{"formats":[{"name":"JSON","format":"json","url":"\/downloads\/2025\/code-json\/18.2-67.9_1.json"},{"name":"Plain Text","format":"text","url":"\/downloads\/2025\/code-text\/18.2-67.9_1.txt"},{"name":"XML","format":"xml","url":"\/downloads\/2025\/code-xml\/18.2-67.9_1.xml"},{"name":"HTML","format":"html","url":"\/downloads\/2025\/code-html\/18.2-67.9_1.html"}],"law_id":57944,"edition_id":1,"section_id":57944,"structure_id":13101,"section_number":"18.2-67.9:1","catch_line":"Use of a certified facility dog for testimony in a criminal proceeding","history":"2018, cc. 524, 699.","full_text":"A\n\nAs used in this section, “certified facility dog” means a dog that (i) has completed training and been certified by a program accredited by Assistance Dogs International or by another assistance dog organization that is a member of an organization whose main purpose is to improve training, placement, and utilization of assistance dogs and (ii) is accompanied by a duly trained handler.B\n\nIn any criminal proceeding, including preliminary hearings, the attorney for the Commonwealth or the defendant may apply for an order from the court allowing a certified facility dog to be present with a witness testifying before the court through in-person testimony or testimony televised by two-way closed-circuit television pursuant to § 18.2-67.9.C\n\nThe court may enter an order authorizing a dog to accompany a witness while testifying at a hearing in accordance with subsection B if the court finds by a preponderance of the evidence that:1\n\nThe dog to be used qualifies as a certified facility dog;2\n\nThe use of a certified facility dog will aid the witness in providing his testimony; and3\n\nThe presence and use of the certified facility dog will not interfere with or distract from the testimony or proceedings.D\n\nThe party seeking such order shall apply for the order at least 14 days before the preliminary hearing, trial date, or other hearing to which the order is to apply.E\n\nThe court may make such orders as necessary to preserve the fairness of the proceeding, including imposing restrictions on and instructing the jury regarding the presence of the certified facility dog during the proceedings.F\n\nNothing contained in this section shall prevent the court from providing any other accommodations to a witness as provided by law.","order_by":null,"text":{"0":{"id":212208,"text":"As used in this section, “certified facility dog” means a dog that (i) has completed training and been certified by a program accredited by Assistance Dogs International or by another assistance dog organization that is a member of an organization whose main purpose is to improve training, placement, and utilization of assistance dogs and (ii) is accompanied by a duly trained handler.","type":"section","prefixes":["A"],"prefix":"A","entire_prefix":"A","prefix_anchor":"A","level":1,"next_prefix":"B"},"1":{"id":212209,"text":"In any criminal proceeding, including preliminary hearings, the attorney for the Commonwealth or the defendant may apply for an order from the court allowing a certified facility dog to be present with a witness testifying before the court through in-person testimony or testimony televised by two-way closed-circuit television pursuant to § 18.2-67.9.","type":"section","prefixes":["B"],"prefix":"B","entire_prefix":"B","prefix_anchor":"B","level":1,"prior_prefix":"A","next_prefix":"C"},"2":{"id":212210,"text":"The court may enter an order authorizing a dog to accompany a witness while testifying at a hearing in accordance with subsection B if the court finds by a preponderance of the evidence that:","type":"section","prefixes":["C"],"prefix":"C","entire_prefix":"C","prefix_anchor":"C","level":1,"prior_prefix":"B","next_prefix":"C1"},"3":{"id":212211,"text":"The dog to be used qualifies as a certified facility dog;","type":"section","prefixes":["C","1"],"prefix":"1","entire_prefix":"C1","prefix_anchor":"C1","level":2,"prior_prefix":"C","next_prefix":"C2"},"4":{"id":212212,"text":"The use of a certified facility dog will aid the witness in providing his testimony; and","type":"section","prefixes":["C","2"],"prefix":"2","entire_prefix":"C2","prefix_anchor":"C2","level":2,"prior_prefix":"C1","next_prefix":"C3"},"5":{"id":212213,"text":"The presence and use of the certified facility dog will not interfere with or distract from the testimony or proceedings.","type":"section","prefixes":["C","3"],"prefix":"3","entire_prefix":"C3","prefix_anchor":"C3","level":2,"prior_prefix":"C2","next_prefix":"D"},"6":{"id":212214,"text":"The party seeking such order shall apply