Disciplining A Child
Va. Code 63.2-100 — a physical or mental injury by other than accidental means, and corporal punishment barred in schools
In Virginia, the social services law defines an abused or neglected child, for a child less than 18 years of age, to include one whose parent or other person responsible for the child's care creates or inflicts, threatens to create or inflict, or allows to be created or inflicted a physical or mental injury by other than accidental means, or creates a substantial risk of death, disfigurement, or impairment of bodily or mental functions.
Serious injury is a felony. A parent, guardian or other person responsible for the care of a child under the age of 18 who by willful act or willful omission causes or permits serious injury to the life or health of the child is guilty of a Class 4 felony. Serious injury includes disfigurement, a fracture, a severe burn or laceration, mutilation, maiming, forced ingestion of dangerous substances, and life-threatening internal injuries.
Reckless disregard. A willful act or omission in the care of a child under 18 that is so gross, wanton and culpable as to show a reckless disregard for human life is a Class 6 felony.
Schools are different. No teacher, principal or other person employed by a school board, or employed in a school operated by the Commonwealth, may subject a student to corporal punishment, which the section defines as inflicting, or causing the infliction of, physical pain on a student as a means of discipline. Incidental, minor or reasonable physical contact to maintain order and control is not barred, and neither is reasonable and necessary force to quell a disturbance, to keep a student from self-harm, for self-defense or the defense of others, or to take a weapon, a controlled substance or paraphernalia.
| The assumption | What the law actually does |
|---|---|
| The assumptionAbuse requires an injury | What the law actually doesThreatening an injury, or creating a substantial risk of death, disfigurement or impairment, is within the definition |
| The assumptionA teacher may paddle a student | What the law actually doesSchool employees may not use corporal punishment, apart from the contact and force the section allows |
What happens when a local department of social services investigates a report, custody consequences, and how a court weighs particular facts are not on this page. What a particular situation carries is a question for a licensed Virginia attorney.
Sources for this section (3)
- Va. Code 63.2-100 — Definitions
- Va. Code 18.2-371.1 — Abuse and neglect of children; penalties; abandoned infant
- Va. Code 22.1-279.1 — Corporal punishment prohibited
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of September 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed Virginia attorney.