Category: Virginia Law
-
Guns for Felons?
by Dick Hall-Sizemore Virginia law prohibits a convicted felon from possessing or transporting a firearm. Is that unconstitutional under the provisions of last year’s Supreme Court decision in New York State Rifle and Pistol Association v Bruen (597 U.S. ___; 142 S. Ct. 2111)? Background Before trying to answer that question, it is helpful to…
-
Virginia’s Forced Technology Hits a Speed Bump
by Bill O’Keefe The Virginia General Assembly, as a result of past Democrat control, has mandated through the Clean Economy Act and a 2021 law a low-emission and zero-emission motor vehicle program for model year 2025 and beyond. In the process it has demonstrated the folly of using technology to force through large subsidies, as…
-
Miyares Loses in Court
by Dick Hall-Sizemore Our Attorney General has taken his lumps in court recently. First was a jury acquittal in a high-profile criminal case he engineered. Later, the Virginia Supreme Court unanimously ruled against an agency that had been administering a provision of the Code based on guidance from the Attorney General. The first case was…
-
When Local Registrars Get Caught in the Middle
by Martin Davis and Shaun Kenney Last week, Cardinal News published a piece by reporter Markus Schmidt about the difficulties facing several Democratic candidates for state and local offices in Virginia, owing to complications with their paperwork. Mistakes related to paperwork happen every year, and sometimes the Virginia Department of Elections can sort out the…
-
RVA 5×5: Referendum Waiting In The Wings
by Jon Baliles Three weeks or so ago, the regurgitation of the casino referendum got a round of approval from almost everyone on City Council in a meeting that was filled with unearned righteousness about how it was going to save the city (kudos to Councilwoman Katherine Jordan for the lone no vote). Richmond BizSense…
-
Check Out Which New Virginia Laws Go Into Effect July 1st
by The Republican Standard staff The Virginia General Assembly passed several small bills due to the split between the Republican-led House of Delegates and the Democratic-controlled Virginia State Senate. Yet the areas where they did find co-operation could matter to many Virginians as we head into Fourth of July weekend. Enhanced Penalties for Fentanyl Manufacturing…
-
What the Minutes Say About Public Education in Virginia
by James Wyatt Whitehead, V School may be out for the summer, but the report card for the Commonwealth’s public schools is headed for the inbox. It is hoped that progress can be measured and built upon. School boards face a siege of ailments not likely to be cured overnight. The challenges range from pandemic-era…
-
Virginia Democrats Have New Tourism Twist
by Olivia Gans Turner Recently North Carolina passed a bill to prevent abortions after 12 weeks. This new law may save many lives in North Carolina, but most abortions actually happen earlier, in the first weeks of pregnancy. Now Virginia Democrats are announcing their intention to make Virginia a destination state for abortions. In the…
-
To Teach Is To Touch the Future
by Bill Bolling As most of you know, I left my professional career in the insurance business behind in 2018 to pursue a passion for teaching. For the past five years I’ve had the privilege of teaching young people about politics and government. I started out guest lecturing at James Madison University, and for the…
-
Virginia Judge Defends Handgun Purchases For 18-20 Year-Olds In New Ruling
by The Republican Standard staff In a groundbreaking decision, a federal judge in Virginia has ruled that a ban on handgun sales to individuals between the ages of 18 and 20 is unconstitutional, citing last year’s Supreme Court Bruen decision. Fox News reports: In a 71-page ruling issued Wednesday, U.S. District Court Judge Robert Payne…
-
Virginia Lacks Regulations for the Safe, Scientific and Effective Diagnosis and Treatment of Transgender Youth
by James C. Sherlock To get this out of the way, I personally support qualified diagnosis and psychological treatment for gender dysphoria in children and adolescents. I oppose puberty suppression, cross-gender hormonal treatments and transgender surgical procedures in minors. That said, transgender individuals, like everyone, deserve skilled, safe and standards-based medical care. Virginia laws and…
-
Virginia’s Abortion Laws
by James C. Sherlock Politicians on the right and left proclaim they want to change Virginia’s abortion laws. It is thus a useful exercise to see how those laws actually read. I am not an attorney, but I will take a shot at summarizing at certain points. The reference is Code of Virginia Title 18.2…
-
Fourth Circuit Gives Standing to Parents Suing Loudoun County Schools over First Amendment Violations
by James C. Sherlock In a win for freedom of speech, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit in Richmond overturned a finding by a federal district judge that Loudoun parents did not have standing to sue the School Board for infringement of First Amendment rights. The parents alleged a bias reporting…
-
VMI Disguises DEI Contract
By Jake Spivey In late fall 2021, Virginia Military Institute’s Board of Visitors and its newly installed superintendent were still reeling from the state investigator’s specious report condemning the Institute’s cultural climate. Resolving to quiet a mostly nameless and unidentifiable assortment of individuals criticizing VMI, the Board submitted through the state’s contracting website a request…
-
Arlington CPS Seizes Baby Girl Over Tylenol
by Asra Q. Nomani and Debra Tisler Late Wednesday afternoon, in Courtroom 4B of Arlington County’s Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court, Sean Jackson beamed widely as a judge granted him and his parents, Carlos Makle and Kim Jackson-Makle, joint custody of Sean’s baby girl, Amoria, instead of relegating her to foster care or instability with…