Grand larceny & certain property crimes; increases threshold amount of money taken, etc., to $1,500. (SB102)
Introduced By
Sen. Jeremy McPike (D-Dale City) with support from co-patron Del. Kaye Kory (D-Falls Church)
Progress
✓ |
Introduced |
☐ |
Passed Committee |
☐ |
Passed House |
☐ |
Passed Senate |
☐ |
Signed by Governor |
☐ |
Became Law |
Description
Grand larceny; threshold. Increases from $200 to $1,500 the threshold amount of money taken or value of goods or chattel taken at which the crime rises from petit larceny to grand larceny. This bill was incorporated into SB 105. Read the Bill »
Status
01/15/2018: Incorporated into Another Bill
History
| Date | Action |
|---|---|
| 12/12/2017 | Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/10/18 18100934D |
| 12/12/2017 | Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice |
| 01/15/2018 | Incorporated by Courts of Justice (SB105-Suetterlein) (15-Y 0-N) (see vote tally) |
Comments
The ACLU of Virginia strongly supports SB102, which would raise the felony larceny threshold from $200 to $1,500. Virginia is spending valuable and limited resources prosecuting and incarcerating people for low-level felonies, resources that could be better directed to programs that keep communities safe. The majority of women’s arrests and subsequent incarcerations in Virginia are for shoplifting and larceny crimes. The General Assembly set a $200 felony larceny threshold in 1980, and has not adjusted it since. A felony for a low-level offense like theft of $300 can destroy a woman’s family, her chance at ever finding work again, her educational prospects, and, more significantly, increase the chance that she will be trapped in the revolving door of the criminal justice system. Virginia should follow the majority of states in the U.S. by raising the threshold and reserving the felony designation for more serious crimes. Statistically, this will result in fewer women being incarcerated in Virginia.
The ACLU of VA strongly supports this bill and raising the felony larceny threshold to $1,500. Many other states have raised their thresholds to $1,500 to $2,000 without seeing an increase in theft. VA needs to be smart on crime and develop real reforms that address the underlying causes of larceny - such as drug addiction, barriers to employment, and mental health issues.