for the order at least 14 days before the preliminary hearing, trial date, or other hearing to which the order is to apply.","type":"section","prefixes":["D"],"prefix":"D","entire_prefix":"D","prefix_anchor":"D","level":1,"prior_prefix":"C3","next_prefix":"E"},"7":{"id":212215,"text":"The court may make such orders as necessary to preserve the fairness of the proceeding, including imposing restrictions on and instructing the jury regarding the presence of the certified facility dog during the proceedings.","type":"section","prefixes":["E"],"prefix":"E","entire_prefix":"E","prefix_anchor":"E","level":1,"prior_prefix":"D","next_prefix":"F"},"8":{"id":212216,"text":"Nothing contained in this section shall prevent the court from providing any other accommodations to a witness as provided by law.","type":"section","prefixes":["F"],"prefix":"F","entire_prefix":"F","prefix_anchor":"F","level":1,"prior_prefix":"E"}},"ancestry":[{"id":13101,"edition_id":1,"name":"Criminal Sexual Assault","identifier":"7","label":"article","depth":3,"order_by":1,"parent_id":13100,"metadata":{},"date_created":"2026-06-26 03:44:17","date_modified":"2026-06-26 03:44:17","permalink":{"id":165125,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":13101,"identifier":"7","token":"18.2\/4\/7","url":"\/18.2\/4\/7\/","edition_id":1,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}},{"id":13100,"edition_id":1,"name":"Crimes Against the Person","identifier":"4","label":"chapter","depth":2,"order_by":1,"parent_id":12972,"metadata":{},"date_created":"2026-06-26 03:44:17","date_modified":"2026-06-26 03:44:17","permalink":{"id":164763,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":13100,"identifier":"4","token":"18.2\/4","url":"\/18.2\/4\/","edition_id":1,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}},{"id":12972,"edition_id":1,"name":"Crimes and Offenses Generally","identifier":"18.2","label":"title","depth":1,"order_by":1,"parent_id":null,"metadata":{},"date_created":"2026-06-26 03:44:05","date_modified":"2026-06-26 03:44:05","permalink":{"id":164139,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":12972,"identifier":"18.2","token":"18.2","url":"\/18.2\/","edition_id":1,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}}],"structure_contents":[{"id":75662,"structure_id":13101,"section_number":"18.2-61","catch_line":"Rape","url":"\/18.2-61\/","token":"18.2\/4\/7\/18.2-61","metadata":false},{"id":78807,"structure_id":13101,"section_number":"18.2-61.1","catch_line":"Testing of certain persons for sexually transmitted infections","url":"\/18.2-61.1\/","token":"18.2\/4\/7\/18.2-61.1","metadata":false},{"id":67245,"structure_id":13101,"section_number":"18.2-62","catch_line":"Repealed","url":"\/18.2-62\/","token":"18.2\/4\/7\/18.2-62","metadata":false},{"id":76651,"structure_id":13101,"section_number":"18.2-63","catch_line":"Carnal knowledge of child between thirteen and fifteen years of age","url":"\/18.2-63\/","token":"18.2\/4\/7\/18.2-63","metadata":false},{"id":54142,"structure_id":13101,"section_number":"18.2-63.1","catch_line":"Death of victim","url":"\/18.2-63.1\/","token":"18.2\/4\/7\/18.2-63.1","metadata":false},{"id":61006,"structure_id":13101,"section_number":"18.2-64","catch_line":"Repealed","url":"\/18.2-64\/","token":"18.2\/4\/7\/18.2-64","metadata":false},{"id":67558,"structure_id":13101,"section_number":"18.2-64.1","catch_line":"Carnal knowledge of certain minors","url":"\/18.2-64.1\/","token":"18.2\/4\/7\/18.2-64.1","metadata":false},{"id":77968,"structure_id":13101,"section_number":"18.2-64.2","catch_line":"Carnal knowledge of a person detained or arrested by a law-enforcement officer or an inmate, parolee, probationer, juvenile detainee, pretrial defendant or posttrial offender, or confidential informant; 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This law was first created in 2018. The record of its establishment is cataloged in chapters 524<\/a> and 699<\/a> of that year\u2019s edition of \u201cActs of Assembly,\u201d the annual state publication listing all changes made to the Code of Virginia in that year.<\/p>","references":false,"refers_to":false,"permalink":{"id":165243,"object_type":"law","relational_id":57944,"identifier":"18.2-67.9:1","token":"18.2\/4\/7\/18.2-67.9_1","url":"\/18.2-67.9_1\/","edition_id":1,"permalink":0,"preferred":1},"url":"\/18.2-67.9_1\/","token":"18.2\/4\/7\/18.2-67.9_1","dublin_core":{"Title":"Use of a certified facility dog for testimony in a criminal proceeding","Type":"Text","Format":"text\/html","Identifier":"\u00a7 18.2-67.9:1","Relation":"Code of Virginia"},"html":"\n\t\t\t\t\t\t

