Safety recommended laying HB 72 on the table by a vote of 3-2.

HB 1121: Substitution and first reading

On February 3, HB 1121 (which has been combined with HB 254 and HB 255, all relating to juvenile information sharing), was reported from the Committee with a substitute 10104862D-H1.

On February 8, the revised version had its first reading.

SB 579 Struck by Patron

SB 579, allowing for the transfer of a juvenile to a less secure facility should circumstances warrant, has been struck at the request of Sen. Marsden. 

HB 863 Passes Subcommittee

HB 863, eliminating the possibility of issuing a restricted-use license to juveniles in order to attend school, has passed through subcommittee by a unanimous (9-0) vote. 

HB 862 Reported From Committee

On February 3rd, HB 862 was reported from the Courts of Justice Committee, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute.  The amendment clarifies the language, making it clear that – if enacted – a juvenile court judge would have the ability to choose between enforcing a punishment or deferring a disposition when a juvenile is convicted of an alcohol-related offense.

The vote to report was unanimous.

Substitute available here.

Virginian-Pilot: Keep Kids Out of Adult Jails

Set standards for jailed teens

Hampton Roads Virginian-Pilot
February 5, 2010

Virginia has no standard for deciding where to house teens accused of crimes and waiting to be tried in adult court. Some are sent to juvenile detention; others are jailed with much older inmates.

If they’re placed in juvenile detention, they’re expected to go to school, get counseling, set goals. If they’re sent to jail, the opportunities for any sort of help are limited. Teens are more likely to be assaulted in adult facilities. They’re more likely to commit other crimes once released.

Sen. Louise Lucas, a Portsmouth Democrat, is sponsoring a bill that would establish a standard for youths charged as adults. The bill, which unanimously passed the Senate, would specify that teens be housed in a juvenile facility unless officials believe the teen is too dangerous to be with other youths. Then a hearing would be required, and a judge would decide placement.

The bill is a common-sense approach that separates the most dangerous kids from those accused of minor crimes. It also helps protect more teens from predators and gives them a better shot at education and rehabilitation while they’re awaiting trial.

As the Virginia State Crime Commission spends another year considering whether to rewrite the laws governing prosecution of teens in adult court, the Senate has agreed to add one bit of oversight to the process that determines the fate of 700 teens a year in Virginia.

Judges should be given the authority to decide whether youths need the restrictions of jail or whether they, and society, will be better served by the juvenile system.

The House of Delegates should send this bill to the governor, who should sign it.

WaPo Editorial: Protect incarcerated children

Va. legislators should embrace bills to protect juveniles in prison

Friday, Feb. 5 2010

THERE IS NO safer political bet than supporting legislation to protect children from harm. That bet is tougher when the children in question are juvenile offenders, but it is no less worthy. Virginia lawmakers should muster the courage to endorse two bills that would enhance protections for juvenile offenders.

Housing minors in adult prisons is a bad idea. It raises the risk of physical and sexual abuse of the younger inmates while denying them educational, vocational and psychological services available in juvenile-only programs. Senate Bill 259, sponsored by Sen. L. Louise Lucas (D-Portsmouth), requires that even underage offenders charged as adults must be detained in juvenile facilities; judges may order a transfer to an adult facility if they conclude that an offender poses a danger to other juveniles in detention. This proposal, unanimously passed in the Senate, should be endorsed by lawmakers in the House.

Senate Bill 585 calls for the state to make lawyers available for periodic consultations with incarcerated juveniles. Minors who are charged with a crime are entitled to state-funded lawyers at trial. But they lose access to these lawyers once they are convicted. The bill proposed by Sen. David W. Marsden (D-Fairfax) would require juvenile court judges "to appoint one or more ‘diligent and competent’ attorneys" to assist juveniles. These would not be full-time assignments; lawyers in private practice would be tapped by the court and would be paid by the hour to visit designated facilities roughly once a week. These lawyers would also serve as confidential sounding boards about conditions of confinement.

Two Virginia juvenile facilities were recently slammed by the Justice Department for their high rates of sexual abuse; the periodic presence of outside lawyers could encourage youths to report and ultimately deter abuses. The cost of these roving lawyers for the entire state is roughly $50,000 a year — a remarkably modest sum for a potentially important program.

SB 70: Expungement

As of February 4, SB 70, relating to expungement of certain juvenile records, has been passed by indefinitely by the Senate Courts of Justice Criminal Subcommittee.