A tip of my hat, and I would appreciate a link to that information so I can refer it to others who might besmirsh the good name of the Commonwealth of Virginia...
BTW...
"Any law-enforcement officer enumerated in § 19.2-81 may, in the course of acting upon reasonable suspicion that an individual has committed or is committing a crime"
...does that include the crime of being here illegally ?
Here's a link:
http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+19.2-81.6
(Perhaps those who live in other states could write their elected state officials with the text of this law and suggest that they consider one like it?)
As to whether the crime the law refers to includes the crime of being here illegally--the law doesn't say.
Since being here illegally *IS* a crime, I would have to say that it does, simply because the law makes no exclusion or exception for that crime.
I looked up the definition of "reasonable suspicion". As it states below, for "reasonable suspicion" it is not necessary for the police to "articulate or identify a specific crime they think is being committed":
Terry v. Ohio (1968), an 8-1 decision with only Justice Douglas dissenting, gave police the right to temporarily detain somebody if there are specific articulable facts leading a reasonable police officer to believe a crime might be occurring. This standard is known as "reasonable suspicion," although some people call it articulable suspicion or more than mere suspicion. It is not necessary for the officer to articulate or identify a specific crime they think is being committed, only that a set of factual circumstances exist that would lead a reasonable officer to believe that criminal activity is occurring. Note that arrest, search, and seizure require probable cause, or what a "reasonable person" would believe. Stop and frisk, by contrast, requires what a "reasonable officer" would believe. Reasonable suspicion is one step below probable cause and one step above a hunch.
As one example of what is considered reasonable suspicion, if I am a police officer and I am patrolling a high-crime area, and someone sees my police cruiser and runs away, that is "reasonable suspicion".
I am allowed at that point to chase and then frisk the person once I have caught them. Any evidence found at that point will stand up in court. I suppose with the Virginia law at this point I can detain the suspect while I confirm with the feds whether they are an illegal alien with a felony conviction.
If they do not run away and I instead speak with them and ask them questions--if their answers are inconsistent or they "keep changing their story" (as many criminals seem to do...perhaps not bright enough to keep a consistent lie going??), that is also reasonable suspicion and I can frisk them.