When the 2021 Virginia General Assembly opens on Jan. 13, criminal justice reform, a major issue in last year’s session, will be back front and center. A group of progressive Virginia prosecutors has united behind a five-point agenda for the ...

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The possibility of five open seats on an expanded Court of Appeals of Virginia has produced a field of 26 applicants for evaluation by Virginia lawyers. The list includes judges and lawyers who have applied before for openings on the ...

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The Supreme Court of Virginia has refused to consider whether Arlington County circuit judges improperly curbed prosecutors’ discretion to drop criminal charges. The decision arose from the tension in some Virginia courts between progressive prosecutors determined not to pursue minor ...

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A long-dormant proposal to expand the Court of Appeals of Virginia suddenly became a flashpoint issue this month as General Assembly Democrats prepared to fill an expected four new judicial seats while Republicans derided the initiative as a liberal “pack-the-court” ...

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Richmond-area lawyers spoke up this month in support of a Chesterfield County general district judge fighting to win another term despite low performance scores and vocal community opposition. Judge Pamela O’Berry’s bid for a third six-year term led to more ...

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A momentous change in Virginia criminal procedure almost went unnoticed at first. An end to jury sentencing for criminal defendants won final approval from the House of Delegates on a Friday evening as the General Assembly brought its pandemic-driven special ...

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After a decade of nuanced judicial refinements to the standard for deferring dispositions for criminal defendants, the General Assembly has agreed to give judges nearly unfettered discretion to delay criminal judgments for later consideration. The reform given final approval Oct. ...

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(AP) Virginia Democrats say they are looking to make transformational change to the state’s criminal justice system — just a few months after taking a far less ambitious approach. The killing of George Floyd and widespread protests over police violence ...

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Both the House and Senate unan­imously passed identical legislation this month to remove the risk of sur­prise hospital bills for some Virginians. Surprise bills, or “balance billing,” of­ten occur when patients seek emergen­cy care at an out-of-network hospital, or receive ...

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Twenty-five years after Virginia abolished parole, hundreds of inmates will be eligible for release under a bill recently signed by the governor. Sponsored by Del. Joseph Lindsey, D-Norfolk, House Bill 35 would grant parole eligibility for individuals sentenced to prison ...

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