COVINGTON, Va. – Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares has made his support for law enforcement very clear.
Whether it’s initiatives like Operation Bold Blue Line or Operation Ceasefire, Miyares’ office is dedicated to giving law enforcement the resources they need to succeed. He’s also made it a mission to listen to officers themselves on their concerns.
Alleghany County Sheriff Kevin Hall along with several other leaders in law enforcement met with A.G. Miyares on Monday for a roundtable discussion.
One of the big takeaways from the meeting was changing some of the laws that limit officers’ ability to police.
“When they can’t pull people over for certain things, that leads to people being able to transport drugs and guns. There are other crimes out here. Our officers, their hands are tied,” Hall said.
The other key takeaway for Miyares was urging the general assembly to pass a new state budget that invests more money into law enforcement.
“We have a large investment for both law enforcement and mental health services that’s being held up right now, in my opinion ... because of politics,” Miyares said.
The state has a $3.5 billion surplus, some of which would go towards recruiting more officers as several departments face shortages.
“We have openings, we have zero applications. This job is not as desirable as it was 37.5 years ago when I started,” Hall said.
Other agencies involved in the roundtable discussion were the Botetourt County Sheriff’s Office, the Highland County Sheriff’s Office, the Roanoke County Sheriff’s Office, the City of Lexington Police Department, and the City of Buena Vista Police Department.