                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

EMPLOYMENT OF LIGHTS UNDER CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES UPON PLACES USED BY DEER (§
29.1-525)

A. Any person in any vehicle and then in possession of any firearm, crossbow,
slingbow, arrowgun, bow and arrow, or speargun who employs a light attached to
the vehicle or a spotlight or flashlight to cast a light beyond the water or
surface of the roadway upon any place used by deer shall be guilty of a Class 2
misdemeanor. Every person in or on any such vehicle shall be deemed prima facie
a principal in the second degree and subject to the same punishment as a
principal in the first degree. This subsection shall not apply to a landowner in
possession of a weapon when he is on his own land and is making a bona fide
effort to protect his property from damage by deer and not for the purpose of
killing deer unless the landowner is in possession of a permit to do so pursuant
to the provisions of &#xA7; 29.1-529.

B. Any person in any motor vehicle who deliberately employs a light attached to
such vehicle or a spotlight or flashlight to cast a light beyond the surface of
the roadway upon any place used by deer, except upon his own land or upon land
on which he has an easement or permission for such purpose, shall be guilty of a
Class 4 misdemeanor. Every person in or on any such vehicle shall be deemed
prima facie a principal in the second degree and subject to the same punishment
as a principal in the first degree.

C. The provisions of subsections A and B shall not apply to activities conducted
by a locality pursuant to a permit or written authorization issued by the
Department.

D. In addition to the penalties prescribed in subsection A, the court shall
revoke the current hunting license and privileges of the person convicted of a
violation of subsection A and prohibit the person from hunting for a period of
one to five years. In addition to the penalties prescribed in subsection B, the
court may revoke the current hunting license and privileges of the person
convicted of a violation of subsection B and prohibit that person from hunting
for one to five years. If a person convicted of a violation of subsection A or B
is found hunting during the prohibited period, the person shall be guilty of a
Class 2 misdemeanor. Notification of such revocation or prohibition shall be
forwarded to the Department pursuant to subsections C and D of &#xA7; 18.2-56.1.

HISTORY: 1962, c. 520, § 29-144.4; 1973, c. 369; 1974, c. 101; 1980, cc. 602,
607, § 29-144.4:1; 1981, c. 60; 1987, c. 488; 1988, c. 450; 1994, c. 113; 2002,
c. 157; 2010, c. 183; 2014, c. 126; 2017, c. 530; 2018, cc. 557, 558.