Individuals with developmental or intellectual disabilities; admissibility of statements.
A BILL to amend the Code of Virginia by adding a section numbered 19.2-271.6:1, relating to admissibility of statements by individuals with developmental or intellectual disabilities in certain cases.
Taxes
Enacted
This bill passed the Legislature and reached final enactment based on the latest official action.
Sponsor
Favola
Last action
2026-03-09
Official status
Failed
Effective date
Not listed
Plain English Breakdown
The exact effective date is not provided by the official source.
Statements from People with Developmental or Intellectual Disabilities in Court
This law changes how statements made by people with developmental or intellectual disabilities are used in criminal cases.
What This Bill Does
It stops courts from using any evidence from someone with a disability unless the court decides that their decision to talk to police was not caused by and did not have a direct and substantial relationship to their disability.
It requires prosecutors to be told if a defendant plans to use expert testimony about their disability during a trial.
It says that statements made by defendants during an examination by an expert witness cannot be used against them, except for proving they lied or committed perjury.
Who It Names or Affects
People with developmental or intellectual disabilities who are involved in criminal cases
Law enforcement officers and prosecutors
Judges and courts
Terms To Know
Developmental disability
A condition that affects a person's physical, learning, language, or behavior development.
Intellectual disability
A condition where someone has difficulty understanding and using information to function in daily life.
Limits and Unknowns
The law only works if the General Assembly agrees again at a later meeting.
It does not specify how courts should decide if talking to police was because of a disability.
Amendments
These notes stay tied to the official amendment files and metadata from the legislature.
Plain English: The amendment changes how statements made by individuals with developmental or intellectual disabilities are considered in court cases.
Adds 'a properly administered' before 'tool' to specify that a certain method must be used when evaluating the competency of someone with developmental or intellectual disabilities.
Removes the phrase 'practice' and replaces it with 'approved by the American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities' to ensure that any tool used is recognized by this association.
The exact impact of these changes on court cases involving individuals with developmental or intellectual disabilities may not be fully clear without additional context.
Plain English: The amendment changes how statements made by individuals with developmental or intellectual disabilities are admitted as evidence in court cases.
Adds the requirement that a statement must be made using a 'properly administered' communication tool.
Specifies that the communication tool used must be 'approved by the American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities'.
Removes certain lines from the bill text.
The exact content of the removed lines is not provided, so their specific details cannot be explained.
Plain English: The amendment adds a condition that the bill's new law about admitting statements from individuals with developmental or intellectual disabilities will only take effect if it is passed again in a future meeting of the Virginia legislature.
Adds a clause stating that the act’s provisions will not go into effect unless reenacted by the General Assembly at a later session.
The amendment text does not specify what changes are being made to line 52 or beyond, so details about those specific edits cannot be provided.
Bill History
2026-03-09Appropriations
Tabled in Appropriations (22-Y 0-N)
2026-03-02Courts of Justice
Reported from Courts of Justice with amendment(s) and referred to Appropriations (15-Y 7-N)
2026-02-25Criminal
Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (SB198)
2026-02-20Criminal
House subcommittee offered
2026-02-20Criminal
Subcommittee recommends reporting with amendment(s) and referring to Appropriations (7-Y 3-N)
2026-02-19House
Placed on Calendar
2026-02-19House
Read first time
2026-02-19Courts of Justice
Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice
2026-02-19Criminal
Assigned HCJ sub: Criminal
2026-02-16Senate
Read third time and passed Senate (21-Y 17-N 0-A)
2026-02-13Senate
Read second time
2026-02-13Senate
Engrossed by Senate - committee substitute as amended (Voice Vote)
Reported from Finance and Appropriations with amendment (13-Y 2-N)
2026-02-10Courts of Justice
Committee substitute printed 26105843D-S1
2026-02-09Courts of Justice
Reported from Courts of Justice with substitute and rereferred to Finance and Appropriations (10-Y 5-N)
2026-02-09Senate
Senate committee offered
2026-02-06Senate
Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (SB198)
2026-01-09Senate
Prefiled and ordered printed; Offered 01-14-2026 26104790D
2026-01-09Courts of Justice
Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice
Official Summary Text
Admissibility of statements by individuals with developmental or intellectual disabilities in certain cases.
Prohibits admission of any evidence from an individual with developmental disabilities or intellectual disabilities, as defined in relevant law, in certain criminal prosecutions unless the court finds by a preponderance of the evidence that such individual's decision to speak to law enforcement was not caused by and did not have a direct and substantial relationship to such individual's disability. The bill requires notice be given to the attorney for the Commonwealth if a defendant intends to introduce expert testimony regarding his disability. The bill prohibits any statements made by a defendant during an examination by an expert witness from being used against him except for impeachment or perjury. The provisions of the bill do not become effective unless reenacted by a subsequent regular or special session of the General Assembly.
Current Bill Text
Read the full stored bill text
SB 198
COURTS OF JUSTICE
1. Line 45, engrossed, after
on
strike
an
insert
a properly administered
COURTS OF JUSTICE
2. Line 45, engrossed, after
tool
strike
the remainder of line 45 and through
practice
on line 46
insert
approved by the American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities
COURTS OF JUSTICE
3. After line 52, engrossed
strike
all of lines 53 and 54