Last month, I wrote about my Lobby Day with The Virginia Interfaith Center for Public Policy to visit to our representatives at the General Assembly. This is Part 2 — astounding things quietly bumping around from committee to committee.
Did you know that it is legal for the investigators in the Sheriff’s Office or the State Police to lie to you? It is true. Use of misleading statements regarding witnesses and co-conspirators are legal during interrogation. Also, false promises of leniency and the use of inauthentic replica documents are commonplace.
Del. Jackie Glass (D-Norfolk) introduced HB250 this session to address this issue. Her bill does not seek to flatly outlaw these practices but only that the Department of Criminal Justice be given the “power and duty” to develop guidelines for the use of these methods in both custodial and noncustodial situations.
Localities would then be required to adopt regulations at least as strong as the guidelines and train their staff by the end of 2025. Doesn’t seem like much of an ask to me, but Delegates Buddy Fowler (R-Hanover) and Scott Wyatt (R-Hanover) both voted nay on the bill in committee. The good news is that the bill made it to crossover and was on Gov. Youngkin’s desk at press time.
The second jaw-dropper was Sen. Jennifer Boysko’s (D-Herndon) bill, SB377, regarding campaign finance reform. Did you know that candidates running for the State Senate or the House of Delegates can use their donated campaign funds for anything they want? Yep, buy a boat, go to Disney World, golf clubs, clothes, mortgage on a vacation home whatever is desired.
Spending does not need to be related to seeking office; they only need disclose their expenditures. This has been an issue for years. A special subcommittee was appointed to study the issue in 2021, but it never met and the group is now inactive.
To his credit, Sen. John McGuire (R-Hanover) voted yea on this bill in committee. Ryan McDougle (R-Hanover) voted nay twice. Just before the end of session, the House Appropriations Committee, on a voice vote, decided to continue this bill to 2025.
Can’t let up on either of these. I’ll be watching with you in the 2025 Session.
