CHAPTER 759
An Act to amend and reenact §§18.2-60.3 and 18.2-308.1:4 of
the Code of Virginia, relating to felony punishment for a second stalking
conviction.
[H 2211]
Approved April 3, 2013
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. That §§18.2-60.3 and 18.2-308.1:4 of the Code of
Virginia are amended and reenacted as follows:
§18.2-60.3. Stalking; penalty.
A. Any person, except a law-enforcement officer, as defined in
§9.1-101, and acting in the performance of his official duties, and a
registered private investigator, as defined in §9.1-138, who is regulated in
accordance with §9.1-139 and acting in the course of his legitimate business,
who on more than one occasion engages in conduct directed at another person
with the intent to place, or when he knows or reasonably should know that the
conduct places that other person in reasonable fear of death, criminal sexual
assault, or bodily injury to that other person or to that other person's family
or household member is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor.
B. A Any person who is convicted of a second offense
of subsection A occurring within five years of a prior conviction of such an
offense when the person was also convicted within the five-year period prior to
the instant offense of a violation of (i) §18.2-51, 18.2-51.2, 18.2-51.6,
18.2-52, or 18.2-57 and the victim of that crime was the same person who is the
victim of the stalking activity in the instant conviction, (ii) §18.2-57.2, or
(iii) a protective order, is guilty of a Class 6 felony.
C. Any person convicted of a third or subsequent
conviction of subsection A occurring within five years of a conviction
for an offense under this section or for a similar offense under the law of any
other jurisdiction shall be is guilty of a Class 6 felony.
C. D. A person may be convicted under this
section irrespective of the jurisdiction or jurisdictions within the
Commonwealth wherein the conduct described in subsection A occurred, if the
person engaged in that conduct on at least one occasion in the jurisdiction
where the person is tried. Evidence of any such conduct that occurred outside
the Commonwealth may be admissible, if relevant, in any prosecution under this
section provided that the prosecution is based upon conduct occurring within
the Commonwealth.
D. E. Upon finding a person guilty under this
section, the court shall, in addition to the sentence imposed, issue an order
prohibiting contact between the defendant and the victim or the victim's family
or household member.
E. F. The Department of Corrections, sheriff or
regional jail director shall give notice prior to the release from a state
correctional facility or a local or regional jail of any person incarcerated
upon conviction of a violation of this section, to any victim of the offense
who, in writing, requests notice, or to any person designated in writing by the
victim. The notice shall be given at least fifteen 15 days prior
to release of a person sentenced to a term of incarceration of more than thirty
30 days or, if the person was sentenced to a term of incarceration of at
least forty-eight 48 hours but no more than thirty 30
days, twenty-four 24 hours prior to release. If the person
escapes, notice shall be given as soon as practicable following the escape. The
victim shall keep the Department of Corrections, sheriff or regional jail
director informed of the current mailing address and telephone number of the
person named in the writing submitted to receive notice.
All information relating to any person who receives or may
receive notice under this subsection shall remain confidential and shall not be
made available to the person convicted of violating this section.
For purposes of this subsection, "release" includes
a release of the offender from a state correctional facility or a local or
regional jail (i) upon completion of his term of incarceration or (ii) on
probation or parole.
No civil liability shall attach to the Department of
Corrections nor to any sheriff or regional jail director or their deputies or
employees for a failure to comply with the requirements of this subsection.
F. G. For purposes of this section:
"Family or household member" has the same meaning as
provided in §16.1-228.
§18.2-308.1:4. Purchase or transportation of firearm by
persons subject to protective orders; penalty.
It shall be is unlawful for any person who
is subject to (i) a protective order entered pursuant to §16.1-253.1,
16.1-253.4, 16.1-278.2, 16.1-279.1, 19.2-152.8, 19.2-152.9, or 19.2-152.10;
(ii) an order issued pursuant to subsection B of §20-103; (iii) an order
entered pursuant to subsection D E of §18.2-60.3; (iv) a
preliminary protective order entered pursuant to subsection F of §16.1-253
where a petition alleging abuse or neglect has been filed; or (v) an order
issued by a tribunal of another state, the United States or any of its
territories, possessions or commonwealths, or the District of Columbia pursuant
to a statute that is substantially similar to those cited in clauses (i), (ii),
(iii), or (iv) to purchase or transport any firearm while the order is in
effect. Any person with a concealed handgun permit shall be prohibited from
carrying any concealed firearm, and shall surrender his permit to the court
entering the order, for the duration of any protective order referred to
herein. A violation of this section is a Class 1 misdemeanor.
2. That the provisions of this act may result in a net
increase in periods of imprisonment or commitment. Pursuant to §30-19.1:4, the
estimated amount of the necessary appropriation is at least $23,197 for periods
of imprisonment in state adult correctional facilities and cannot be determined
for periods of commitment to the custody of the Department of Juvenile Justice.
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