                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

EMERGENCY PROTECTIVE ORDERS AUTHORIZED (§ 19.2-152.8)

A. Any judge of a circuit court, general district court, juvenile and domestic
relations district court or magistrate may issue a written or oral ex parte
emergency protective order pursuant to this section in order to protect the
health or safety of any person.

B. When a law-enforcement officer or an alleged victim asserts under oath to a
judge or magistrate that such person is being or has been subjected to an act of
violence, force, or threat and on that assertion or other evidence the judge or
magistrate finds that (i) there is probable danger of a further such act being
committed by the respondent against the alleged victim or (ii) a petition or
warrant for the arrest of the respondent has been issued for any criminal
offense resulting from the commission of an act of violence, force, or threat,
the judge or magistrate shall issue an ex parte emergency protective order
imposing one or more of the following conditions on the respondent:

   1. Prohibiting acts of violence, force, or threat or criminal offenses
   resulting in injury to person or property;

   2. Prohibiting such contacts by the respondent with the alleged victim or the
   alleged victim&#8217;s family or household members, including prohibiting the
   respondent from being in the physical presence of the alleged victim or the
   alleged victim&#8217;s family or household members, as the judge or magistrate
   deems necessary to protect the safety of such persons;

   3. Such other conditions as the judge or magistrate deems necessary to prevent
   (i) acts of violence, force, or threat, (ii) criminal offenses resulting in
   injury to person or property, or (iii) communication or other contact of any
   kind by the respondent; and

   4. Granting the petitioner the possession of any companion animal as defined
   in &#xA7; 3.2-6500 if such petitioner meets the definition of owner in &#xA7;
   3.2-6500.
   				In addition, if the respondent is a juvenile, the court may, upon its own
   motion or upon the motion of the attorney or guardian ad litem representing
   the respondent, enter an order requiring the local board of social services to
   provide services to the child and family.

C. An emergency protective order issued pursuant to this section shall expire at
11:59 p.m. on the third day following issuance. If the expiration occurs on a
day that the court is not in session, the emergency protective order shall be
extended until 11:59 p.m. on the next day that the court which issued the order
is in session. The respondent may at any time file a motion with the court
requesting a hearing to dissolve or modify the order. The hearing on the motion
shall be given precedence on the docket of the court.

D. A law-enforcement officer may request an emergency protective order pursuant
to this section and, if the person in need of protection is physically or
mentally incapable of filing a petition pursuant to &#xA7; 19.2-152.9 or
19.2-152.10, may request the extension of an emergency protective order for an
additional period of time not to exceed three days after expiration of the
original order. The request for an emergency protective order or extension of an
order may be made orally, in person or by electronic means, and the judge of a
circuit court, general district court, or juvenile and domestic relations
district court or a magistrate may issue an oral emergency protective order. An
oral emergency protective order issued pursuant to this section shall be reduced
to writing, by the law-enforcement officer requesting the order or the
magistrate, on a preprinted form approved and provided by the Supreme Court of
Virginia. The completed form shall include a statement of the grounds for the
order asserted by the officer or the alleged victim of such crime.

E. The court or magistrate shall forthwith, but in all cases no later than the
end of the business day on which the order was issued, enter and transfer
electronically to the Virginia Criminal Information Network the
respondent&#8217;s identifying information and the name, date of birth, sex, and
race of each protected person provided to the court or magistrate. A copy of an
emergency protective order issued pursuant to this section containing any such
identifying information shall be forwarded forthwith to the primary
law-enforcement agency responsible for service and entry of protective orders.
Upon receipt of the order by the primary law-enforcement agency, the agency
shall forthwith verify and enter any modification as necessary to the
identifying information and other appropriate information required by the
Department of State Police into the Virginia Criminal Information Network
established and maintained by the Department pursuant to Chapter 2 (&#xA7; 52-12
et seq.) of Title 52 and the order shall be served forthwith upon the respondent
and due return made to the court. However, if the order is issued by the circuit
court, the clerk of the circuit court shall forthwith forward an attested copy
of the order containing the respondent&#8217;s identifying information and the
name, date of birth, sex, and race of each protected person provided to the
court to the primary law-enforcement agency providing service and entry of
protective orders and upon receipt of the order, the primary law-enforcement
agency shall enter the name of the person subject to the order and other
appropriate information required by the Department of State Police into the
Virginia Criminal Information Network established and maintained by the
Department pursuant to Chapter 2 (&#xA7; 52-12 et seq.) of Title 52 and the
order shall be served forthwith upon the respondent. Upon service, the agency
making service shall enter the date and time of service and other appropriate
information required into the Virginia Criminal Information Network and make due
return to the court. One copy of the order shall be given to the alleged victim
of such crime. The judge or magistrate who issues an oral order pursuant to an
electronic request by a law-enforcement officer shall verify the written order
to determine whether the officer who reduced it to writing accurately
transcribed the contents of the oral order. The original copy shall be filed
with the clerk of the appropriate district court within five business days of
the issuance of the order. If the order is later dissolved or modified, a copy
of the dissolution or modification order shall also be attested, forwarded
forthwith to the primary law-enforcement agency responsible for service and
entry of protective orders, and upon receipt of the order by the primary
law-enforcement agency, the agency shall forthwith verify and enter any
modification as necessary to the identifying information and other appropriate
information required by the Department of State Police into the Virginia
Criminal Information Network as described above and the order shall be served
forthwith and due return made to the court. Upon request, the clerk shall
provide the alleged victim of such crime with information regarding the date and
time of service.

F. The issuance of an emergency protective order shall not be considered
evidence of any wrongdoing by the respondent.

G. As used in this section, a &#8220;law-enforcement officer&#8221; means any
(i) person who is a full-time or part-time employee of a police department or
sheriff&#8217;s office which is part of or administered by the Commonwealth or
any political subdivision thereof and who is responsible for the prevention and
detection of crime and the enforcement of the penal, traffic or highway laws of
the Commonwealth and (ii) member of an auxiliary police force established
pursuant to &#xA7; 15.2-1731. Part-time employees are compensated officers who
are not full-time employees as defined by the employing police department or
sheriff&#8217;s office.

H. Neither a law-enforcement agency, the attorney for the Commonwealth, a court
nor the clerk&#8217;s office, nor any employee of them, may disclose, except
among themselves, the residential address, telephone number, or place of
employment of the person protected by the order or that of the family of such
person, except to the extent that disclosure is (i) required by law or the Rules
of the Supreme Court, (ii) necessary for law-enforcement purposes, or (iii)
permitted by the court for good cause.

I. As used in this section:
			&#8220;Copy&#8221; includes a facsimile copy.
			&#8220;Physical presence&#8221; includes (i) intentionally maintaining direct
visual contact with the petitioner or (ii) unreasonably being within 100 feet
from the petitioner&#8217;s residence or place of employment.

J. No fee shall be charged for filing or serving any petition pursuant to this
section.

K. No emergency protective order shall be issued pursuant to this section
against a law-enforcement officer for any action arising out of the lawful
performance of his duties.

L. Upon issuance of an emergency protective order, the clerk of the court shall
make available to the petitioner information that is published by the Department
of Criminal Justice Services for victims of domestic violence or for petitioners
in protective order cases.

HISTORY: 1997, c. 831; 1998, cc. 569, 684; 1999, c. 371; 2001, c. 474; 2002, cc.
507, 706, 810, 818; 2003, c. 730; 2008, cc. 73, 246; 2009, cc. 341, 732; 2011,
cc. 445, 480; 2012, cc. 146, 637, 827; 2014, c. 346; 2016, c. 455; 2018, c. 652;
2025, c. 26.