Tosta Dojen
Regular Member
From time to time we've considered whether §18.2-283.1 applies to the whole building where a court is housed, or if it's inapplicable to the parts of the building that are used for other offices. Some here have cited Bacon for the latter proposition.
Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring recently issued Opinion 16-053, in which he "conclude that the statute barring weapons in courthouses applies to the entire Fauquier County Courthouse, not just those portions of the building occupied by judges and courts."
Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring recently issued Opinion 16-053, in which he "conclude
Attorney General Mark Herring said:At [the courthouse] entrance, which provides access to the two courtrooms and is used only when court is in session, there is a security officer and a metal detector. Weapons may not be brought into the courthouse through it. The other three entrances provide direct access to the Clerk's Office, the constitutional officers, and county administrative offices. At these entrances, there is no security officer and no metal detector. There is presently no prohibition against bringing weapons into the building through the three unsecured entrances, and persons have from time to time been observed in the Clerk's Office or record room carrying firearms.
[...]
t is my opinion that under the circumstances you have described, it would be legally permissible to implement a courthouse security plan under which weapons are prohibited in all parts of the Fauquer County Courthouse, including those areas occupied by constitutional officers and county employees, subject to the exception for certain public officers and officials set forth in §18.2-283.1.