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DOJ giving states $231M for gun violence prevention programs
Read full article: DOJ giving states $231M for gun violence prevention programsThe Justice Department is sending out more than $200 million to help states and the District of Columbia administer “red-flag laws” and other crisis-intervention programs.
Bye, bye, balloons: Certain balloon releases prohibited in the Commonwealth
Read full article: Bye, bye, balloons: Certain balloon releases prohibited in the CommonwealthWith the Smith Mountain Lake Pirate Days event coming on July 16, the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources is reminding Virginia citizens of the new regulation that went into effect on July 1, which bans citizens from intentionally releasing or discarding any non-biodegradable or non-photodegradable balloons outdoors in the Commonwealth.
Marijuana, facial recognition, other laws take effect July 1
Read full article: Marijuana, facial recognition, other laws take effect July 1Most of the legislation passed earlier this year by the divided Virginia General Assembly and signed into law by Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin will take effect Friday.
Police begin enforcing Virginia’s new hands-free driving law
Read full article: Police begin enforcing Virginia’s new hands-free driving lawBEDFORD COUNTY, VA. – Virginia’s new hands-free driving law began Friday. It’s a new day for Bedford County Sheriff’s Office Cpl. “Outside of someone specifically saying, ‘yes, I was texting and driving,’ the law was almost unenforceable. Hands-free driving started Friday and now, driving with a phone in your hand for any reason is illegal. We saw one woman talking on her phone driving Interstate 81 with out-of-state tags.
New Virginia law requires officers to record persons race during traffic stop
Read full article: New Virginia law requires officers to record persons race during traffic stopThe next time you are pulled over in Virginia, an officer will have to write down your race because of a new law called the Community Policing Act. The bill, introduced by a delegate in northern Virginia a year ago, went into effect on July 1. According to the law, Virginia State Police will be in charge of collecting the data from law enforcement agencies in the commonwealth. Virginia State Police will take all the reported data collected annually and hand it over to the Department of Criminal Justice Services. Amherst County told 10 News theyll be sending reports to Virginia State Police every month.
President Trump to make animal cruelty a federal felony
Read full article: President Trump to make animal cruelty a federal felonyROANOKE, Va. – President Donald Trump is expected to sign the Preventing Animal Cruelty and Torture (PACT) Act into law on Monday. PACT is a bipartisan bill that criminalizes acts of animal cruelty, including crushing, burning, drowning and impaling animals, among other things. The president is expected to sign the bill at 4:30 p.m., according to his schedule. These crimes will now be considered federal felonies, allowing authorities to prosecute animal abusers who cross state lines. The bill also bans animal cruelty recorded on video.