{"formats":[{"name":"JSON","format":"json","url":"\/downloads\/2025\/code-json\/23.1-809.json"},{"name":"Plain Text","format":"text","url":"\/downloads\/2025\/code-text\/23.1-809.txt"},{"name":"XML","format":"xml","url":"\/downloads\/2025\/code-xml\/23.1-809.xml"},{"name":"HTML","format":"html","url":"\/downloads\/2025\/code-html\/23.1-809.html"}],"law_id":60667,"edition_id":1,"section_id":60667,"structure_id":15765,"section_number":"23.1-809","catch_line":"Public institutions of higher education; establishment of campus police departments authorized; employment of officers","history":"1977, c. 79, \u00a7 23-232; 1991, c. 711; 1996, cc. 905, 1046; 2000, c. 720; 2009, c. 596; 2016, c. 588; 2023, cc. 756, 778.","full_text":"A\n\nThe governing board of each public institution of higher education may establish a campus police department and employ campus police officers and auxiliary police forces upon appointment as provided in §§ 23.1-811 and 23.1-812. Such employment is governed by the Virginia Personnel Act (§ 2.2-2900 et seq.), except that the governing board of a public institution of higher education may direct that the employment of the chief of the campus police department is not governed by the Virginia Personnel Act.B\n\nThe Virginia Commonwealth University Health System Authority may employ police officers and auxiliary police forces as provided in this article and in § 23.1-2406, except that the employment of such officers and forces is not governed by the Virginia Personnel Act (§ 2.2-2900 et seq.).","order_by":null,"text":{"0":{"id":221719,"text":"The governing board of each public institution of higher education may establish a campus police department and employ campus police officers and auxiliary police forces upon appointment as provided in §§ 23.1-811 and 23.1-812. Such employment is governed by the Virginia Personnel Act (§ 2.2-2900 et seq.), except that the governing board of a public institution of higher education may direct that the employment of the chief of the campus police department is not governed by the Virginia Personnel Act.","type":"section","prefixes":["A"],"prefix":"A","entire_prefix":"A","prefix_anchor":"A","level":1,"next_prefix":"B"},"1":{"id":221720,"text":"The Virginia Commonwealth University Health System Authority may employ police officers and auxiliary police forces as provided in this article and in § 23.1-2406, except that the employment of such officers and forces is not governed by the Virginia Personnel Act (§ 2.2-2900 et seq.).","type":"section","prefixes":["B"],"prefix":"B","entire_prefix":"B","prefix_anchor":"B","level":1,"prior_prefix":"A"}},"ancestry":[{"id":15765,"edition_id":1,"name":"Campus Safety; Campus Police Departments","identifier":"3","label":"article","depth":4,"order_by":1,"parent_id":15081,"metadata":{},"date_created":"2026-06-26 03:59:13","date_modified":"2026-06-26 03:59:13","permalink":{"id":185359,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":15765,"identifier":"3","token":"23.1\/II\/8\/3","url":"\/23.1\/II\/8\/3\/","edition_id":1,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}},{"id":15081,"edition_id":1,"name":"Health and Campus Safety","identifier":"8","label":"chapter","depth":3,"order_by":1,"parent_id":13112,"metadata":{},"date_created":"2026-06-26 03:52:03","date_modified":"2026-06-26 03:52:03","permalink":{"id":185297,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":15081,"identifier":"8","token":"23.1\/II\/8","url":"\/23.1\/II\/8\/","edition_id":1,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}},{"id":13112,"edition_id":1,"name":"Students and Campus","identifier":"II","label":"subtitle","depth":2,"order_by":1,"parent_id":13111,"metadata":{},"date_created":"2026-06-26 03:44:18","date_modified":"2026-06-26 