Del. C. Todd Gilbert, R-Woodstock, introduced legislation on Thursday that could give localities a cheaper option in protecting school children. Gilbert filed House Bill 2277, which would change the definition of "school security officer" to refer only to qualified former and retired law enforcement officers, and would provide armed security at all public schools.
Virginia and its localities' reliance on federal money may cost them the horse race if those sources dry up, a state legislator warns. Del. C. Todd Gilbert, R-Woodstock, filed a resolution in the current General Assembly directing the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission to study the amount of federal revenue that Virginia receives annually at the state and local level by functional area and to determine the funds' importance and impact.
Del. C. Todd Gilbert, R-Shenandoah, and the ACLU of Virginia are working on legislation to regulate the use of unmanned aircraft in Virginia. During a May 29 radio appearance, Gov. Bob McDonnell signaled that he is open to the domestic use of drones in law enforcement. That triggered a statement of concern from a civil-liberties group about the threat to privacy, but the use of drones by state police does not appear imminent.
Virginia has drones to thank for a new political odd couple: Del. Todd C. Gilbert (R-Shenandoah), one of the most conservative members of the Virginia House, and the ACLU of Virginia. The deputy House majority leader and the American Civil Liberties Union announced Thursday that they are working together on legislation to regulate the use of the pilotless aircraft by police. Gilbert and the ACLU have more often butted heads — most recently over a Gilbert-sponsored bill allowing state-funded private adoption agencies to turn away prospective parents if they objected to their sexual orientation or religion.
Mary Devoy doesn't like the idea of dangerous rapists roaming the streets, doesn't want child molesters wandering the halls of schools. But as the executive director of Reform Sex Offender Laws of Virginia, Devoy knows most people think the worst. Devoy has spent more than three years lobbying the General Assembly on behalf of the state's nearly 19,000 registered sex offenders.
It used to be easier to end debate in the Virginia General Assembly. A legislator — in the majority party, of course — fed up with the heated rhetoric on any issue simply made a motion. There was a quick vote. Voila. It’s over.But these days, the debate can drag on — and on. In this legislative session more than any other — particularly in the younger, rowdier House of Delegates — lawmakers who want to be heard when they’re denied speaking time take to the Twitterverse.
The only elected officials who really have the power to stop the regional jail train are the Shenandoah County Board of Supervisors, Del. Todd Gilbert, R-Woodstock, said Monday. Several residents exhorted the Board of Supervisors last week to back out of the RSW (Rappahannock, Shenandoah, Warren) Regional Jail project, which is expected to cost $72 million in construction and related expenses.
For the fifth year in a row, the Virginia General Assembly has rejected legislation to expand the state's death penalty law. The Senate Courts of Justice Committee voted 8-6, with one abstention, on Wednesday to kill a proposal to allow the death penalty for accomplices who share a murderer's intent to kill.
For the second day in a row, the House of Delegates on Tuesday delayed final votes on a number of issues, including a bill to require women to undergo an ultrasound prior to an abortion.
With hundreds protesting outside the Capitol, multiple contentious bills that appeared poised for final passage today were delayed by the state’s House of Delegates.