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Virginia Democrats worry Republicans will roll back reforms

Democrats who have fought for criminal justice and police reforms since 2020 are worried their progress could be rolled back by the new GOP majority in the House.

Credit: AP Photo/Steve Helber

Virginia House minority leader, Del. Eileen Filler-Corn, D-Fairfax, takes a photo of visitors in the gallery during the House session at the Capitol Tuesday, Feb. 8, 2022, in Richmond, Va. republicans who have taken control of the House have proposed legislation that would take back many of the criminal justice and police reforms enacted in the past two years.

RICHMOND, Va. — Virginia Democrats who have fought for criminal justice and police reforms since 2020 are worried that their progress could be rolled back by the new Republican majority in the House of Delegates.

After George Floyd's killing by Minneapolis police sparked months of protests around the country, Virginia's then-Democrat-led legislature passed a law banning the use of chokeholds and no-knock search warrants. The state also repealed its death penalty.

But Republicans are now in a position to potentially overturn some of the reforms.

Their proposed rollbacks include bills that would restore no-knock search warrants and reinstate the death penalty for the killing of law enforcement officers.