Posted on 01/07/2020 10:40:25 AM PST by oldvirginian
HOUSE BILL NO. 568
Offered January 8, 2020
Prefiled January 6, 2020
A BILL to amend and reenact § 18.2-308 of the Code of Virginia and to amend the Code of Virginia by adding in Article 4 of Chapter 7 of Title 18.2 a section numbered 18.2-287.5, relating to carrying or storing firearms in motor vehicles and vessels; exceptions; penalty.
Patron-- Helmer
Committee Referral Pending
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. That § 18.2-308 of the Code of Virginia is amended and reenacted and that the Code of Virginia is amended by adding in Article 4 of Chapter 7 of Title 18.2 a section numbered 18.2-287.5 as follows:
§ 18.2-287.5. Carrying or storing firearms in motor vehicles and vessels; exceptions; penalty.
A. Any person possessing or storing a firearm in a motor vehicle or vessel shall secure such firearm in a locked container, other than a glove box, that is not within the dominion and control of or readily accessible for prompt and immediate use by any person within the motor vehicle.
B. The provisions of this section shall not apply to law-enforcement officers, licensed security guards, military personnel in the performance of their lawful duties, or any person having a valid concealed handgun permit.
C. Any person who violates this section is subject to a civil penalty not to exceed $2,500.
§ 18.2-308. Carrying concealed weapons; exceptions; penalty.
A. If any person carries about his person, hidden from common observation, (i) any pistol, revolver, or other weapon designed or intended to propel a missile of any kind by action of an explosion of any combustible material; (ii) any dirk, bowie knife, switchblade knife, ballistic knife, machete, razor, slingshot, spring stick, metal knucks, or blackjack; (iii) any flailing instrument consisting of two or more rigid parts connected in such a manner as to allow them to swing freely, which may be known as a nun chahka, nun chuck, nunchaku, shuriken, or fighting chain; (iv) any disc, of whatever configuration, having at least two points or pointed blades which is designed to be thrown or propelled and which may be known as a throwing star or oriental dart; or (v) any weapon of like kind as those enumerated in this subsection, he is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor. A second violation of this section or a conviction under this section subsequent to any conviction under any substantially similar ordinance of any county, city, or town shall be punishable as a Class 6 felony, and a third or subsequent such violation shall be punishable as a Class 5 felony. For the purpose of this section, a weapon shall be deemed to be hidden from common observation when it is observable but is of such deceptive appearance as to disguise the weapon's true nature. It shall be an affirmative defense to a violation of clause (i) regarding a handgun, that a person had been issued, at the time of the offense, a valid concealed handgun permit.
B. This section shall not apply to any person while in his own place of abode or the curtilage thereof.
C. Except as provided in subsection A of § 18.2-308.012, this section shall not apply to:
1. Any person while in his own place of business;
2. Any law-enforcement officer, or retired law-enforcement officer pursuant to § 18.2-308.016, wherever such law-enforcement officer may travel in the Commonwealth;
3. Any person who is at, or going to or from, an established shooting range, provided that the weapons are unloaded and securely wrapped while being transported;
4. Any regularly enrolled member of a weapons collecting organization who is at, or going to or from, a bona fide weapons exhibition, provided that the weapons are unloaded and securely wrapped while being transported;
5. Any person carrying such weapons between his place of abode and a place of purchase or repair, provided the weapons are unloaded and securely wrapped while being transported;
6. Any person actually engaged in lawful hunting, as authorized by the Board of Game and Inland Fisheries, under inclement weather conditions necessitating temporary protection of his firearm from those conditions, provided that possession of a handgun while engaged in lawful hunting shall not be construed as hunting with a handgun if the person hunting is carrying a valid concealed handgun permit;
7. Any attorney for the Commonwealth or assistant attorney for the Commonwealth, wherever such attorney may travel in the Commonwealth;
8. Any person who may lawfully possess a firearm and is carrying a handgun while in a personal, private motor vehicle or vessel and such handgun is secured in a container or compartment in the vehicle or vessel;
9. Any enrolled participant of a firearms training course who is at, or going to or from, a training location, provided that the weapons are unloaded and securely wrapped while being transported; and
10. 9. Any judge or justice of the Commonwealth, wherever such judge or justice may travel in the Commonwealth.
