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<law><site_title>Virginia Decoded</site_title><site_url>https://vacode.org</site_url><law_id>79594</law_id><section_number>18.2-461</section_number><catch_line>Falsely summoning or giving false reports to law-enforcement officials</catch_line><edition url="https://vacode.org/2025/" slug="2025" current="TRUE" last_updated="">2025</edition><referred_to_by><reference>18.2-287.5</reference></referred_to_by><structure><unit label="title" level="1" order_by="1" identifier="18.2">Crimes and Offenses Generally</unit><unit label="chapter" level="2" order_by="1" identifier="10">Crimes Against the Administration of Justice</unit><unit label="article" level="3" order_by="1" identifier="6">Interference With Administration of Justice</unit></structure><text>
						<section><p>It shall be unlawful for any person (i) to knowingly give a false report as to the commission of any <span class="dictionary">crime</span> to any <span class="dictionary">law</span>-enforcement official with <span class="dictionary">intent</span> to mislead; (ii) to knowingly, with the <span class="dictionary">intent</span> to mislead a <span class="dictionary">law</span>-enforcement agency, cause another to give a false report to any <span class="dictionary">law</span>-enforcement official by publicly simulating a violation of Chapter 4 (&#xA7;&#xA0;<a class="law" title="Murder and manslaughter declared felonies" href="/18.2-30/">18.2-30</a> et seq.) or Chapter 5 (&#xA7;&#xA0;<a class="law" title="Burning or destroying dwelling house, etc" href="/18.2-77/">18.2-77</a> et seq.); or (iii) without just cause and with <span class="dictionary">intent</span> to interfere with the operations of any <span class="dictionary">law</span>-enforcement official, to call or summon any <span class="dictionary">law</span>-enforcement official by telephone or other means, including engagement or activation of an automatic emergency alarm. Violation of the provisions of this section shall be punishable as a Class 1 <span class="dictionary">misdemeanor</span>. However, if a person intentionally gives a false report as to the commission of any <span class="dictionary">crime</span> to any <span class="dictionary">law</span>-enforcement official, causes another to give a false report to any <span class="dictionary">law</span>-enforcement official, or calls or <span class="dictionary">summons</span> any <span class="dictionary">law</span>-enforcement official against another person because of his race, religious <span class="dictionary">conviction</span>, gender, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, color, or national origin, the person is guilty of a Class 6 <span class="dictionary">felony</span>.</p></section></text><history>Code 1950, &#xA7; 18.1-401; 1960, c. 358; 1975, cc. 14, 15; 1996, cc. 753, 815; 2019, cc. 471, 498; 2020, Sp. Sess. I, c. 22.</history><metadata></metadata></law>
