A. The Superintendent of the State Police or the chief law-enforcement officer or sheriff of any county, city or town may designate one or more law-enforcement officers with appropriate technical training or expertise as a hostage and barricade communications specialist.
B. Each telephone company providing service to Virginia residents shall designate a department or one or more individuals to provide liaison with law-enforcement agencies for the purposes of this section and shall designate telephone numbers, not exceeding two, at which such law-enforcement liaison department or individual can be contacted.
C. The supervising law-enforcement officer, who has jurisdiction in any situation in which there is probable cause to believe that the criminal enterprise of hostage holding is occurring or that a person has barricaded himself within a structure and poses an immediate threat to the life, safety or property of himself or others, may order a telephone company, or a hostage and barricade communications specialist to interrupt, reroute, divert, or otherwise control any telephone communications service involved in the hostage or barricade situation for the purpose of preventing telephone communication by a hostage holder or barricaded person with any person other than a law-enforcement officer or a person authorized by the officer.
D. A hostage and barricade communication specialist shall be ordered to act under subsection C only if the telephone company providing service in the area has been contacted and requested to act under subsection C or an attempt to contact has been made, using the telephone company's designated liaison telephone numbers and:
1. The officer's attempt to contact after ten rings for each call is unsuccessful;
2. The telephone company declines to respond to the officer's request because of a threat of personal injury to its employees; or
3. The telephone company indicates when contacted that it will be unable to respond appropriately to the officer's request within a reasonable time from the receipt of the request.
E. The supervising law-enforcement officer may give an order under subsection C only after that supervising law-enforcement officer has given or attempted to give written notification or oral notification of the hostage or barricade situation to the telephone company providing service to the area in which it is occurring. If an order is given on the basis of an oral notice, the oral notice shall be followed by a written confirmation of that notice within forty-eight hours of the order.
F. Good faith reliance on an order by a supervising law-enforcement officer who has the real or apparent authority to issue an order under this section shall constitute a complete defense to any action against a telephone company or a telephone company employee that rises out of attempts by the telephone company or the employees of the telephone company to comply with such an order.
1992, c. 479.
Structure Code of Virginia
Title 18.2 - Crimes and Offenses Generally
Chapter 4 - Crimes Against the Person
§ 18.2-30. Murder and manslaughter declared felonies
§ 18.2-31. Aggravated murder defined; punishment
§ 18.2-32. First and second degree murder defined; punishment
§ 18.2-32.1. Murder of a pregnant woman; penalty
§ 18.2-32.2. Killing a fetus; penalty
§ 18.2-32.3. Human infant; independent and separate existence
§ 18.2-33. Felony homicide defined; punishment
§ 18.2-35. How voluntary manslaughter punished
§ 18.2-36. How involuntary manslaughter punished
§ 18.2-36.1. Certain conduct punishable as involuntary manslaughter
§ 18.2-36.2. Involuntary manslaughter; operating a watercraft while under the influence; penalties
§ 18.2-37. How and where homicide prosecuted and punished if death occur without the Commonwealth
§ 18.2-37.1. Certain matters not to constitute defenses
§ 18.2-40. Lynching deemed murder
§ 18.2-41. Shooting, stabbing, etc., with intent to maim, kill, etc., by mob
§ 18.2-42. Assault or battery by mob
§ 18.2-42.1. Acts of violence by mob
§ 18.2-43. Apprehension and prosecution of participants in lynching
§ 18.2-44. Civil liability for lynching
§ 18.2-45. Persons suffering death from mob attempting to lynch another person
§ 18.2-46.2. Prohibited criminal street gang participation; penalty
§ 18.2-46.3. Recruitment of persons for criminal street gang; penalty
§ 18.2-46.3:1. Third or subsequent conviction of criminal street gang crimes
§ 18.2-46.3:3. Enhanced punishment for gang activity taking place in a gang-free zone; penalties
§ 18.2-46.5. Committing, conspiring and aiding and abetting acts of terrorism prohibited; penalty
§ 18.2-46.7. Act of bioterrorism against agricultural crops or animals; penalty
§ 18.2-46.10. Violation of sections within article separate and distinct offenses
§ 18.2-47. Abduction and kidnapping defined; punishment
§ 18.2-48. Abduction with intent to extort money or for immoral purpose
§ 18.2-48.1. Abduction by prisoners or committed persons; penalty
§ 18.2-49. Threatening, attempting, or assisting in such abduction; penalty
§ 18.2-49.1. Violation of court order regarding custody and visitation; penalty
§ 18.2-50. Disclosure of information and assistance to law-enforcement officers required
§ 18.2-50.2. Emergency control of telephone service in hostage or barricaded person situation
§ 18.2-51. Shooting, stabbing, etc., with intent to maim, kill, etc.
