                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

PURPOSE; ACTION BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY REQUIRED; DEFINITIONS (§ 8.01-195.10)

A. The purpose of this article is to provide directions and guidelines for the
compensation of persons who have been wrongfully incarcerated in the
Commonwealth. Compensation for wrongful incarceration is governed by Article IV,
&#xA7; 14 of the Constitution of Virginia, which prohibits the General Assembly
from granting relief in cases in which the courts or other tribunals may have
jurisdiction. No compensation shall be awarded under this article unless the
recipient has executed a release and waiver pursuant to subsection B of &#xA7;
8.01-195.12. The payment and receipt of any compensation for wrongful
incarceration shall be contingent upon the General Assembly appropriating funds
for that purpose. This article shall not provide an entitlement to compensation
for persons wrongfully incarcerated or require the General Assembly to
appropriate funds for the payment of such compensation.

B. As used in this article:
			&#8220;Incarceration&#8221; or &#8220;incarcerated&#8221; means (i)
confinement in a local or regional correctional facility, juvenile correctional
center, state correctional facility, or residential detention center or (ii)
confinement in a facility operated pursuant to the Corrections Private Services
Act (&#xA7; 53.1-261 et seq.).
			&#8220;Wrongful incarceration&#8221; or &#8220;wrongfully incarcerated&#8221;
means incarceration for a felony conviction for which the conviction has been
vacated pursuant to Chapter 19.2 (&#xA7; 19.2-327.2 et seq.) or 19.3 (&#xA7;
19.2-327.10 et seq.) of Title 19.2, or the person incarcerated has been granted
an absolute pardon for the commission of a crime that he did not commit.

HISTORY: 2004, cc. 818, 840; 2010, cc. 496, 557; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, cc. 344,
345; 2022, cc. 572, 573; 2024, c. 396; 2025, c. 337.