Threatening Harm – A Crime Under Virginia Law
Virginia law criminalizes a written threat (handwritten or computerized) to kill or commit a bodily injury as a class 6 felony offense. This is punishable by up to 5 years in prison. Intent to commit an act of terrorism elevates the threat crime to a class 5 felony.
A threat made over the computer that is intended to coerce, intimidate, or harass any person, is a class 1 misdemeanor offense, punishable by up to 1 year in jail.
An oral threat made over the telephone or radio that is intended to coerce, intimidate, or harass any person, is a class 1 misdemeanor offense, punishable by up to 1 year in jail.
An oral threat made in person, with the means to carry out the threat, that puts the victim in reasonable fear of harm or reasonable apprehension of offensive touching, harm or danger, is an assault. This is a class 1 misdemeanor offense, punishable by up to 1 year in jail. Hate crime assault is a class 6 felony.
Below is a collection of various Virginia laws criminalizing threats of harm to the person (this excludes financial / blackmail threats).
Virginia Law
§ 18.2-60. Threats of death or bodily injury to a person or member of his family; threats of death or bodily injury to persons on school property; threats of death or bodily injury to health care providers; penalty.
A. 1. Any person who knowingly communicates, in a writing, including an electronically transmitted communication producing a visual or electronic message, a threat to kill or do bodily injury to a person, regarding that person or any member of his family, and the threat places such person in reasonable apprehension of death or bodily injury to himself or his family member, is guilty of a Class 6 felony.
However, any person who violates this subsection with the intent to commit an act of terrorism as defined in § 18.2-46.4 is guilty of a Class 5 felony.
2. Any person who communicates a threat, in a writing, including an electronically transmitted communication producing a visual or electronic message, to kill or do bodily harm, (i) on the grounds or premises of any elementary, middle or secondary school property, (ii) at any elementary, middle or secondary school-sponsored event or (iii) on a school bus to any person or persons, regardless of whether the person who is the object of the threat actually receives the threat, and the threat would place the person who is the object of the threat in reasonable apprehension of death or bodily harm, is guilty of a Class 6 felony.
B. Any person who orally makes a threat to kill or to do bodily injury to (i) any employee of any elementary, middle or secondary school, while on a school bus, on school property or at a school-sponsored activity or (ii) any health care provider as defined in § 8.01-581.1 who is engaged in the performance of his duties in a hospital as defined in § 18.2-57 or in an emergency room on the premises of any clinic or other facility rendering emergency medical care, unless the person is on the premises of the hospital or emergency room of the clinic or other facility rendering emergency medical care as a result of an emergency custody order pursuant to § 37.2-808, involuntary temporary detention order pursuant to § 37.2-809, involuntary hospitalization order pursuant to § 37.2-817, or emergency custody order of a conditionally released acquittee pursuant to § 19.2-182.9, is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor.
A prosecution pursuant to this section may be either in the county, city or town in which the communication was made or received or in the City of Richmond if venue cannot otherwise be established and the person threatened is one of the following officials or employees of the Commonwealth and such official or employee was threatened while engaged in the performance of his public duties or because of his position with the Commonwealth: the Governor, Governor-elect, Lieutenant Governor, Lieutenant Governor-elect, Attorney General, or Attorney General-elect, a member or employee of the General Assembly, a justice of the Supreme Court of Virginia, or a judge of the Court of Appeals of Virginia.
§ 18.2-427. Use of profane, threatening, or indecent language over public airways or by other methods.
§ 18.2-57. Assault and battery; penalty.
A. Any person who commits a simple assault or assault and battery is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor, and if the person intentionally selects the person against whom a simple assault is committed because of his race, religious conviction, gender, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, color, or national origin, the penalty upon conviction shall include a term of confinement of at least six months.
B. However, if a person intentionally selects the person against whom an assault and battery resulting in bodily injury is committed because of his race, religious conviction, gender, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, color, or national origin, the person is guilty of a Class 6 felony, and the penalty upon conviction shall include a term of confinement of at least six months.
[other portions of statute omitted]§ 18.2-152.7:1. Harassment by computer; penalty.
A violation of this section may be prosecuted in the jurisdiction in which the communication was made or received or in the City of Richmond if venue cannot otherwise be established and the person subjected to the act is one of the following officials or employees of the Commonwealth and such official or employee was subjected to the act while engaged in the performance of his public duties or because of his position with the Commonwealth: the Governor, Governor-elect, Lieutenant Governor, Lieutenant Governor-elect, Attorney General, or Attorney General-elect, a member or employee of the General Assembly, a justice of the Supreme Court of Virginia, or a judge of the Court of Appeals of Virginia.
§ 18.2-83. Threats to bomb or damage buildings or means of transportation; false information as to danger to such buildings, etc.; punishment; venue.
A. Any person (i) who makes and communicates to another by any means any threat to bomb, burn, destroy or in any manner damage any place of assembly, building or other structure, or any means of transportation, or (ii) who communicates to another, by any means, information, knowing the same to be false, as to the existence of any peril of bombing, burning, destruction or damage to any such place of assembly, building or other structure, or any means of transportation, is guilty of a Class 5 felony, provided, however, that if such person is under 15 years of age, he is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor.
B. A violation of this section may be prosecuted either in the jurisdiction from which the communication was made or in the jurisdiction where the communication was received or in the City of Richmond if venue cannot otherwise be established and the property threatened is owned by the Commonwealth and located within the Capitol District.
§ 18.2-49. Threatening, attempting or assisting in such abduction.
§ 18.2-59. Extortion of money, property or pecuniary benefit.
§ 18.2-60.1. Threatening the Governor or his immediate family.
§ 18.2-83. Threats to bomb or damage buildings or means of transportation; false information as to danger to such buildings, etc.; punishment; venue.
B. A violation of this section may be prosecuted either in the jurisdiction from which the communication was made or in the jurisdiction where the communication was received or in the City of Richmond if venue cannot otherwise be established and the property threatened is owned by the Commonwealth and located within the Capitol District.