D. This section shall also not apply to any of the following individuals while in the discharge of their official duties, or while in transit to or from such duties:
1. Carriers of the United States mail;
2. Officers or guards of any state correctional institution;
3. Conservators of the peace, except that a judge or justice of the Commonwealth, an attorney for the Commonwealth, or an assistant attorney for the Commonwealth may carry a concealed handgun pursuant to subdivisions C 7 and 10 9. However, the following conservators of the peace shall not be permitted to carry a concealed handgun without obtaining a permit as provided in this article: (i) notaries public; (ii) registrars; (iii) drivers, operators, or other persons in charge of any motor vehicle carrier of passengers for hire; or (iv) commissioners in chancery;
4. Noncustodial employees of the Department of Corrections designated to carry weapons by the Director of the Department of Corrections pursuant to § 53.1-29; and
5. Harbormaster of the City of Hopewell.
“when is the march on richmond...”
Getting closer and closer.
Punk/Teen walks up to the car with a weapon...
You state...”Excuse me while I step out of the car, walk around to the trunk and unlock my weapon box”
WTF do you think will happen?
Virginia SUX. I need to move.
Thank you, Liberals. You have totally phucked up this state.
Oh, so concealed carry permit holders are exempt, CHILL OUT EVERYONE! Just a sensible.measure for our own good that the thugs and “gangstas” will happily comply. /sarc The frog in the pot of comfortably warm water comes to mind.
Works for me!
Damn....now I have feelings of inferiority.
And exactly how long does anyone think that concealed carry provision will stand?
Not long.
January 20.
The Virginia Citizens Defense League has buses running from all over the state.
Safeside Tactical is running buses from Roanoke and Lynchburg.
I’m going tomorrow to reserve my seat on the Lynchburg bus.
The NRA has a rally scheduled and the Virginia Citizens Defense League has a rally for 1/20. The VCDL has chartered buses for a large part of the state. Safeside Tactical has chartered buses from Roanoke and Lynchburg.
I’m on the Lynchburg bus.
Come on down and help us misbehave.
Of course it’s an effort to kill the second amendment with a thousand cuts which is sneakier.
Many of us predicted this would inevitably happen whey Virginia banned radar detectors.
We travel through anti-2A states often. To meet this requirement I bought a lock box from a sporting goods store specifically intended for this purpose. The box is then stored in the rear of the vehicle where it cannot be easily accessed. The gun is unloaded and stored in a separate lock box.
Now this is just stupid as Hell, but doing this will keep a person from getting a felony in these crappy states. The problem is states that had this dumb ass law on the books for years have crime skyrocket in certain parts of their state, which is all the more to be armed.
If all of VA’s antigun laws pass, crime will go up.
We travel to southern VA often and the folks we know are just plain good people. I truly feel sorry for them.
No state,county or municipality should be able to enact any laws connected to firearms. Only the US Congress should be allowed to do so and,of course,any law passed by Congress would be subject to the scrutiny of the Federal courts.
They know that law-abiding citizens will always obey the law, just as done in Australia and New Zealand. They also know the criminal Dem base cares nothing about laws.
“or any person having a valid concealed handgun permit.”
Wait for CCW permits to be reduced now too.
Daniel Helmer the new Dem VA legislator sponsoring this was sponsored by George Soros. A very interesting article on this and how our country is being turned blue/commie where leftist only privilege gets you the right of self defense.
https://www.jta.org/2019/11/08/politics/the-tell-what-we-learned-from-tuesdays-elections.
“Wait for CCW permits to be reduced now too.”
Reduced?
Done away with.
The Constitution means nothing to communists.
Not all lawyers are exempt, only commonwealth and assistant commonwealth attorneys (district attorneys/prosecutors).
That is the way it works in my State of New Jersey.
I have to transport in a locked container, with the ammunition in a separate, also locked container. Initially, the requirement was that the case be in the trunk, but that precluded transporting in a hatchback or wagon. So now the locked cases have to be stored where you cannot get at them.
Penalty for non-compliance to be as high as ten years in jail.
Yeah
but they do everything incrementally. They start with one tiny step and try to make it sound logical. And then they keep going and the sheep don’t even realize what is happening. That’s why any gun control whatsoever can’t be allowed to go forward. Or raising taxes or any other way of taking away our rights. They thought when they called them selves progressives they were being clever hiding the word liberals since that had a negative connotation. But it pretty much does describe them.
“Penalty for non-compliance to be as high as ten years in jail.”
Yeah, I remember a woman from PA ran afoul of that law a couple of years ago while traveling through Jersey. Sad state of affairs.
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