                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

AGGRAVATED MURDER DEFINED; PUNISHMENT (§ 18.2-31)

A. The following offenses shall constitute aggravated murder, punishable as a
Class 1 felony:

   1. The willful, deliberate, and premeditated killing of any person in the
   commission of abduction, as defined in &#xA7; 18.2-48, when such abduction was
   committed with the intent to extort money or a pecuniary benefit or with the
   intent to defile the victim of such abduction;

   2. The willful, deliberate, and premeditated killing of any person by another
   for hire;

   3. The willful, deliberate, and premeditated killing of any person by a
   prisoner confined in a state or local correctional facility as defined in
   &#xA7; 53.1-1, or while in the custody of an employee thereof;

   4. The willful, deliberate, and premeditated killing of any person in the
   commission of robbery or attempted robbery;

   5. The willful, deliberate, and premeditated killing of any person in the
   commission of, or subsequent to, rape or attempted rape, forcible sodomy, or
   attempted forcible sodomy or object sexual penetration;

   6. The willful, deliberate, and premeditated killing of a law-enforcement
   officer as defined in &#xA7; 9.1-101, a fire marshal appointed pursuant to
   &#xA7; 27-30 or a deputy or an assistant fire marshal appointed pursuant to
   &#xA7; 27-36, when such fire marshal or deputy or assistant fire marshal has
   police powers as set forth in &#xA7;&#xA7; 27-34.2 and 27-34.2:1, an auxiliary
   police officer appointed or provided for pursuant to &#xA7;&#xA7; 15.2-1731
   and 15.2-1733, an auxiliary deputy sheriff appointed pursuant to &#xA7;
   15.2-1603, or any law-enforcement officer of another state or the United
   States having the power to arrest for a felony under the laws of such state or
   the United States, when such killing is for the purpose of interfering with
   the performance of his official duties;

   7. The willful, deliberate, and premeditated killing of more than one person
   as a part of the same act or transaction;

   8. The willful, deliberate, and premeditated killing of more than one person
   within a three-year period;

   9. The willful, deliberate, and premeditated killing of any person in the
   commission of or attempted commission of a violation of &#xA7; 18.2-248,
   involving a Schedule I or II controlled substance, when such killing is for
   the purpose of furthering the commission or attempted commission of such
   violation;

   10. The willful, deliberate, and premeditated killing of any person by another
   pursuant to the direction or order of one who is engaged in a continuing
   criminal enterprise as defined in subsection I of &#xA7; 18.2-248;

   11. The willful, deliberate, and premeditated killing of a pregnant woman by
   one who knows that the woman is pregnant and has the intent to cause the
   involuntary termination of the woman&#8217;s pregnancy without a live birth;

   12. The willful, deliberate, and premeditated killing of a person under the
   age of 14 by a person age 21 or older;

   13. The willful, deliberate, and premeditated killing of any person by another
   in the commission of or attempted commission of an act of terrorism as defined
   in &#xA7; 18.2-46.4;

   14. The willful, deliberate, and premeditated killing of a justice of the
   Supreme Court, a judge of the Court of Appeals, a judge of a circuit court or
   district court, a retired judge sitting by designation or under temporary
   recall, or a substitute judge appointed under &#xA7; 16.1-69.9:1 when the
   killing is for the purpose of interfering with his official duties as a judge;
   and

   15. The willful, deliberate, and premeditated killing of any witness in a
   criminal case after a subpoena has been issued for such witness by the court,
   the clerk, or an attorney, when the killing is for the purpose of interfering
   with the person&#8217;s duties in such case.

B. For a violation of subdivision A 6 where the offender was 18 years of age or
older at the time of the offense, the punishment shall be no less than a
mandatory minimum term of confinement for life.

C. If any one or more subsections, sentences, or parts of this section shall be
judged unconstitutional or invalid, such adjudication shall not affect, impair,
or invalidate the remaining provisions thereof but shall be confined in its
operation to the specific provisions so held unconstitutional or invalid.

HISTORY: Code 1950, §§ 18.1-21, 53-291; 1960, c. 358; 1962, c. 42; 1966, c.
300; 1970, c. 648; 1973, c. 403; 1975, cc. 14, 15; 1976, c. 503; 1977, c. 478;
1979, c. 582; 1980, c. 221; 1981, c. 607; 1982, c. 636; 1983, c. 175; 1985, c.
428; 1988, c. 550; 1989, c. 527; 1990, c. 746; 1991, c. 232; 1995, c. 340; 1996,
cc. 876, 959; 1997, cc. 235, 313, 514, 709; 1998, c. 887; 2002, cc. 588, 623;
2007, cc. 844, 845, 846; 2010, cc. 399, 428, 475; 2019, cc. 717, 835; 2021, Sp.
Sess. I, cc. 344, 345.