A.<\/span> As used in this section, “certified facility dog<\/span>” means a dog that (i) has completed training and been certified by a program accredited by Assistance Dogs International or by another assistance dog organization that is a member of an organization whose main purpose is to improve training, placement, and utilization of assistance dogs and (ii) is accompanied by a duly trained handler. <\/i><\/a><\/p><\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t

B.<\/span> In any criminal proceeding, including preliminary hearings<\/span>, the attorney for the Commonwealth or the defendant<\/span> may apply for an order<\/span> from the court<\/span> allowing a certified facility dog<\/span> to be present with a witness<\/span> testifying before the court<\/span> through in-person testimony<\/span> or testimony<\/span> televised by two-way closed-circuit<\/span> television pursuant to § 18.2-67.9<\/a>. <\/i><\/a><\/p><\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t

C.<\/span> The court<\/span> may enter an order<\/span> authorizing a dog to accompany a witness<\/span> while testifying at a hearing<\/span> in accordance with subsection B if the court<\/span> finds by a preponderance of the evidence<\/span> that: <\/i><\/a><\/p><\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t

1.<\/span> The dog to be used qualifies as a certified facility dog<\/span>; <\/i><\/a><\/p><\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t

2.<\/span> The use of a certified facility dog<\/span> will aid the witness<\/span> in providing his testimony<\/span>; and <\/i><\/a><\/p><\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t

3.<\/span> The presence and use of the certified facility dog<\/span> will not interfere with or distract from the testimony<\/span> or proceedings. <\/i><\/a><\/p><\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t

D.<\/span> The party<\/span> seeking such order<\/span> shall apply for the order<\/span> at least 14 days before the preliminary hearing<\/span>, trial<\/span> date, or other hearing to which the order<\/span> is to apply. <\/i><\/a><\/p><\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t

E.<\/span> The court<\/span> may make such orders<\/span> as necessary to preserve the fairness of the proceeding, including imposing restrictions on and instructing the jury<\/span> regarding the presence of the certified facility dog<\/span> during the proceedings. <\/i><\/a><\/p><\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t

F.<\/span> Nothing contained in this section shall prevent the court<\/span> from providing any other accommodations to a witness<\/span> as provided by law<\/span>. <\/i><\/a><\/p><\/section>","plain_text":" CODE OF VIRGINIA\n\nUSE OF A CERTIFIED FACILITY DOG FOR TESTIMONY IN A CRIMINAL PROCEEDING (\u00a7\n18.2-67.9:1)\n\nA. As used in this section, “certified facility dog” means a dog\nthat (i) has completed training and been certified by a program accredited by\nAssistance Dogs International or by another assistance dog organization that is\na member of an organization whose main purpose is to improve training,\nplacement, and utilization of assistance dogs and (ii) is accompanied by a duly\ntrained handler.\n\nB. In any criminal proceeding, including preliminary hearings, the attorney for\nthe Commonwealth or the defendant may apply for an order from the court allowing\na certified facility dog to be present with a witness testifying before the\ncourt through in-person testimony or testimony televised by two-way\nclosed-circuit television pursuant to § 18.2-67.9.\n\nC. The court may enter an order authorizing a dog to accompany a witness while\ntestifying at a hearing in accordance with subsection B if the court finds by a\npreponderance of the evidence that:\n\n 1. The dog to be used qualifies as a certified facility dog;\n\n 2. The use of a certified facility dog will aid the witness in providing his\n testimony; and\n\n 3. The presence and use of the certified facility dog will not interfere with\n or distract from the testimony or proceedings.\n\nD. The party seeking such order shall apply for the order at least 14 days\nbefore the preliminary hearing, trial date, or other hearing to which the order\nis to apply.\n\nE. The court may make such orders as necessary to preserve the fairness of the\nproceeding, including imposing restrictions on and instructing the jury\nregarding the presence of the certified facility dog during the proceedings.\n\nF. Nothing contained in this section shall prevent the court from providing any\nother accommodations to a witness as provided by law.\n\nHISTORY: 2018, cc. 524, 699.","edition":{"id":1,"name":"2025","slug":"2025","date_created":"2026-06-21 22:39:22","date_modified":"2026-06-21 22:39:22","current":1,"order_by":1,"last_import":null}}