CHAPTER 218
An Act to amend and reenact §59.1-148.3 of the Code of
Virginia, relating to purchase of handguns of certain officers.
[H 943]
Approved March 10, 2012
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. That §59.1-148.3 of the Code of Virginia is amended
and reenacted as follows:
§59.1-148.3. Purchase of handguns of certain officers.
A. The Department of State Police, the Department of Game and
Inland Fisheries, the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control, the State
Lottery Department, the Marine Resources Commission, the Capitol Police, the
Department of Conservation and Recreation, the Department of Forestry, any
sheriff, any regional jail board or authority and any local police department
may allow any full-time sworn law-enforcement officer, deputy, or regional jail
officer, a local fire department may allow any full-time sworn fire marshal,
the Department of Motor Vehicles may allow any law-enforcement officer, and any
institution of higher learning named in §23-14 may allow any campus police
officer appointed pursuant to Chapter 17 (§23-232 et seq.) of Title 23,
retiring on or after July 1, 1991, who retires (i) after at least 20 15
years of service, (ii) at 70 years of age or older after at least 10 years of
service, or (iii) as a result of a service-incurred disability or who is
receiving long-term disability payments for a service-incurred disability with
no expectation of returning to the employment where he incurred the disability
to purchase the service handgun issued or previously issued to him by the
agency or institution at a price of $1. If the previously issued weapon is no
longer available, a weapon of like kind may be substituted for that weapon.
This privilege shall also extend to any former Superintendent of the Department
of State Police who leaves service after a minimum of five years. This
privilege shall also extend to any person listed above in this
subsection who is eligible for retirement with at least 20 15
years of service who resigns on or after July 1, 1991, in good standing from
one of the agencies listed above to accept a position covered by the Virginia
Retirement System. Other weapons issued by the Department of State Police for
personal duty use of an officer, may, with approval of the Superintendent, be
sold to the officer subject to the qualifications of this section at a fair
market price determined as in subsection B, so long as the weapon is a type and
configuration that can be purchased at a regular hardware or sporting goods
store by a private citizen without restrictions other than the instant
background check.
B. The agencies listed above in subsection A may
allow any full-time sworn law-enforcement officer who retires with 10 or more
years of service, but less than 20 15, to purchase the service
handgun issued to him by the agency at a price equivalent to the weapon's fair
market value on the date of the officer's retirement. Any full-time sworn law-enforcement
officer employed by any of the agencies listed above in subsection A
who is retired for disability as a result of a nonservice-incurred disability
may purchase the service handgun issued to him by the agency at a price
equivalent to the weapon's fair market value on the date of the officer's
retirement. Determinations of fair market value may be made by reference to a
recognized pricing guide.
C. The agencies listed above in subsection A may
allow the immediate survivor of any full-time sworn law-enforcement officer (i)
who is killed in the line of duty or (ii) who dies in service and has at least 20
15 years of service to purchase the service handgun issued to the
officer by the agency at a price of $1.
D. The governing board of any institution of higher learning
named in §23-14 may allow any campus police officer appointed pursuant to
Chapter 17 (§23-232 et seq.) of Title 23 who retires on or after July 1, 1991,
to purchase the service handgun issued to him at a price equivalent to the weapon's
fair market value on the date of the officer's retirement. Determinations of
fair market value may be made by reference to a recognized pricing guide.
E. The Department of State Police
may allow any full-time sworn state police
law-enforcement officer who retires as a
result of a service-incurred disability and
who was on disability leave at the
time the Department issued 10-mm semiautomatic
handguns to its officers to purchase one
of the 10-mm semiautomatic handguns used
by the Department of State Police at
a price of $1.
F. Any officer who at the time of his retirement is a
full-time sworn law-enforcement officer with a state agency listed in
subsection A, when the agency allows purchases of service handguns, and
who retires after 20 15 years of state service, even if a portion
of his service was with another state agency, may purchase the service handgun
issued to him by the agency from which he retires at a price of $1.
G. F. The sheriff of Hanover County may allow
any auxiliary or volunteer deputy sheriff with a minimum of 15 years of
service, upon leaving office, to purchase for $1 the service handgun issued to
him.
H. G. Any sheriff or local police department, in
accordance with written authorization or approval from the local governing
body, may allow any auxiliary law-enforcement officer with more than 20 15
years of service to purchase the service handgun issued to him by the agency at
a price that is equivalent to or less than the weapon's fair market value on
the date of purchase by the officer.
I. H. The agencies listed in subsection A may
allow any full-time sworn law-enforcement officer currently employed by the
agency to purchase his service handgun, with the approval of the chief
law-enforcement officer of the agency, at a fair market price. This subsection
shall only apply when the agency has purchased new service handguns for its
officers, and the handgun subject to the sale is no longer used by the agency
or officer in the course of duty.
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