When Force Is Used
Va. Code 19.2-83.5 — deadly force only when immediately necessary, and only after the other options
Virginia writes its own limits on police force into sections 19.2-83.3 through 19.2-83.5 of its criminal procedure code. They define excessive force as any force that is objectively unreasonable given the totality of the circumstances, including the severity of the crime at issue, whether the suspect poses an immediate threat to the safety of the officers or others, and whether the suspect is actively resisting arrest or attempting to evade arrest by flight.
Deadly force has four conditions, and all four apply. A law-enforcement officer shall not use deadly force against a person unless the officer reasonably believes it is immediately necessary to protect the officer or another person, other than the subject, from the threat of serious bodily injury or death; if feasible, the officer has warned the subject that deadly force will be used; the officer's actions are reasonable given the totality of the circumstances; and all other options have been exhausted or do not reasonably lend themselves to the circumstances.
- The time the officer had to make a decision.
- Whether the person possessed or appeared to possess a deadly weapon, and refused a lawful order to surrender an object believed to be one.
- Whether the officer used de-escalation first, including taking cover, waiting for backup, trying to calm the person, or using non-deadly force.
- Whether anything the officer did beforehand intentionally increased the risk of a confrontation ending in deadly force.
- The seriousness of the suspected crime.
Those are the circumstances the section says shall be considered in deciding whether deadly force was proper, alongside the reasonableness of the officer's belief and actions from the perspective of a reasonable officer on the scene at the time.
Three practices are prohibited outright, with one narrow exception each. A neck restraint, which the chapter defines to include chokeholds, carotid restraints and lateral vascular neck restraints, is prohibited unless immediately necessary to protect the officer or another person from death or serious bodily injury. So is willfully firing into or at a moving vehicle. Kinetic impact munitions, such as rubber batons and bean bag rounds, are prohibited unless necessary to protect the officer or another person from bodily injury.
A claim against a county, city or town has a six month notice rule. Section 15.2-209 bars a claim against a county, city, or town for negligence unless a written statement of the nature of the claim, including the time and place of the injury, is filed within six months after the cause of action accrued, with the locality's attorney, chief executive or mayor. Separately, section 8.01-243 requires every action for personal injuries, whatever the theory of recovery, to be brought within two years after the cause of action accrues.
This is the statute, not an assessment. Whether any particular use of force was reasonable, whether the notice rule reaches a given claim, whether a federal claim exists beside the state one, and what immunities apply turn on facts and on case law these sections do not contain. A licensed Virginia attorney, early rather than late, is who answers them.
Sources for this section (5)
- Va. Code 19.2-83.5 — Use of deadly force by a law-enforcement officer during an arrest or detention
- Va. Code 19.2-83.4 — Prohibited practices for law-enforcement officers during an arrest or detention
- Va. Code 19.2-83.3 — Definitions: deadly force, excessive force, neck restraint
- Va. Code 15.2-209 — Notice to be given to counties, cities, and towns of tort claims for damages
- Va. Code 8.01-243 — Personal action for injury to person or property generally
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of September 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed Virginia attorney.