RICHMOND, Va. — A wave of police reforms in Virginia has led to more officers being decertified.
Since an expanded law went into effect in March 2021, 68 police officers, jail officers, and deputy sheriffs have been decertified for a range of misconduct and criminal offenses.
The new laws expanded the grounds for decertification and tightened rules requiring law enforcement agencies to share personnel files to prevent officers who commit misconduct from getting jobs with other police departments.
Two dozen officers have been decertified for lying, one of the new grounds added in the law.
Among those were four officers from the Chesapeake Police Department who were decertified for lying during internal affairs investigations back in September. Police Chief Kelvin Wright declined to disclose any specifics, citing confidentiality laws that protect personnel records.
“We do not want someone who is untruthful to remain in our ranks,” Wright said.
“The expectations are that police officers are telling the truth,” he said. “If we want to build trust, we have to be truthful."