Felony homicide; violation of felony drug offenses, penalty. (HB1638)
Introduced By
Del. Jackson Miller (R-Manassas)
Progress
✓ |
Introduced |
☐ |
Passed Committee |
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Passed House |
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Passed Senate |
☐ |
Signed by Governor |
☐ |
Became Law |
Description
Felony homicide; felony drug offenses; penalty. Provides that the killing of one accidentally, contrary to the intention of the parties, from the use of a controlled substance in violation of a felony drug offense involving the manufacture, sale, gift, distribution, or possession with the intent to manufacture, sell, give, or distribute a controlled substance, regardless of any lapse in time between the felony drug offense and the use of the controlled substance, is murder of the second degree and is punishable by confinement in a state correctional facility for not less than five years nor more than 40 years. The bill also provides that venue for a prosecution of this crime shall lie in the locality where the felony violation of 18.2-248 occurred, where the use of the controlled substance occurred, or where the death occurred. This bill overrules the Court of Appeals of Virginia decision in Woodard v. Commonwealth, 61 Va. App. 567, 739 S.E.2d 220 (2013), aff'd, 287 Va. 276, 754 S.E.2d 309 (2014). Read the Bill »
Status
02/04/2015: Merged into HB1427
History
| Date | Action |
|---|---|
| 01/09/2015 | Committee |
| 01/09/2015 | Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/14/15 15102290D |
| 01/09/2015 | Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice |
| 01/14/2015 | Impact statement from VCSC (HB1638) |
| 01/30/2015 | Assigned Courts sub: Criminal Law |
| 02/02/2015 | Subcommittee recommends incorporating (HB1427-Lingamfelter) |
| 02/04/2015 | Incorporated by Courts of Justice (HB1427-Lingamfelter) |
Comments
Please pass this bill! I am a mother who lost her daughter. My daughter thought she had purchased heroin but instead the dealer gave her pure fentanyl. Knowing that it would kill her. He murdered my child. Other's are not allowed to get away with murder, why should drug dealers be allowed to get away with it. I beg you on my family's be have and so many others dealing with the tragic loss of a child,parent,love one to pass this bill and the other 3 bills submitted. Maybe if we had the reversal overdose medication my daughter could have been saved. My daughter left behind a 4 year old daughter,that now has to deal with the aftermath from a dealer that killed her mother.
I beg you to pass this bill. Hold dealers accountable for their actions. My son, DannyRay, lost his life on June 13, 2014. The entire conversation with the drug dealer took place through text messages. We know who he is. He was recently arrested with herion to distribute, stolen property, breaking and entering. His Facebook accounts are directly linked to his phone number. There is video of him meeting yet the local prosecution says they can't do anything. That there are no laws. That my son made a choice. Yes he did make a choice and he is partly to blame but if there had been no dealer to buy from. If there had been no one willing to meet him and sell to him after his 8 months of being clean then he would be alive today. He was a bright young man with a future. He had just finished 13 credits in college with straight A's, he had a full time job and had gotten a promotion that morning, he had family that loved him beyond words. This dealer took his life along with the girl that solicited him to go buy drugs and then failed to call 911 when my son passed out and was having trouble breathing. She drove him to the drug buy. He had no vehicle or license. Both of these individuals should be charged yet the police and prosecuters say there is nothing they can do. These bills will help prevent another family from going through the hell of losing their child like me.
Hello Tamara,
I'm so sorry to hear about your loss. That is truly devastating. However, did you know that Delegate Miller is introducing a bill, HB 1647, that would require anyone who treats an overdose victim to report the name of the victim to the police? That would guarantee that people like your son or the girl in your story would NOT call 911 to report an overdose, because they know that they will be handed over to the police. If you want to prevent such a tragedy from happening to other people, Delegate Miller's bills are the wrong direction to go. Please also keep in mind that jailing one dealer will not keep drugs away - where there is demand, there will always be supply. If we cannot even keep drugs out of prison, it is unreasonable to think that we can keep them out of regular society. Again, I'm sorry for your loss, and hope you do not interpret my comments as anything less than respectful policy discussion. May you find peace in the new year.