03:44:18","permalink":{"id":184847,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":13112,"identifier":"II","token":"23.1\/II","url":"\/23.1\/II\/","edition_id":1,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}},{"id":13111,"edition_id":1,"name":"Institutions of Higher Education; Other Educational and Cultural Institutions","identifier":"23.1","label":"title","depth":1,"order_by":1,"parent_id":null,"metadata":{},"date_created":"2026-06-26 03:44:18","date_modified":"2026-06-26 03:44:18","permalink":{"id":184581,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":13111,"identifier":"23.1","token":"23.1","url":"\/23.1\/","edition_id":1,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}}],"structure_contents":[{"id":60667,"structure_id":15765,"section_number":"23.1-809","catch_line":"Public institutions of higher education; establishment of campus police departments authorized; employment of officers","url":"\/23.1-809\/","token":"23.1\/II\/8\/3\/23.1-809","metadata":false},{"id":78479,"structure_id":15765,"section_number":"23.1-810","catch_line":"Authorization for campus police departments in private institutions of higher education","url":"\/23.1-810\/","token":"23.1\/II\/8\/3\/23.1-810","metadata":false},{"id":62380,"structure_id":15765,"section_number":"23.1-811","catch_line":"Establishment of auxiliary police forces","url":"\/23.1-811\/","token":"23.1\/II\/8\/3\/23.1-811","metadata":false},{"id":74144,"structure_id":15765,"section_number":"23.1-812","catch_line":"Appointment of campus police officers and members of an auxiliary police force","url":"\/23.1-812\/","token":"23.1\/II\/8\/3\/23.1-812","metadata":false},{"id":69894,"structure_id":15765,"section_number":"23.1-813","catch_line":"Officers and members to comply with requirements of Department of Criminal Justice Services","url":"\/23.1-813\/","token":"23.1\/II\/8\/3\/23.1-813","metadata":false},{"id":85021,"structure_id":15765,"section_number":"23.1-814","catch_line":"Termination of employment of campus police officers and members of auxiliary police forces","url":"\/23.1-814\/","token":"23.1\/II\/8\/3\/23.1-814","metadata":false},{"id":80452,"structure_id":15765,"section_number":"23.1-815","catch_line":"Campus police forces and auxiliary police forces; powers and duties; jurisdiction","url":"\/23.1-815\/","token":"23.1\/II\/8\/3\/23.1-815","metadata":false},{"id":71082,"structure_id":15765,"section_number":"23.1-815.1","catch_line":"(Effective July 1, 2026) Facial recognition technology; approval","url":"\/23.1-815.1\/","token":"23.1\/II\/8\/3\/23.1-815.1","metadata":false},{"id":77447,"structure_id":15765,"section_number":"23.1-816","catch_line":"Extending police power of public institutions of higher education beyond boundaries; jurisdiction of general district courts; duty of attorneys for the Commonwealth","url":"\/23.1-816\/","token":"23.1\/II\/8\/3\/23.1-816","metadata":false},{"id":72320,"structure_id":15765,"section_number":"23.1-817","catch_line":"Inspection of criminal incident information","url":"\/23.1-817\/","token":"23.1\/II\/8\/3\/23.1-817","metadata":false},{"id":66978,"structure_id":15765,"section_number":"23.1-818","catch_line":"Security departments and other security services","url":"\/23.1-818\/","token":"23.1\/II\/8\/3\/23.1-818","metadata":false}],"next_section":{"id":78479,"structure_id":15765,"section_number":"23.1-810","catch_line":"Authorization for campus police departments in private institutions of higher education","url":"\/23.1-810\/","token":"23.1\/II\/8\/3\/23.1-810","metadata":false},"metadata":false,"official_url":"https:\/\/law.lis.virginia.gov\/vacode\/23.1-809\/","history_text":"