§ 18.2-51.2. Aggravated malicious wounding; penalty
§ 18.2-51.4. Maiming, etc., of another resulting from driving while intoxicated
§ 18.2-51.6. Strangulation of another; penalty
§ 18.2-51.7. Female genital mutilation; penalty
§ 18.2-52.1. Possession of infectious biological substances or radiological agents; penalties
§ 18.2-52.2. Animal attack resulting from owner's disregard for human life; penalty
§ 18.2-53. Shooting, etc., in committing or attempting a felony
§ 18.2-53.1. Use or display of firearm in committing felony
§ 18.2-54. Conviction of lesser offenses under certain indictments
§ 18.2-54.1. Attempts to poison
§ 18.2-54.2. Adulteration of food, drink, drugs, cosmetics, etc.; penalty
§ 18.2-55.1. Hazing of youth gang members unlawful; criminal liability
§ 18.2-56. Hazing unlawful; civil and criminal liability; duty of school, etc., officials; penalty
§ 18.2-56.1. Reckless handling of firearms; reckless handling while hunting
§ 18.2-56.2. Allowing access to firearms by children; penalty
§ 18.2-57. Assault and battery; penalty
§ 18.2-57.01. Pointing laser at law-enforcement officer unlawful; penalty
§ 18.2-57.02. Disarming a law-enforcement or correctional officer; penalty
§ 18.2-57.2. Assault and battery against a family or household member; penalty
§ 18.2-57.4. Reporting findings of assault and battery to military family advocacy representatives
§ 18.2-57.5. Certain matters not to constitute defenses
§ 18.2-58.1. Carjacking; penalty
§ 18.2-59. Extortion of money, property or pecuniary benefit
§ 18.2-60.1. Threatening the Governor or his immediate family
§ 18.2-60.2. Members of the Governor's immediate family
§ 18.2-60.3. Stalking; penalty
§ 18.2-60.4. Violation of protective orders; penalty
§ 18.2-60.5. Unauthorized use of electronic tracking device; penalty
§ 18.2-63. Carnal knowledge of child between thirteen and fifteen years of age
§ 18.2-64.1. Carnal knowledge of certain minors
§ 18.2-67.2. Object sexual penetration; penalty
§ 18.2-67.3. Aggravated sexual battery; penalty
§ 18.2-67.4:1. Infected sexual battery; penalty
§ 18.2-67.4:2. Sexual abuse of a child under 15 years of age; penalty
§ 18.2-67.5:1. Punishment upon conviction of third misdemeanor offense
§ 18.2-67.5:2. Punishment upon conviction of certain subsequent felony sexual assault
§ 18.2-67.5:3. Punishment upon conviction of certain subsequent violent felony sexual assault
§ 18.2-67.6. Proof of physical resistance not required
§ 18.2-67.7. Admission of evidence (Supreme Court Rule 2:412 derived from this section)
§ 18.2-67.8. Closed preliminary hearings
§ 18.2-67.9. Testimony by child victims and witnesses using two-way closed-circuit television
§ 18.2-67.9:1. Use of a certified facility dog for testimony in a criminal proceeding
§ 18.2-67.10. General definitions
§ 18.2-71. Producing abortion or miscarriage, etc.; penalty
§ 18.2-71.1. Partial birth infanticide; penalty
§ 18.2-72. When abortion lawful during first trimester of pregnancy
§ 18.2-73. When abortion lawful during second trimester of pregnancy
§ 18.2-74. When abortion or termination of pregnancy lawful after second trimester of pregnancy
§ 18.2-74.1. Abortion, etc., when necessary to save life of woman
§ 18.2-76. Informed written consent required