Activists worry about Republican crime proposals in House of Delegates

Activists who fought for criminal justice and police reforms in Virginia after the 2020 police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis are worried that their progress could be rolled back by the new Republican majority in the state’s House of Delegates.

After Floyd’s killing sparked months of protests around the country, Virginia’s legislature – then controlled by Democrats – passed a sweeping package of reforms, including legislation banning the use of chokeholds and no-knock search warrants; a law that calls for mental health specialists to have a prominent role in responding to people in crisis; and a measure aimed at demilitarizing police departments by prohibiting the acquisition of certain weapons and equipment.

Virginia, a state that had executed more people in its long history than any other, also approved legislation to end capital punishment, a law that seemed to complete a dramatic turnaround on criminal justice reform.

But after taking control of the House in the November election, Republicans in one chamber have proposed bills to roll back some of the measures rammed through by Democrats in the last session. Their proposed rollbacks include bills that would restore the ability of police to get no-knock search warrants, and to stop motorists for minor infractions such as operating without brake lights or driving with defective equipment. Another Republican-sponsored bill would reinstate the death penalty for the killing of law enforcement officers.

Republicans also have proposed repealing a series of more restrictive gun laws passed by Democrats, including a red-flag law that allows guns to be seized if a gun owner is deemed to be a threat to himself or others.

Republican leaders, however, say they are trying to correct Democratic reforms that were opposed by police and by many Virginians who later voted Republicans into office.

Any legislation passed by the House of Delegates will have to pass the Democrat controlled Senate before heading to Governor Youngkin’s desk.

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