This law was first created in 1977. The record of its establishment is cataloged in chapter 79 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. Unfortunately, the 1977 \u201cActs\u201d aren\u2019t available online. It has been modified 6 times. Those modifications are cataloged by \u201cThe Acts of Assembly,\u201d a state publication, by year and chapter. Those modifications that can be read on the General Assembly\u2019s website will be linked accordingly. Those modifications are as follows: in 1991, chapter 711; in 1996, chapters 905<\/a> and 1046<\/a>; in 2000, chapter 720<\/a>; in 2009, chapter 596<\/a>; in 2016, chapter 588<\/a>; in 2023, chapters 756<\/a> and 778<\/a>.<\/p>","references":[{"id":61487,"section_number":"15.2-1721.1","catch_line":"Acquisition of military property by localities","order_by":null,"url":"\/15.2-1721.1\/"},{"id":77788,"section_number":"18.2-308.016","catch_line":"Retired law-enforcement officers; carrying a concealed handgun","order_by":null,"url":"\/18.2-308.016\/"},{"id":80010,"section_number":"18.2-308.2:2","catch_line":"Criminal history record information check required for the transfer of certain firearms","order_by":null,"url":"\/18.2-308.2_2\/"},{"id":59094,"section_number":"19.2-201","catch_line":"Officers to give information of violation of penal laws to attorney for Commonwealth","order_by":null,"url":"\/19.2-201\/"},{"id":60675,"section_number":"19.2-81","catch_line":"Arrest without warrant authorized in certain cases","order_by":null,"url":"\/19.2-81\/"},{"id":86739,"section_number":"19.2-81.3","catch_line":"Arrest without a warrant authorized in cases of assault and battery against a family or household member and stalking and for violations of protective orders; procedure, etc","order_by":null,"url":"\/19.2-81.3\/"},{"id":64223,"section_number":"2.2-2905","catch_line":"Certain officers and employees exempt from chapter","order_by":null,"url":"\/2.2-2905\/"},{"id":76628,"section_number":"2.2-3706","catch_line":"(Effective July 1, 2026) Disclosure of law-enforcement and criminal records; limitations","order_by":null,"url":"\/2.2-3706\/"},{"id":62575,"section_number":"2.2-3802","catch_line":"Systems to which chapter inapplicable","order_by":null,"url":"\/2.2-3802\/"},{"id":66142,"section_number":"23.1-1011","catch_line":"Covered institutions; operational authority; campus police","order_by":null,"url":"\/23.1-1011\/"},{"id":76209,"section_number":"23.1-2406","catch_line":"Additional powers of the Authority; police","order_by":null,"url":"\/23.1-2406\/"},{"id":56359,"section_number":"23.1-405","catch_line":"Student records and personal information; social media","order_by":null,"url":"\/23.1-405\/"},{"id":87358,"section_number":"23.1-609","catch_line":"Surviving spouses and children of certain individuals; tuition and fee waivers","order_by":null,"url":"\/23.1-609\/"},{"id":79931,"section_number":"23.1-806","catch_line":"Reporting of acts of sexual violence","order_by":null,"url":"\/23.1-806\/"},{"id":86530,"section_number":"51.1-212","catch_line":"Definitions","order_by":null,"url":"\/51.1-212\/"},{"id":86761,"section_number":"52-34.7","catch_line":"Definitions","order_by":null,"url":"\/52-34.7\/"},{"id":85471,"section_number":"59.1-148.3","catch_line":"Purchase of handguns or other weapons of certain officers","order_by":null,"url":"\/59.1-148.3\/"},{"id":58233,"section_number":"65.2-107","catch_line":"Post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety disorder, or depressive disorder incurred by law-enforcement officers and firefighters","order_by":null,"url":"\/65.2-107\/"},{"id":59437,"section_number":"65.2-402","catch_line":"Presumption as to death or disability from respiratory disease, hypertension or heart disease, cancer","order_by":null,"url":"\/65.2-402\/"},{"id":85102,"section_number":"65.2-402.1","catch_line":"Presumption as to death or disability from infectious