Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. That §§15.2-1705 and 15.2-1709 of the Code of Virginia are amended and reenacted as follows:
§15.2-1705. Minimum qualifications; waiver.
A. The chief of police and all police officers of any
locality, all deputy sheriffs and jail officers in this Commonwealth, and all
law-enforcement officers as defined in §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'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 [ eighteen 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's satisfaction [ ;
and (ix) undergo a psychological examination, subsequent to a conditional offer
of employment, conducted under the supervision of a licensed psychologist or
other licensed mental health professional ] . 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 §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 §18.2-67.4 or
consensual sexual intercourse with a minor 15 or older under clause (ii) of §
18.2-371,; or (c) domestic assault under §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 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 that would otherwise be prohibited from disclosure in accordance with §19.2-392.4; (ii) related to a civil suit regarding a former police officer's, deputy sheriff's, or jail officer's employment or performance of his duties; (iii) obtained during the course of any internal investigation related to a former police officer's, deputy sheriff's, or jail officer'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's job performance that led to [ such officer's or deputy sheriff'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 agencies in 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 shall disclose any information requested in accordance with the provisions of this subsection to any hiring agency or jail that requests such information.
C. 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 §9.1-101, or jail officers as defined
in §53.1-1, the Department of Criminal Justice Services is hereby authorized
to waive the requirements for qualification as set out in subsection A of this
section for good cause shown.
§15.2-1709. Employer immunity from liability; disclosure of information regarding former deputy sheriffs and law-enforcement officers.
Any sheriff or chief of police, the director or chief
executive of any agency or department employing deputy sheriffs or
law-enforcement officers as defined in §9.1-101, or jail
officers as defined in §53.1-1, and the Director of the Department of Criminal
Justice Services or his designee who discloses information about a former
deputy sheriff's or law-enforcement officer's or jail officer's job performance
or information requested pursuant to subsection B of §15.2-1705 to a
prospective law-enforcement or jail employer of the former appointee or
employee is presumed to be acting in good faith and, unless lack of good
faith is shown by clear and convincing evidence, is immune from civil
liability for such disclosure or its consequences. For purposes of this
section, the presumption of good faith is rebutted upon a showing that
unless the information disclosed by the former employer was knowingly false
or deliberately misleading, was rendered with malicious purpose, or violated
any civil right of the former employee or appointee.