                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS; WAIVER (§ 15.2-1705)

A. The chief of police and all police officers of any locality, all deputy
sheriffs and jail officers in the Commonwealth, and all law-enforcement officers
as defined in &#xA7; 9.1-101 who enter upon the duties of such office after July
1, 1994, are required to meet the following minimum qualifications for office.
Such person shall (i) be a citizen of the United States; (ii) be required to
undergo a background investigation including fingerprint-based criminal history
records inquiries to both the Central Criminal Records Exchange and the Federal
Bureau of Investigation; (iii) have a high school education or have passed a
high school equivalency examination approved by the Board of Education; (iv)
possess a valid driver&#8217;s license if required by the duties of office to
operate a motor vehicle; (v) undergo a physical examination, subsequent to a
conditional offer of employment, conducted under the supervision of a licensed
physician; (vi) be at least 18 years of age; (vii) not have been convicted of or
pled guilty or no contest to a felony or any offense that would be a felony if
committed in the Commonwealth; and (viii) not have produced a positive result on
a pre-employment drug screening, if such screening is required by the hiring
law-enforcement agency or jail, where the positive result cannot be explained to
the law-enforcement agency or jail administrator&#8217;s satisfaction. In
addition, all such officers who enter upon the duties of such office on or after
July 1, 2013, shall not have been convicted of or pled guilty or no contest to
(a) any misdemeanor involving moral turpitude, including but not limited to
petit larceny under &#xA7; 18.2-96, or any offense involving moral turpitude
that would be a misdemeanor if committed in the Commonwealth; (b) any
misdemeanor sex offense in the Commonwealth, another state, or the United
States, including but not limited to sexual battery under &#xA7; 18.2-67.4 or
consensual sexual intercourse with a minor 15 years of age or older under clause
(ii) of &#xA7; 18.2-371; or (c) domestic assault under &#xA7; 18.2-57.2 or any
offense that would be domestic assault under the laws of another state or the
United States.

B. In addition, if the police officer, deputy sheriff, or jail officer had been
employed at any time by another law-enforcement agency or jail, the hiring
law-enforcement agency or jail shall request from all prior employing
law-enforcement agencies or jails any information (i) related to an arrest or
prosecution of a former police officer, deputy sheriff, or jail officer,
including any expunged arrest or criminal charge known to the agency or
disclosed during the hiring process that would otherwise be prohibited from
disclosure in accordance with &#xA7; 19.2-392.4; (ii) related to a civil suit
regarding a former police officer&#8217;s, deputy sheriff&#8217;s, or jail
officer&#8217;s employment or performance of his duties; (iii) obtained during
the course of any internal investigation related to a former police
officer&#8217;s, deputy sheriff&#8217;s, or jail officer&#8217;s alleged
criminal conduct, use of excessive force, or other official misconduct in
violation of the state professional standards of conduct adopted by the Criminal
Justice Services Board; and (iv) related to a former police officer, deputy
sheriff, or jail officer&#8217;s job performance that led to such
officer&#8217;s or deputy sheriff&#8217;s resignation, dismissal, demotion,
suspension, or transfer. The hiring agency or jail may request this information
subsequent to a conditional offer of employment; however, no police officer,
deputy sheriff, or jail officer may be employed in such position until the
requested information is received from all prior employing law-enforcement
agencies in the Commonwealth. The hiring agency or jail shall request that the
police officer, deputy sheriff, or jail officer complete a waiver or release
liability authorizing the hiring agency or jail to request such information as
listed in this subsection from all prior employing law-enforcement agencies or
jails, including law-enforcement agencies or jails located outside the
Commonwealth. Any sheriff or chief of police in the Commonwealth, any director
or chief executive of any law-enforcement agency or jail in the Commonwealth,
and the Director of the Department of Criminal Justice Services or his designee
who receives such request for information shall disclose such requested
information within 14 days of receiving such request to the requesting hiring
law-enforcement agency or jail.

C. In addition, the hiring law-enforcement agency or jail may require a
candidate for employment to undergo a psychological examination, subsequent to a
conditional offer of employment, conducted under the supervision of a licensed
psychiatrist or a licensed clinical psychologist.

D. Upon request of a sheriff or chief of police, or the director or chief
executive of any agency or department employing law-enforcement officers as
defined in &#xA7; 9.1-101 or jail officers as defined in &#xA7; 53.1-1, the
Department of Criminal Justice Services is hereby authorized to waive the
requirements for qualification as set out in subsection A for good cause shown.

HISTORY: 1982, c. 442, § 15.1-131.8; 1988, c. 396; 1994, cc. 850, 905; 1995, c.
112; 1997, c. 587; 2013, cc. 307, 468; 2014, c. 84; 2020, Sp. Sess. I, cc. 32,
37, 48.