disease","order_by":null,"url":"\/65.2-402.1\/"},{"id":73488,"section_number":"9.1-101","catch_line":"(Effective July 1, 2026) Definitions","order_by":null,"url":"\/9.1-101\/"},{"id":73196,"section_number":"9.1-161","catch_line":"Crime prevention specialists; duties","order_by":null,"url":"\/9.1-161\/"},{"id":70227,"section_number":"9.1-601","catch_line":"Law-enforcement civilian oversight bodies","order_by":null,"url":"\/9.1-601\/"},{"id":54070,"section_number":"9.1-801","catch_line":"Public safety officer defined","order_by":null,"url":"\/9.1-801\/"}],"refers_to":[{"id":65778,"section_number":"2.2-2900","catch_line":"Short title; purpose","order_by":null,"url":"\/2.2-2900\/"},{"id":76209,"section_number":"23.1-2406","catch_line":"Additional powers of the Authority; police","order_by":null,"url":"\/23.1-2406\/"},{"id":62380,"section_number":"23.1-811","catch_line":"Establishment of auxiliary police forces","order_by":null,"url":"\/23.1-811\/"},{"id":74144,"section_number":"23.1-812","catch_line":"Appointment of campus police officers and members of an auxiliary police force","order_by":null,"url":"\/23.1-812\/"}],"permalink":{"id":185361,"object_type":"law","relational_id":60667,"identifier":"23.1-809","token":"23.1\/II\/8\/3\/23.1-809","url":"\/23.1-809\/","edition_id":1,"permalink":0,"preferred":1},"url":"\/23.1-809\/","token":"23.1\/II\/8\/3\/23.1-809","dublin_core":{"Title":"Public institutions of higher education; establishment of campus police departments authorized; employment of officers","Type":"Text","Format":"text\/html","Identifier":"\u00a7 23.1-809","Relation":"Code of Virginia"},"html":"\n\t\t\t\t\t\t

A.<\/span> The governing board<\/span> of each public institution of higher education<\/span> may establish a campus police department and employ campus police officers and auxiliary police forces upon appointment as provided in §§ 23.1-811<\/a> and 23.1-812<\/a>. Such employment is governed by the Virginia Personnel Act (§ 2.2-2900<\/a> et seq.), except that the governing board<\/span> of a public institution of higher education<\/span> may direct that the employment of the chief of the campus police department is not governed by the Virginia Personnel Act. <\/i><\/a><\/p><\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t

B.<\/span> The Virginia Commonwealth University Health System<\/span> Authority may employ police officers and auxiliary police forces as provided in this article and in § 23.1-2406<\/a>, except that the employment of such officers and forces is not governed by the Virginia Personnel Act (§ 2.2-2900<\/a> et seq.). <\/i><\/a><\/p><\/section>","plain_text":" CODE OF VIRGINIA\n\nPUBLIC INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER EDUCATION; ESTABLISHMENT OF CAMPUS POLICE\nDEPARTMENTS AUTHORIZED; EMPLOYMENT OF OFFICERS (\u00a7 23.1-809)\n\nA. The governing board of each public institution of higher education may\nestablish a campus police department and employ campus police officers and\nauxiliary police forces upon appointment as provided in §§ 23.1-811\nand 23.1-812. Such employment is governed by the Virginia Personnel Act (§\n2.2-2900 et seq.), except that the governing board of a public institution of\nhigher education may direct that the employment of the chief of the campus\npolice department is not governed by the Virginia Personnel Act.\n\nB. The Virginia Commonwealth University Health System Authority may employ\npolice officers and auxiliary police forces as provided in this article and in\n§ 23.1-2406, except that the employment of such officers and forces is not\ngoverned by the Virginia Personnel Act (§ 2.2-2900 et seq.).\n\nHISTORY: 1977, c. 79, \u00a7 23-232; 1991, c. 711; 1996, cc. 905, 1046; 2000, c.\n720; 2009, c. 596; 2016, c. 588; 2023, cc. 756, 778.","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}}