§ 18.2-153 Obstructing or injuring canal, railroad, power line, etc
If any person maliciously obstruct, remove or injure any part of a canal, railroad or urban, suburban or interurban electric railway, or any lines of any electric power company, or any bridge or fixture thereof, or maliciously obstruct, tamper with, injure or remove any machinery, engine, car, trolley, supply or return wires or any other work thereof, or maliciously open, close, displace, tamper with or injure any switch, switch point, switch lever, signal lever or signal of any such company, whereby the life of any person on such canal, railroad, urban, suburban or interurban electric railway, is put in peril, he shall be guilty of a Class 4 felony; and, in the event of the death of any such person resulting from such malicious act, the person so offending shall be deemed guilty of murder, the degree to be determined by the jury or the court trying the case without a jury. If any such act be committed unlawfully, but not maliciously, the person so offending shall be guilty of a Class 6 felony; and in the event of the death of any such person resulting from such unlawful act, the person so offending shall be deemed guilty of involuntary manslaughter.
History
The record of this law’s original creation isn’t available online. It has been modified 2 times. Those modifications are cataloged by “The Acts of Assembly,” a state publication, by year and chapter. Those modifications that can be read on the General Assembly’s website will be linked accordingly. Those modifications are as follows: in 1960, chapter 358; in 1975, chapters 14 and 15.
Code 1950, § 18.1-147; 1960, c. 358; 1975, cc. 14, 15.